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Letting Go of the Little Things
Editing for the big picture.
Leah Guren
Cow TC
© 2015 Leah Guren
Agenda
 What’s it all about?
 Back to basics
 What to leave out
 Cut, clarify, and refine
 Finding creative solutions
 Conclusion and discussion
What’s it all about?
 Many people focus on proofreading:
 punctuation and spelling
 some rewriting for clarity
 The problem is that nicely-written
content can still fail if it is:
 wrong for target audience
 illogical, unnecessary, or not useful
 But big-picture editing is difficult
because you have to:
 use your brains, logic, and research skills
 take initiative
 be fearless
Back to basics!
 What is the document purpose?
 Who is the audience?
 What info do they need?
 How does the doc fit in the overall
strategy?
A Case Study
Document: manual for a medical
device
Intended audience: nurses and
doctors
Contained: patient-facing info
What to Leave Out
Let it goat go!
Consider the learning curve.
 Users often have a short, steep
learning curve.
 If you focus on the novice experience,
you skew the shelf-life.
 Solution: strip novice info into a
tutorial or Getting Started topic.
Consider natural exploration.
 User discovery is fine for non-critical
info.
 Ask:
 can they get by without this info?
 do they need it right now?
 Solution: allow users to explore and
discover on their own.
I am on a UI
adventure!
Drop redundancy.
 Avoid excess repetition.
 Avoid multiple methods.
 Solution: determine the best way the
user would perform an action.
Skip low-probability actions.
 Avoid odd-ball tasks.
 Solution: write an
application note.
 Discussion: what about
mystery legacy content?
How to make
cottage cheese
before milking.
Cut, Clarify, and Refine
You’ve got this!
Remove fluff.
 Extra words and empty phrases.
 Pompous or overly-formal writing.
 Solution: restate in simplest form.
Flufffffffy!
Purge ambiguity.
 If it is open to interpretation, it is wrong.
 Watch vague modifiers.
 Solution: rewrite to avoid any
confusion.
I thought it
was cheesy.
Refine.
 Once the meaning is clear and simple,
rewrite for style.
 Test.
 Solution: try several iterations.
Quality takes
effort and
practice.
Find Creative Solutions
Shift your focus!
Take a different approach.
 Replace words with a graphic.
 Try a flowchart instead of a text-based
procedure.
 Place content in the UI.
 Solution: get away from your desk
and oxygenate your brain.
 Exercise
Conclusion and Discussion
 Rethink the scope of your TC role.
 Consider what you can leave out.
 Cut, clarify, and refine.
 Find creative solutions.
 What’s your best tip?
Thank you!
Leah Guren
Cow TC
technical communication
training & consulting
tel: (+972) 54-485-3473
email: leah@cowtc.com
website: www.cowtc.com
A butter
approach to
TC…

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Letting go of the little things

  • 1. Letting Go of the Little Things Editing for the big picture. Leah Guren Cow TC © 2015 Leah Guren
  • 2. Agenda  What’s it all about?  Back to basics  What to leave out  Cut, clarify, and refine  Finding creative solutions  Conclusion and discussion
  • 3. What’s it all about?  Many people focus on proofreading:  punctuation and spelling  some rewriting for clarity  The problem is that nicely-written content can still fail if it is:  wrong for target audience  illogical, unnecessary, or not useful  But big-picture editing is difficult because you have to:  use your brains, logic, and research skills  take initiative  be fearless
  • 4. Back to basics!  What is the document purpose?  Who is the audience?  What info do they need?  How does the doc fit in the overall strategy?
  • 5. A Case Study Document: manual for a medical device Intended audience: nurses and doctors Contained: patient-facing info
  • 6. What to Leave Out Let it goat go!
  • 7. Consider the learning curve.  Users often have a short, steep learning curve.  If you focus on the novice experience, you skew the shelf-life.  Solution: strip novice info into a tutorial or Getting Started topic.
  • 8. Consider natural exploration.  User discovery is fine for non-critical info.  Ask:  can they get by without this info?  do they need it right now?  Solution: allow users to explore and discover on their own. I am on a UI adventure!
  • 9. Drop redundancy.  Avoid excess repetition.  Avoid multiple methods.  Solution: determine the best way the user would perform an action.
  • 10. Skip low-probability actions.  Avoid odd-ball tasks.  Solution: write an application note.  Discussion: what about mystery legacy content? How to make cottage cheese before milking.
  • 11. Cut, Clarify, and Refine You’ve got this!
  • 12. Remove fluff.  Extra words and empty phrases.  Pompous or overly-formal writing.  Solution: restate in simplest form. Flufffffffy!
  • 13. Purge ambiguity.  If it is open to interpretation, it is wrong.  Watch vague modifiers.  Solution: rewrite to avoid any confusion. I thought it was cheesy.
  • 14. Refine.  Once the meaning is clear and simple, rewrite for style.  Test.  Solution: try several iterations. Quality takes effort and practice.
  • 16. Take a different approach.  Replace words with a graphic.  Try a flowchart instead of a text-based procedure.  Place content in the UI.  Solution: get away from your desk and oxygenate your brain.  Exercise
  • 17. Conclusion and Discussion  Rethink the scope of your TC role.  Consider what you can leave out.  Cut, clarify, and refine.  Find creative solutions.  What’s your best tip?
  • 18. Thank you! Leah Guren Cow TC technical communication training & consulting tel: (+972) 54-485-3473 email: leah@cowtc.com website: www.cowtc.com A butter approach to TC…