Letting go of the words

Context

I wanted to improve my written communication skills (optimize for clarity)

Is the book for me?

• I would recommend it if you’re interested in critically analyzing your written artifacts
• It is applicable to all forms of writing: slack messages, design documents, sprint review talking points
• Keep in mind that the book is quite detail-oriented

I’m interested! Where should I start?

The table of contents is extremely helpful. I recommend you start by scanning it and see if anything speaks to you.

I also provide below what I think is the best benefit for time spent:

• Chapter 1 provides a good introduction for the philosophy of writing
• Chapters 6, 8, 9 are highly relevant
• Chapters 5, 10, 12, 13 are somewhat relevant
• Other chapters are mostly not relevant because it covers web UI/UX

What learnings should I expect?

• A lot of it is common sense, but well explained and with examples
• Having a before & after of each writing rule the author explains. This was extremely beneficial for me to notice the anti-patterns I am using in my day to day.
• A few links to research papers about how language can impact understanding

How long would it take me to read it?

The chapters are independent and created to be grab-and-go so it depends on which part you want to focus on.

I personally went over the book in ~5 hours (Chapters 1,5,6,8,9,10,12,13 in detail and skimming the rest).

Takeaway: re-think how people read what I write

• Put your key message first
• Always assume that people will skim and scan what you write
• Adapt your writing to make it easy to skim and scan (eg. with relevant headings) Ask for big-picture and small picture feedback

Takeaway: re-think how I write sentences

• Keep sentences short (< 10-20 words if possible)
• Limit excessive punctuation (< 1-2 commas)
• Simplify heavy wording
• Write in active voice and prefer strong verbs Keep subject + verb + object close together

Takeaway: re-think how I organize information

• Avoid long paragraphs, one or two sentences is a valid length
• Prefer tables when the information is if/then, or to avoid repetition
• Prefer unordered lists when presenting options
• Prefer numbered lists when presenting steps to follow
• Keep the same structure when writing lists