Guides for word nerds and language wranglers

Words to live and write by

BY RICHARD PACHTER

Word nerds (like me) usually look askance at most tomes on writing and language. After all, pedantic autodidacts and over-educated sesquipedalians already know how to wrangle language and massage messages. Oh, occasionally something like the bestselling Eats Shoots and Leaves catches our collective fancy, but that was merely an amusement, a momentary distraction. Genuine lingo gringos unfailingly poo-poo prosaic word books as beneath them (or us). Unless it's our Bible — not the Pentateuch, but the Associated Press Stylebook or The Chicago Manual of Style (according to your faith) — why bother?

Here's a look at the latest edition of the holy word and a recent would-be contender.

Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law. Associated Press/BasicBooks. 465 pages. (Also available by online subscription and as an app for mobile devices.)

I've never heard it called by its proper name, but the "AP Style Guide'' is used by businesses and publications throughout the country. This new version caused a bit of a buzz when it was announced that "Website'' would no longer be capitalized. Trust me, this was a very big deal, though "Internet'' inexplicably remains capitalized. (Huh?) But a technical writer of my acquaintance was VERY excited about this quantum leap, as if her world was now a brighter and happier place. Such is the power of this humble volume!

This resource is used in newspapers throughout the English-speaking world as an authority on usage, punctuation, abbreviation and more. It's also a fixture in the dens and cubicles of Anglophone business writers and other scribblers throughout the planet seeking authoritative guidance in their use of language for legal writing, ads and marketing communications material.

This new edition of the Stylebook is also available online (by subscription, with site licenses and individual deals, too.) In addition, an app (a recent addition to the Stylebook, apparently) for iPhones, iPads and iPods is also offered. These electronic versions afford immediate access to updates, so if the AP ever decides to allow "Internet'' in lowercase, subscribers will be the first to know.

The Yahoo! Style Guide: Writing and Editing for the Web. Chris Barr. St.Martin's Press. 528 pages.

Though Google rules search, Yahoo's strategy of providing actual content as part of their soufflé of search and aggregation is still in place. As such, they've become a bit of an authority on content creation, and their style guide is a very nice grab bag of tools, ideas and instructions. A lot of it is Copywriting 101-level fare; a far cry from AP's no-nonsense journalism, but even the most recalcitrant news-o will admit that writing for the Web requires a sharp, punchy prose style that's more tabloid than "Times,'' though accuracy and clarity still reign. It might be less hyperbolic than copywriting, but it still needs to sell — itself, at the very least.

For many writers, this style guide won't be anything new and it's certainly no replacement for AP's collection of golden standards, but for neophytes and others, this is a fine course.

Originally published in The Miami Herald

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"What can I help you with RIGHT NOW?"

"Is there a project that you're working on that I can help you complete? Something to write, proofread, edit, design (etc)?"

Instead of waiting for an assignment, a creative brief, a return phone call, email or whatever after your meeting, ask and you'll increase your chances of going home with a gig immediately. No waiting!

Working with words to sell products, services and ideas

The effective use of language in print, on the air and online can sell gadgets and unpopular policies, according to the authors of three recent books.
BY RICHARD PACHTER

Writing — how words are chosen and arranged to convey meaning and elicit a response — is a craft. Although most literate people can write to express themselves, recount experiences or persuade, in the world of business, the heavy lifting is often left to the professionals. Here are three new books by word mavens who share their wisdom and insights with the rest of us.



The Adweek Copywriting Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Powerful Advertising and Marketing Copy from One of America's Top Copywriters. Joseph Sugarman. John Wiley & Sons. 338 pages.

At the dawn of the tech age, in the seventies, Joe Sugarman revolutionized direct-response advertising for his company, JS&A. With a minimal amount of art and images, he hawked electronic gadgets and tchotchkes that were irresistibly described in several powerful paragraphs, creatively conceived and crafted by Sugarman himself.

Of course, when the CEO is also the chief creative executive and advertising copywriter, he had better be good or the company will soon be selling off its own furniture. Sugarman was very good, indeed, so he eventually conducted seminars on copywriting for other executives and business owners and charged a pretty penny for admission.

This book, which costs considerably less, is an excellent course for writers and others involved with using words to sell their products and services. There's ample discussion of the craft, reasons people buy things and other pertinent topics, all presented in an amiable and interesting manner. While it is certainly no surprise that the author is a fine writer of short text, he is also engaging, inspirational and energizing in a sustained context as well.



E-Mail Selling Techniques (That Really Work!). Stephan Schiffman. Adams Media. 160 pages.
I get tons of spam every day, as I'm sure you do, too, but as I have no need for pills to extend and sustain my extremities, nor interest in investment entreaties from widows of deposed Nigerian factotums, I generally dump the dross. But if I'm already engaged in an e-mail conversation or transaction with a client, vendor, colleague or prospect, good communication is essential.

Schiffman is a sales professional and applies his expertise in advising how to devise, target and create effective electronic messages. His slim manual offers a sharp and succinct discussion of the subject, including when not to use e-mail, which is good to know. He also touches on kindred media, including newsletters and blogging.

Though most effective salespeople are usually excellent communicators, they will surely benefit from Schiffman's insights and instructions.



Words That Work: It's Not What You Say, It's What People Hear. Frank Luntz. Hyperion. 350 pages.
As a pollster and spin doctor for the Republican Party, Luntz did an effective job in providing linguistic cover for their programs, policies and actions over the past dozen years or so. He's the guy who renamed the estate tax, ''the death tax'' and was one of the brains behind Newt Gingrich's "Contract for America."

This expertise in repositioning and reframing the competition to make them sound evil or unpleasant and taking opposing practices and cloaking them in positive and unthreatening language will surely appeal to certain segments of the business world.

Probably without intending to, Luntz provides an effective self-indictment of the politics of dishonesty and obfuscation, though in a last-minute addition, he does offer some self-effacing honesty. The book's addendum, a post-game analysis of his party's recent electoral failures, blames the ineffective ways it communicated with the public, listing the Terri Schiavo matter, Hurricane Katrina and other issues, though not the Foley affair, which may have been the last straw.

But in one sentence, a ray of honesty pokes through, as Luntz writes, "Not everything about what happened to Republicans in 2006 can be explained away by bad language. There was Iraq.''

You think?

published in The Miami Herald on 1/15/07