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Subject:Re: Basic rules of technical writing From:lmann -at- TELERAMA -dot- LM -dot- COM Date:Wed, 21 Dec 1994 09:29:28 -0500
CJBenz (cjbenz -at- aol -dot- com) wrote:
> Some years ago, a coworker and I hammered out four basic ("golden") rules
> of writing. To this day, they still work for me, and help solve a variety
> of conflicts between writers, editors, and what-not. Any comments?
> The Golden Rules of Writing
> 1. Make it understandable.
> 2. Make it consistent, unless that interferes with Rule 1.
> 3. Make it grammatically correct, unless that interferes with Rule 1 or 2.
> 4. Make it technically correct, unless that interferes with Rule 1, 2, or
> 3.
I wholeheartedly agree with 1, 2, and 3.
I disagree with 4, depending on the context. If I'm writing a "fluffy"
science fiction story, I can play with number 4 quite a bit.
However, if I'm writing technical documentation, it's got to be
technically correct. It may be oversimplified, perhaps, depending on
the audience or on my own understanding of the subject. But it can't
be delibertaly wrong.
--
****Laurie Mann * * lmann -at- telerama -dot- lm -dot- com * * Laurie.Mann (GEnie)****
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