UNIT 2 THE WRITING PROCESS BUSINESS ENGLISH 383 PROF. ANA GELP LEBRN P.U.C.P.R.
MAYAGUEZ
Grammar in writing
Creating the business message
Goals of business writing
Audience oriented- receivers perspective Purposeful to persuade or inform
Why
am I sending this message? What do I hope to achieve?
Economical
present ideas clearly and concisely
The writing process
Prewriting - analyzing, anticipating, adapting
Analyze audience Purpose for writing Anticipate readers needs/questions
Writing researching, organizing, composing
Organize
material and compose
Revising revising, proofreading, evaluating
Correcting,
rewriting, coherence and unity
Selecting the channel
Factors to keep in mind (see pg 36 table)
Importance
of the message Amount and speed of feedback and interactivity required. Need of a permanent record Cost of the channel Degree of formality desired.
Profiling the audience
Profiling means knowing your audience. Helps to tailor your message to the audience.
Who is the primary reader? What position does this person hold in the organization? What are the persons education, beliefs, opinion, culture or attitude? How much does this person know about the subject? Is there a secondary audience? To be good, it ought to have a tendency to
Adapting the message
Create a message that suits your audience.
Tone
of message is conveyed through words.
Spotlight
benefits; focuses on receivers needs
Cultivate
the you attitude, sound conversational and positive. Positive conveys more information Its more uplifting and pleasant
Conversational tone
Avoid slang terms, or the use of phrases such as, like, totally awesome, you know, "or abbreviations BTW(by the way). A warm friendly tone, but not too casual. Dont try to impress by using big words that may confuse or sound too formal. Use words that include and not exclude, for example, gender-free language. Use positive language.
Conversational tone
vocabulary
vocabulary
Uses simple English
Ascertain
learn Compensate pay Conceptualize see Monitor check Operational working Terminate end
Remuneration pay Stipulate require Anxious nervous Perplexingtroubling
Professional and Conversational
Unprofessional
Professional
Hey, boss, Gr8 news! Firewall now installed!! BTW, check with me b4 announcing it. Look, dude, this report is totally bogus. And the figures dont look kosher. Show me some real stats. Got sources?
Mr. Smith, our new firewall software is now installed. Please check with me before announcing it. Because the figures in this report seem inaccurate, please submit the source statistics.
Formatting messages
Research collect information that will be needed in the message. Make an outline it will give a logical sequence and coherence to the message. It helps to organize your thoughts. Use the direct or indirect pattern in writing.
Direct
format good news Indirect format negative or persuasive news
THE CORRECT WRITING FORMAT :
Deductive Writing Used in good news or positive letters and neutral messages. Presents good news first. Followed by supporting details Has a good will closing and ends with a positive note
It is easier to read First sentence attracts attention. Puts reader in a pleasant frame of mind. Saves time, once they get the important idea, they skim over the details. Used in writing memos, inquiry letters, orders, adjustments, claims
Deductive method used for pleasant or routine messages
The body of this type of letter is as follows:
Paragraph 1( 1-3 sentences)
States
the main idea immediately
What you want or want done
Paragraph 2 (8-10 sentences)
Background
information, supporting details or explanations. goodwill, thank reader, remind reader of the main idea.
Paragraph 3 (1-3 sentences)
Create
Inductive writing format
Used for bad news letter or persuasive letters. Used for writing refusal, collection, and negative claims letters. It has a negative tone. Presents a negative idea in positive terms which is more likely to be accepted. Respects the feeling
You must use empathy and diplomacy. Avoid using words such as : complaint, overlooked, lied, mistake, neglect, ridiculous, error, irresponsible, upset, wrong, ignores or inexcusable. Use approval, accurate, generous, correct, assist, appreciate,
Inductive Format
Paragraph 1 (8-10 sentences)
Gives
explanation, background information or evidence is placed first. (psychologically prepares the reader; you anticipate the readers reaction) Paragraph 2 ( 1-3 sentences)
States
the main idea. What you want or want
done.
Paragraph
Closes
3 Closing ( 1-3 sentences)
on a positive note, and may offer help
Combination/ Direct Indirect Format
Presents good and bad news Presents the good news first Follows the indirect order by providing the reasons for the bad news, then states the bad news.
The body is developed as follows:
Paragraph 1
Good
news, give main message and supporting details news-main message
Paragraph 2
Bad
Good will closing
Close
note
on a positive
Courtesy
Avoid using phrases such as:
You
should You must tend to be pushy/aggressive You have to For example:
You must complete the report by Friday. Will you please complete the report by Friday. You should organize a car pool in this department. Organizing a car pool will reduce your transportation costs and help preserve the
Inclusive language
Avoids sexist language. Some words have the male gender and exclude females.
For
example: foreman, chairman, policeman, mailman, workman, fireman. Use: Supervisor, chairperson, police officer, mail carrier, worker, firefighter. The pronoun his was used to replace men and women. Today writers replace the common gender with an alternate construction.
Inclusive language
Example: Every attorney has ten minutes for his summation. (sexist) Examples of revision
All
attorneys have ten minutes for their summation. Attorneys have ten minutes for summations. Every attorney has ten minutes for a summation. Every attorney has ten minutes for his or her summation.
Plain English
Use familiar and meaningful words. Words that will be understood by the reader. Unfamiliar familiar ascertain learn compensate pay conceptualize see encompass include monitor check perpetuate continue
Effective sentences
A simple sentence: a group of words that express one complete thought. A compound sentence is made up of two simple, independent sentences separated by a comma and a conjunction or a semicolon. A complex sentence is the combination of an independent sentence and a dependent sentence. A dependent sentence is a group of words that can not stand alone. They usually
Compound sentence
The team project was challenging. Simple We were happy with the results. Sentence Compound sentence: The team project was challenging, and we were happy with the results. The team project was challenging; we were happy with the results. The team project was challenging;
Complex sentences
Contains an independent sentence and a dependent sentence or clause. Dependent clauses are usually introduced with subordinating words such as: although, if, because, since, after, until, when. Example:
When
the team project was completed yesterday. We presented the project to the Board. When the team project was completed, we