The former and the latter, and respectively, are often used to avoid repetition and save words. But thinking of the reader, it is better to write more clearly so there is no doubt about the intended meaning and what refers to what.

Readers might be reading quickly, skimming and scanning the text, and not familiar with the content. It can be hard to track words in very long and complex sentences. Not all readers know the former refers to the first of two things (remember f and f), and the latter refers to the second or last of two things (remember l and l). Don’t risk a confused reader.

The use of respectively might appear to save words, but it is better to rearrange a sentence and be absolutely clear. The example below shows how the former, the latter and respectively can be avoided without wordiness.

Compare these three options:

1. Two surveys of employees and employers were undertaken. The former is discussed in Chapter 6 and the latter in Chapter 7.
2. The surveys of employees and employers are discussed in Chapter 6 and Chapter 7 respectively.
3. The survey of employees is discussed in Chapter 6 and the survey of employers in Chapter 7.

It’s all part of the make it easy for the reader mantra.

Please contact me for editing, writing or communication inquiries at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

Is NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) relevant for non-fiction writers and thesis writers? Yes, indeed. The month shows the power of a target and a deadline.

The concept of NaNoWriMo is based on writing 50,000 words of your novel between 1 November and 30 November. There’s no limit on how many people can win! Everyone can be a winner.

Targets of words per day, week or month can work for writing tasks when you know roughly what your target word count is, and can divide the total by the time available.

While both the word count and the deadline in NaNoWriMo are arbitrary, the targets do seem to work for many people and can help achieve a first draft.

It is easier to edit and improve work once the words are on the page. Knowing something is a just a first draft to be refined later also helps overcome writer’s block or the need for perfection the first time.

NaNoWriMo also answers the question: what do I do after the month is over? If nothing else, congratulate yourself on your hard work.

For more, see my previous related blogs on:

• Is writing your new year’s resolution?
• Rushing writing to meet deadlines
• What I really want to say is…
• Paralysed by perfection and permanence

Please contact me for editing, writing or communication inquiries at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

Headings are so important in guiding readers, I’ve already written about Are your headings helpful? and Make your email headings clear and informative. Here’s more on two approaches for high impact headings.

1. Use alluring alliteration

Alliteration is the repetition of the same or similar sound in a series of words, usually at the beginning but sometimes within the words. Alliteration usually refers to a consonant sound (known as consonance), while assonance is the repetition of a vowel sound. Alliteration captures readers’ attention without them even realising. It is memorable and flows.

If a simple word change retains or enhances meaning, try alliteration in headings. But don’t overdo it and don’t distort the intended meaning just to achieve alliteration. Keep it for more informal or casual writing.

2. Use questions or answers

Headings can be phrased as questions or provide answers. Questions like who, what, why, where and how provide a good structure if it suits the topic. These work well for shorter documents like explanatory brochures or factsheets.

For longer document, headings worded as answers or statements can save time for readers, and the table of contents becomes a good summary of the document. Avoid generic headings which do not have high impact.

See more on high impact headings with a table of contents:

• Use your table of contents to check consistency of headings
• Creating a table of contents – the easy way

Please contact me for editing, writing or communication inquiries at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

In my editing work, “recently” and “currently” appear in much of the material I read, particularly in literature reviews. But the studies referred to are several years or even decades old and no longer recent or current at all, particularly as research methods are ever-changing and improving.

It is tempting to use recently and currently to avoid being specific about dates, and thus keep interpretation open and avoid being wrong. The risk is appearing vague and out-of-date, and confusing to readers.

• Does “currently…” mean today, this week, this month, this calendar year, this financial year or this term of government?
• Does “recently…” mean this century or last century?
• Does “in recent decades…” mean the last two decades or the last three or four?

Recent and current are only useful for readers if is very clear what timeframe is being referred to. Context is important. Recently in geological time is very different from recently in the daily news cycle. Both the date the writer is writing and the date the reader is likely to be reading need to be clear and known. Will “currently” written at the beginning of a PhD still be current 4 years later when examined?

Think about what you want the reader to know and use a more specific time indicator than recently or currently wherever possible.

To help decide when recently is recent and currently is current, please contact me on rhdaniels@bigpond.com

Does grammar matter? Yes, as shown in a recent article titled “War of words: why journalists need to understand grammar to write accurately about violence” on The Conversation by Annabelle Lukin, Associate Professor of Linguistics at Macquarie University.

In a reminder of the power of grammar to convey responsibility for an action, the article highlights the impact of grammatical structures such as:

• using active or passive voice
• using main versus dependent clauses
• turning verbs into nouns to avoid human responsibility.

Passive voice in particular can be problematic as Lukin explains: “The passive voice puts the object of the action first. Because the passive voice puts the people or things acted on before the verb, writers have a choice about whether or not to name the agent of the action.” The many comments on the article highlight some of the difficulties in determining who is responsible for an action.

As well as grammatical structures, choice of individual words such as verbs, nouns and adjectives is also important. In media articles, choices of headlines and accompanying photographs and captions have high impact.

Don’t dismiss grammar. Grammatical choices help present our view of the world to others, so think carefully about choices.

See my related blogs on:

• Use the active voice in writing
• What’s the purpose of grammar?
• Be inclusive with gender-neutral language

For editing and writing inquiries, contact me at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

A thesaurus is a book or an online resource which has synonyms for common words. It can be both useful and dangerous in writing.

It is tempting to use a thesaurus to introduce variety into writing. To avoid using the same word twice in the same sentence, paragraph or page, you check a thesaurus for a synonym – an alternative or substitute.

But if you choose the wrong synonym, you may be changing the intended meaning. English can be very complex with subtle variations in meaning, as a good dictionary can show. Consider these pairs of similar verbs:

• diminish and reduce
• retain and maintain
• represent and resemble
• accomplish and achieve.

Often it is appropriate, and best, to repeat the same word if that is the best or most precise word for the context.

Be careful when using a thesaurus to paraphrase text to avoid plagiarism. If you are unsure how to reword someone else’s work and retain the meaning, it may be better to use quote marks and provide the source to indicate the words are a direct quote from a reference.

Used thoughtfully, a thesaurus can be a friend of good writing, but take care it is not a foe.

For editing and writing inquiries, contact me at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

Authors often seek or gain feedback from many sources when writing something important. The feedback could be from co-authors, colleagues, clients, supervisors, reviewers, examiners or editors. The feedback can also be in many forms from correcting errors and specific wording changes to broader comments about direction, arguments, emphasis or content. But how to handle diverse and conflicting feedback to finalise the writing?

All feedback is useful but it can be impossible to address all feedback in the one document.

• Be clear about the overall purpose and audience, and any specific requirements of the writing.
• Focus on the most important elements, particularly if there is a word limit, space constraint or deadline.
• Consider what feedback can be addressed most easily and quickly, particularly if there is a deadline.
• Consider when feedback can be addressed – now or in later versions.
• Consider who is providing the feedback, and why.
• Explain how and why feedback has been addressed or not. There may be a formal mechanism for this such as a response to reviewers or examiners.
• Recognise and accept you can’t always meet all the needs of everyone involved.

Editors can help writers evaluate feedback and focus on the reader and purpose.

For editing and writing inquiries, contact me at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

Being successful in a grant or award application means relying on someone else to make an important decision. And when relying on others to judge your work, it helps to know and meet their criteria as closely as possible.

Make it easy for grant assessors by meeting their requirements in several areas.

• Content: provide the content asked for at the right level of detail, and use any suggested headings.
• Length: be aware of word count limits for specific sections, or even character counts.
• Format: provide information in the format required, which may be attachments, tables, budgets, plans or photos.
• Deadline: be aware of the submission process, allow time to complete all the steps of the process, and submit by the deadline.

Other tips

• Allow plenty of time to read the requirements, prepare a draft application and review it.
• Ask people who have successfully applied for the grant or award for tips.
• Learn from feedback, either generic or specific, on previous applications.

Sometimes instructions can be very long and detailed, added to over time to address common issues or mistakes often made, and it can be easy to overlook specific requirements. An editor can increase your chances of success by reading the grant requirements and your draft response, highlighting unmet requirements and suggesting improvements. Editing can be an excellent return on investment for grant, award and job applications.

For editing and writing inquiries, contact me at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

Despite the valuable work of editors, they often don’t have a high profile. While newspaper or magazine editors can be well known names, editors who do substantive editing, copyediting and proofreading can be almost invisible. The cover designer of a book may get more recognition than the book’s editor. Editors work closely with authors of both fiction and non-fiction to improve their work to better meet the needs of readers.

To learn more about the working life of an editor, check these four books: three are autobiographies or memoirs and one is a biography.

• Under Cover (2015) by Craig Munro, editor at University of Queensland Press
• The Word Detective: A Life in Words (2016) by John Simpson, editor of Oxford English Dictionary
• The Subversive Copy Editor (2016, 2^nd edition) by Carol Fisher Saller, Q&A editor for Chicago Manual of Style at University of Chicago Press
• Max Perkins: Editor of Genius (1978, re-released 2016) by A. Scott Berg about editor Max Perkins of American publishing house Scribner’s. Winner of the National Book Award for Biography (US), it is the basis of the film Genius (2016) starring Colin Firth.

The end-of-year holidays are a great time for reading (as is the rest of the year). Hope there are books under your Christmas tree which have been carefully edited.

Under Cover

The Word Detective

The Subversive Copy Editor

Max Perkins: Editor of Genius