Writing for Business covers writing principles that are relevant for a wide range of business documents, including email, letters, memos, reports, proposals, and more, while also offering editing tips to ensure you come across as professional and polished.

Table of Contents

• Introduction A Philosophy of Workplace Writing
• Chapter 1. Getting to the Point in Email
• 1.1 Email Subject Lines
• 1.2 The Subject Is Not Part of Your Email Message
• 1.3 The Point of Your Email
• Chapter 2. Email Salutations
• 2.1 Salutation Punctuation
• 2.2 Email Salutations for One Recipient
• 2.3 Email Salutations for an Unknown Recipient
• 2.4 Email Salutations for Multiple Recipients
• 2.5 Recipient Names in Email
• 2.6 May I Stop Greeting You Yet?
• Chapter 3. Email Closings
• 3.1 Closing Format
• 3.2 Closing Words
• 3.3 Signature Files
• Chapter 4. Email Models and Makeovers
• 4.1 Bullets Are Helpful But No Panacea!
• 4.2 Explain Your Attachments
• 4.3 Emailing a Letter and Resume
• 4.4 Informational Stinginess in Email
• 4.5 Bad News and Diplomacy
• 4.6 Sudden Attacks of Formality
• 4.7 Don't Put Disparate Topics in the Same Email
• 4.8 Don't Write Like a Telegram
• Chapter 5. Mind Your Email Details
• 5.1 Capitalization in Email Messages
• 5.2 Email Font Should Be Boring
• 5.3 Exclamation Points in Email
• 5.4 Ellipses and Dashes … Running Amok
• 5.5 Aggressive Punctuation!!!
• 5.6 Abbreviations and Emojis
• 5.7 Responding to Careless Emailers
• Chapter 6. Special Topics in Email
• 6.1 Copying Etiquette
• 6.2 Minimize Use of “Reply All”
• 6.3 The Ethics of Forwarding
• 6.4 Automatic Replies: Handle with Care
• 6.5 Blind Copying: Benefits and Risks
• 6.6 Don't Email in Anger
• 6.7 Handheld Devices Are No Excuse
• 6.8 Urgent Email: How Urgent Is It?
• 6.9 The Etiquette of Read Receipts
• 6.10 Reducing Email Volume
• 6.11 Reader Responsibilities
• Chapter 7. The Creative Process: Idea Generation
• 7.1 Brainstorming
• 7.2 Freewriting
• 7.3 Research and Notetaking
• 7.4 Outlining
• 7.5 Try Going Tech- Free
• Chapter 8. The Structure of Longer Documents
• 8.1 The Thesis and the Introduction
• 8.2 Don't Use Transitional Expressions as Organizational Bandages
• 8.3 Order of Ideas
• 8.4 Detail and the Body Paragraph
• 8.5 The Length of the Body Paragraph
• 8.6 Conclusions for Longer Documents
• Chapter 9. Notes on Different Document Types
• 9.1 Business Letters Aren't Dead
• 9.2 Presentation Slides as Textual Assaults
• 9.3 Thank-You Notes Move Mountains
• 9.4 Instant Messaging: No Excuse for Bad Writing
• 9.5 Common Weaknesses in Proposals
• 9.6 The Template Trap
• Chapter 10. The Art of the Sentence
• 10.1 Neverending Sentences
• 10.2 Sentence Structure Basics
• 10.3 Sentence Variety
• 10.4 Comma Splices: Beware!
• 10.5 Problematic Passive Voice
• 10.6 Excessive Use of Prepositional Phrases
• Chapter 11. Word Choice and Writing Dynamism
• 11.1 Wordiness: Too Much Is Too Much
• 11.2 Ornate Language and Faux Fanciness
• 11.3 Jargon and Business Buzzwords
• 11.4 Clichés and Trite Language
• 11.5 Don't Write Like a Business Robot
• 11.6 Precision Has Business Value
• 11.7 Excessive Use of Linking Verbs
• Chapter 12. Writing Myths
• 12.1 Myth #1. Don't begin a sentence with because.
• 12.2 Myth #2. Don't begin a sentence with and or but.
• 12.3 Myth #3. Don't end a sentence with a preposition.
• 12.4 Myth #4. Don't split an infinitive.
• 12.5 Myth #5. Never use I think, I feel, I hope.
• Chapter 13. Editing Tips
• 13.1 Check Your Eyesight
• 13.2 The Psychology of Writing
• 13.3 Outlining as an Organization Check
• 13.4 Process Management
• 13.5 Reference Materials and Technology Tools
• 13.6 Print and Read Your Document
• 13.7 Editing Teamwork!
• Conclusion
• About the Author
• About Syntaxis