BCOM Chapter 4

fitting your writing to your readers requires the reader analysis – you should study your readers to find out what they are like, then write in a way that will communicate well to them

business audiences tend to prefer simple, efficient sentences over long, complex ones. This can save readers time and also prevent miscommunication

shorter wordings can save the reader time and are clearer and more interesting

and uneconomical working – a phrase that can be relapsed by shorter wording without loss of meaning

all the words that add nothing to the sentence meaning – these should be eliminated

covering the same ground of a direct sentence, but just going about it in a roundabout way

carry more emphasis that long, involved sentences

When two independent clauses get about equal emphasis

when one independent clause and one dependent clause happens – one gets more emphasis than the other

good sentences have unity – all parts of the sentence work together to create one clear point

combining two unrelated ideas is the more obvious violation of unity

putting too much detail into one sentence tends to hide the central thought and it also makes the sentence too long

when two different kinds of sentences are mixed together – such as active voice and passive voice, or first person to third person, etc.

Certain words used early in a sentence signal the rest of the sentence will provide a certain kind of content – and sometimes this is not fulfilled. example: \”she was so happy with the retirement party we gave her\”…… then what?

the people who the opening phrase is suppose to modify have been left out – making the phrase a dangling modifier

When the modifier of the sentence is simply misplaced

readers expect the same kinds of content to be worded the same way – example: to create a more appealing website, we can gather personal stories, create a new logo, AS WELL AS making the layout more readable right way: to create a more appealing website, we can gather personal stories, create a new logo, AND make the layout more readable

like sentences, paragraphs should have unity – the paragraphs should stick to the same ideas (also, keep paragraphs short!)

expresses the main idea of a paragraph, and remaining sentences build around it and support it – serves as a HEADLINE for the paragraph

this quality of enabling readers to proceed easily through your message, without side trips and backward shifts – so arrange your information in a logical order

1. Repetition of Key Words and Ideas 2. Use of Pronouns 3. Transitional Words