Clarity is Key: Making Writing Clean and Concise

$50.00

Clarity is Key: Making Writing Clean and Concise

This short online course focuses on ways to make communication clearer and more engaging. We’ll discuss several topic areas in detail, show problem spots to watch for and practice what we’ve learned.

This course has been newly updated in 2023. It can be taken independently or as part of the ACES Certificate in Editing.

Start Anytime

Overview

  • Take this course independently or as part of the ACES Certificate in Editing.
  • Eschew excess verbiage (that is, cut extra words).
  • Become an expert in handling verbosity, passive voice, redundancies, jargon, math, modifiers, transitions and more.

$50.00

Learning Outcomes

The job of an editor often is to help make writing clearer – and therefore more engaging – to audiences. In this course you’ll learn:

  • Why clarity matters
  • How to cut extra words, avoiding redundancies and wordy phrases
  • How to recognize and when to use active vs. passive voice
  • Why plain language beats jargon and unnecessarily big words every time
  • How to construct straightforward sentences, avoid misplaced modifiers and do the math for your readers

$50.00

Overview

  • Take this course independently or as part of the ACES Certificate in Editing.
  • Eschew excess verbiage (that is, cut extra words).
  • Become an expert in handling verbosity, passive voice, redundancies, jargon, math, modifiers, transitions and more.

Training five or more people?
Check out our custom training.

“Clarity is Key” focuses on ways to make writing clearer and more engaging to audiences. 

Clarity is the heart and soul of this course, which drills down into specific ways that editors can tighten and brighten copy that will improve the reader experience and provide greater credibility for news organizations.

Clarity helps readers understand and engage with a piece of writing. When it’s easy and smooth for a reader to move through writing, they’re focused on the content. No one ever complains that something is “too clear.” Too long, too dense, too convoluted, too confusing – yes. But there’s no such thing as too clear.

This course has been newly updated in 2023. It can be taken independently or as part of the ACES Certificate in Editing.

Questions?

If you need assistance, email us at info@poynter.org.

Once you enroll in this online course, you can start any time and take the lessons on your own schedule. 

 

Who should enroll

This course is designed for editors who need help finding specific areas in which they can improve clarity for their audiences (while working closely with their writers). In addition, it’s a great course for writers who want to spend less time editing and more time reporting by providing concrete ways they can sharpen their work through shortening and simplifying.

Cost

$50.00

Instructors

  • Lisa McLendon
    Professor of Journalism and Mass Communications, University of Kansas
    Lisa McLendon runs the Bremner Editing Center at the University of Kansas journalism school, where she also teaches editing and grammar. She has previously worked...
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