ICN event: Focus on writing

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Stephanie Flynn
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1 ICN event: Focus on writing Sue Hagues, Internal Communications Manager, Malcolm Roberts, Internal Communications Officer, Jamie Coward, Senior Copywriter (Marketing) Robin Byles, Digital Editor (Marketing)

2 Headline writing styles Direct headlines go straight to the point. They should be clear, concise, and factual. A news headline is pretty self-explanatory. It should be factual, clear, timely and in the present active tense. The label headline is probably the most commonly used, especially for reports. This is a direct description of the content. Lastly is the how to headline which works because you genuinely want to learn something. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

3 Introductions: General tips Make your intro short and to the point (35 words or less ideally). Avoid humour or puns Pick the best, interesting, current, new, relevant fact in articles this is known as the news angle Grab the reader s interest but don t try to tell the whole story in one paragraph Tell the reader the point of the article or paper Make your audience care about what you are going to write 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

4 Intro example from THE A controversial paper that contains unorthodox views on the lineage of butterflies is today being held back from print because of question marks over whether a top academic broke the rules to get it published. It s short 35 words, intrigues the reader with words like controversial, held back and broke the rules, tells the audience what it s about and makes them care who is the academic, what has he done, and it is current in that this is happening today. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

5 Further information Handouts on headline styles and story construction as well as today s presentation will be available on the internal communications toolkit shortly at: 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

6 Story construction "I keep six honest serving men (they taught me all I knew); their names are What and Why and When And How And Where and Who." Rudyard Kipling 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

7 The war on drivel Stand up for better writing

8 Coming up Drivel George s rules Other weapons in the war on drivel. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

9 Drivel Noun: foolish talk Verb: to talk foolishly Synonyms: tripe, twaddle, nonsense, poppycock, gibberish, hogwash, gobbledygook, babble, hooey, balderdash and RUBBISH. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

10 We are writers Drivel is our enemy 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

11 Drivel strikes The Student Staff Forum exists in order that students can communicate issues or concerns about the quality of their learning experience that they feel are important and/or make suggestions for ways in which course programmes or modules might be better delivered and structured. In other words it is designed to give the student body a voice in the way teaching is managed and delivered. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

12 Drivel is defeated The Student Staff Forum gives students a say in the way courses are run. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

13 Our writing should be Engaging Clear Contemporary 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

14 George s rules Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech that you are used to seeing in print. Never use a long word where a short one will do. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. Never use the passive where you can use the active. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

15 Never use a figure of speech you are used to seeing in print. Metaphor was his Achilles heel. Coming up with an original simile was like looking for a needle in a haystack. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

16 Never use a long word when a short one will do. Subsequently = then Additionally = and However = but 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

17 If it s possible to cut a word out, cut it out. The Alumni Foundation is able to help departments buy vital equipment. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

18 Never use the passive when you can use the active. PASSIVE: Luke Skywalker is being trained by Yoda. ACTIVE: Yoda is training Luke Skywalker. PASSIVE: A poem is being written by Sylvia. ACTIVE: Sylvia is writing a poem. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

19 Never use jargon if you can think of a good alternative. This unit does not convey any smoking accommodation. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

20 This helps you focus Keep sentences to 15 words and one or two clauses max. If you have to break either of these rules, only do it ONCE in a paragraph. Paragraphs should be 45 words max. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

21 Yes we can Start a sentence with and as in: The event is open to everyone. And you don t have to be an expert to enjoy it. Use fragments in creative writing as in: Llamas, lions, lizards, lemurs. When will it end? 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

22 Impact of icy weather conditions Due to the ongoing adverse weather conditions, a further review of the situation has been undertaken. In light of today s very icy conditions, staff are reminded to take extra care when travelling to and from work and not to put their safety at risk. All University services are operating as normal today. Although extra gritting will be carried out, please do take care when travelling around campus as it is likely that some areas will still be icy underfoot. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

23 The University is open as normal today. Please take extra care on campus as it is still icy underfoot. 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

24 Remember you re a writer Read Question Read again Keep your tools handy Give yourself time 29/03/2011 The University of Sheffield

25 Read The more you read the better you write. Read everything: magazines, novels, poetry, advertisements, even the back of your crisp packet. Think about what you read. Be critical. 3/29/2011 The University of Sheffield

26 Keep your tools handy You re a writer. Take it seriously. Surround yourself with inspiring stuff. Pin up work you re proud of. Or stuff you hate. Keep dictionaries on your desk, or add them to your favourites. 3/29/2011 The University of Sheffield

27 Useful links Download the Editorial Style Guide: /03/2011 The University of Sheffield

28 Writing For The Web.

29 Contents Web addresses Headlines Readability Promoting your content Good practice Further reading

30 Web Addresses.

31 Web addresses The web address (alias) of the page you are publishing Built based on the structure of your site Search engines look for words to determine what the page is about and rank it accordingly Ensure keywords are used, eg ck-clegg-opens-solar-farm

32 Web Headlines.

33 Web headlines Main page title used as browser title in new CMS, so think about search engines What would people type to find it? Be clear and concise Use keywords (within reason) Avoid puns Try to tell the story don t be cryptic Avoid upper case SHOUTING Use sentence case, Not Title Case

34 Readability.

35 Readability People scan pages on the web so format the content to make it more readable Opening paragraph that summarises what is on the page seen in search results Keep sentences short Use paragraphs of three sentences maximum to group ideas Short bullet points are easier to read than listing items in a long sentence

36 Readability Use sub headers to show structure Google uses titles to index content Polopoly 8 and 9 both have this functionality: Polopoly 8 Polopoly 9 Title Subtitle Minor sub title Title Major subtitle Subtitle Minor subtitle

38 Promoting Your Content.

39 Promoting your content You have created an article page using the advice given Need to link to it from a homepage, section homepage or newsletter How you do this is important in terms of usability and can improve search engine rankings we use Google search Up to three things to consider: heading, promo text and link text

40 Promoting your content Heading: this may be all the person reads. Include the main fact/s, use keywords and make it eyecatching

41 Promoting your content Promo text: hook people in to the article with a summary of the content, or ask a question

42 Promoting your content Link text: make sure this is descriptive, telling people what they will get when they click. Don't use click here. If not linking to a web page, tell people. ie Steelers ticket offer (PDF, 327KB)

43 Promoting your content Good example: Bad example:

44 Good Practice.

45 Good practice Don t make specific references to time (eg today, tomorrow, last month). Instead refer to the specific date Use Plain English and avoid jargon Keep your writing simple. You can sound professional without adopting a formal or pompous tone Most acronyms should be explained the first time they are used on each page

46 Good practice Generally, it is better to convert PDF content into a web page that s easy to navigate and format it for the web Exceptions: - document needs to be printed - content has specific visual appearance - material is hard to convert in a meaningful way to a web page - material is excessively large or complex

47 Further Reading.

48 Further reading Internal Communications CMS Support site Style Guide guide.html Web Forum uspace area Web Marketing

49 Further reading Recruitment Support External sources Guardian Style Guide blog useit.com: Jakob Nielsen's website Plain English campaign

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