So now I’ve used my BNI elevator pitch in an eight-week series to orient my fellow members of Chapter 41 to my business. If they don’t have a pretty detailed impression by now, either they’re too preoccupied with their fruit assortments or I’m just not the communicator I thought I was. But now we’ve finally worked our way down to the last thing writers actually check before they close the envelope or click “send”: grammar, spelling and mechanics.
I hope my last few commercials have made clear just how much writers do besides ensuring that your copy is “correct”. That counts, too, though, and you’d be amazed how often people impair style and clarity or even make mistakes in the belief that they’re correcting a piece. The number one problem I see is misplaced or omitted commas that unintentionally alter or obscure meaning. Given how tricky this unassuming little squiggle can be, it’s no surprise people so often misapply it.
Then there’s the awkward, wooden tone that results from from thinking contractions like “we’ve” and other conversational expressions are somehow improper. And don’t even get me started on Spell Check! Professional writers need neither automated gimmicks nor schoolbook rigidity to fit your message to your image both crisply and correctly.
Web designers, graphic designers and marketers intuitively appreciate this ability, and hopefully when you see how editorial crafting makes their finished products shine, you will too. If yours aren’t using a writer already, why not put them in touch with me?
Nathan Keene, txt, inc.: Get it written.
Nathan Keene has taught and produced business writing for over 20 years. He was born in Idaho, raised in Alaska, has lived in Portland, Oregon, Tokyo, Japan, Berkeley, California, and Manhattan, New York (his favorite borough, after Brooklyn); he now lives in Brooklyn. He can't see Russia from his house, but he can see the Empire State Building. He lives with his wife, Astrid, and their cat, Merlin. He enjoys photography, music, museums, travel and cuisine, and dreams of building a summer cabin back in Alaska.
