 When I tell someone about the books I’ve written, there’s a good chance they’ll say, “I really want to write a book!” My response is generally, “No you don’t. You want to have written a book.”
For most people, the glossy book with their name on the cover is what they picture. The hours and hours of work that go into planning, writing, and rewriting their book don’t sound as appealing. Who has that kind of time? Refining your concept, fleshing it out, organizing things into a structure that makes sense to readers, expressing your ideas in a way everyone can understand, and on and on—writing a book is a huge undertaking when you are already busy with your career and life. It’s not something you can just “squeeze in” when you have a moment. Still, you'd like to have written that book you have in the back of your mind. So how do you make it happen? Call in an expert: a ghostwriter. You already have a job, and it isn’t writing books You’re an expert in your own field and you have great ideas and knowledge that you want to share. People write books with a lot of goals in mind. Some common ones are:
To accomplish any of these goals, your book has to be well thought out and powerfully written. It’s a skill set that you may not have, but your book can still be a success! Call in an expert You have knowledge stuck inside your head that can help others. You just need to connect them to your knowledge and inspire them to take action. So how do you create a book that does that? All great leaders know when to call in an expert to get a specific job done right. When it comes to your book, that expert is likely a ghostwriter. A great ghostwriter help can release your book from the back of your mind into the world. A ghostwriter works closely with you to take your ideas and knowledge and translate them onto the page at a professional level. It’s still your book, filled with your wisdom and personality. You’ll work as a team to ensure that you are proud to have your name on the cover, and readers will get everything from the book that you hoped for. How does ghostwriting work? First, you need to find a ghostwriter who is a good match for you and your book. Before hiring anyone, be sure to read samples of their writing. They may not be able to share ghostwriting they’ve done for others (since many people don’t want anyone to know they didn’t write their book or article themselves) but they should have a portfolio of work they can share. Ask yourself:
Your ghostwriter does not need to be an expert in your field. You provide the expertise, and they translate it for your book’s target audience. In fact, it’s often helpful if your ghostwriter is not a subject-matter expert, since it will help them to see things from the reader’s perspective. When the final draft is done, you can publish the book in your name, and you will own the copyright. Your ghostwriter will happily fade into the background. Don’t set yourself up for disappointment The lonely corners of Amazon are filled with poorly written, self-published books that have sold fewer than 50 copies. Millions of these are published every year. Their authors' dreams are dashed and those many hours of writing and rewriting are wasted. To reach your readers and make your book a success, approach it with the same careful planning and investment that you put into the rest of your work. You want that book with your name on the cover to be something you’re proud of. If you’re ready to make your book a reality, I can help. Contact me to talk about ghostwriting.
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 Plain language is an approach to communications that focuses on making information easy to read, understand, and use. Adopting plain language in your business may sound like a lot of work, but the returns are often far beyond anything the business imagined. Here are some areas where using plain language can help your business’s bottom line.
1. Product information: How easy is it to do business with you? Your website should be so clear that potential customers understand what you offer, how much it costs, and how to purchase it, without needing to search for information. This requires a combination of strong, clear writing and intuitive design—both parts of plain language. Once someone clicks away from your website, you’ve likely lost the sale. 2. Contracts and agreements: Contracts have a longstanding reputation for being impossible to understand without the help of a lawyer. They don’t need to be this way! A plain language contract lets everyone understand what they’re being asked to agree to. It inspires confidence and trust in your business, because clients won’t worry that you’re trying to trick them. Royal Insurance of Canada had a 38% increase in sales when plain language was used in their homeowners’ insurance policies. –Northwest Territories Literary Council 3. Customer inquiries and complaints: If your website, agreements, and marketing materials are clear and easy to navigate, customers and potential customers will find the information they need on their own. This saves your staff countless hours of answering email and phone inquiries and being asked the same questions again and again. Also, making your policies clear to begin with (instead of burying them in legalese fine print) means that people understand what they’re getting. This will reduce the number of complaints, returns, and requests for refunds. 4. Forms: If you collect information using forms (for subscriptions or registrations, for example), they should be clear and easy to fill out correctly. This will cut way back on the number of mistakes in them and the need to follow up one-by-one to get the information you need. Alberta Agriculture used plain language to revise their forms and found that "with 1,034,530 forms processed a year, and savings in staff time of at least 10 minutes per form … the annual saving to the government is an astounding $3,472,014.” 5. Staff communications: How much time do your employees spend reading poorly written, unclear, or unnecessarily long emails, reports, updates, and procedures? How complicated is the process of booking vacation time, filling in insurance claims, or submitting their hours worked? Plain language can reduce the amount of unproductive time that staff spend on internal tasks, and also improve morale by making it easier for them to do what they were hired to do. Starting with one or two key documents or communications tools can put your business on the path to less wasted time, more sales, and a stronger bottom line. Get in touch with me to discuss where to begin. |
AuthorMichelle Waitzman, plain language specialist, shares her tips and perspectives on clear, powerful communication. Archives
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