Successful Writing at Work: Concise Edition » (2nd Edition)

Philip C. Kolin (Ph.D., Northwestern University), University Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Southern Mississippi for nearly 30 years, teaches courses in composition, business and technical writing, literature, and drama. He has served as editor of two major scholarly journals, and as founding co-editor of Studies in American Drama (1945-Present), he received the Conference of Learned Journals award for the best new journal. He was also named Southern Mississippi's first Distinguished Professor in the Humanities. Kolin has published nearly 30 books and 200 scholarly articles covering a variety of subjects, including writing, drama, linguistics, and folklore. He has also written a book and articles on professional writing for nurses and lawyers and has conducted workshops on technical writing.

This user-friendly, compact text presents the most necessary, useful skills and strategies for successful workplace writing. Based on the successful parent text, SUCCESSFUL WRITING AT WORK, Ninth Edition, SUCCESSFUL WRITING AT WORK, Concise Third Edition, maintains a practical approach, an abundance of realistic situations and problems, real-world examples, and detailed guidelines for drafting, editing, and producing professional documents and graphics. The Concise Third Edition features a contemporary, open, and user-friendly design, including a wide trim size to allow for marginal note-taking.

Note: Each chapter concludes with a Revision Checklist and Exercises. PART I: BACKGROUNDS. 1. Getting Started: Writing and Your Career. Writing—An Essential Job Skill. Writing for the Global Marketplace. Using International English. Four Keys to Effective Writing. Characteristics of Job-Related Writing. Ethical Writing in the Workplace. Successful Employees are Successful Writers. 2. The Writing Process and Collaboration at Work. What Writing Is and Is Not. Researching. Planning. Drafting. Revising. Editing. Collaboration Is Crucial to the Writing Process. Advantages of Collaborative Writing. Seven Guidelines for Successful Group Writing. Sources of Conflict in Group Dynamics and How to Solve Them. Computer-Supported Collaboration. PART II: CORRESPONDENCE. 3. Writing Routine Business Correspondence: Memos, Faxes, E-Mails, and Blogs. What Memos, Faxes, E-Mails, IMs, and Blog Posts Have in Common. Memos. Guidelines for Sending Faxes. E-Mail. Instant Messages (IMs) for Business Use. Blogs. 4. Writing Letters: Some Basics for Communicating with Audiences Worldwide. Letters in the Age of the Internet. Letter Formats. Parts of a Letter. The Appearance of Your Letters. Organizing a Standard Business Letter. Making a Good Impression on Your Reader. The Five Most Common Types of Business Letters. Inquiry Letters. Cover Letters. Special Request Letters. Sales Letters. Customer Relations Letters. International Business Correspondence. 5. How to Get a Job: Searchers, Dossiers, Portfolios, R'sum's, Letters, and Interviews. Steps the Employer Takes to Hire. Steps to Follow to Get Hired. Analyzing Your Strengths and Restricting Your Job Search. Enhancing Your Professional Image. Looking in the Right Places for a Job. Dossiers and Letters of Recommendation. Preparing a R'sum?. Letters of Application Going to an Interview. Searching for the Right Job Pays. PART III: PREPARING DOCUMENTS AND VISUALS. 6. Designing Successful Documents, Visuals, and Websites. Organizing Information Visually. The ABCs of Print Document Design. Successful Document Design: A Wrap-Up. The Purpose of Visuals. Choosing Effective Visuals. Inserting and Writing About Visuals: Some Guidelines. Two Categories of Visuals: Tables and Figures. Tables. Figures. Using Visual Ethically. Using Appropriate Visuals for International Audiences. Writing for and Designing Websites. 7. Writing Instructions and Procedures. Instructions and Your Job. Why Instructions Are Important. The Variety of Instructions: A Brief Overview. Assessing and Meeting Your Audience's Needs. The Process of Writing Instructions. Using the Right Style. Using Visuals Effectively. The Five Parts of Instructions. Model of Full Set of Instructions. Writing Procedures for Policies and Regulations. Some Final Advice. 8. Writing Effective Short Reports and Proposals. Why Short Reports Are Important. Types of Short Reports. Seven Guidelines for Writing Short Reports. Periodic Reports. Sales Reports. Progress Reports. Trip/Travel Reports. Incident Reports. Protecting Yourself Legally. Writing Successful Proposals. Internal Proposals. Sales Proposals. 9. Writing Careful Long Reports. Characteristics of a Long Report. The Process of Writing a Long Report. Parts of a Long Report. Documenting Sources. A Model Long Report. 10. Making Successful Presentations at Work. Types of Presentations. Informal Briefings. Formal Presentations. A Writer's Brief Guide to Paragraphs, Sentences, and Words. Paragraphs. Sentences. Words.