Apr 20, 2009
Book Review: Letting Go of the Words
Summary
Letting Go of the Words is an example-driven tour on how to write content for the web. It’s 350 pages are full of clear, before and after examples, of good and bad web pages. In less than a day, Janice (Ginny) Redish will transform the way you write for the web. Ginny is clearly an accomplished author. During the day, she helps people create usable and useful web sites. This book is more of a handbook, jammed packed with great tips and explanations of why stuff works and other stuff doesn’t. What Ginny manages to do is communicate practical web writing guidelines to experienced web readers like us.
What I learnt?
- Writing great web content requires planning and an attention to detail that most web sites overlook.
- There is no great mystery to writing good web pages.
- Great web pages require discipline.
- I’m not alone in thinking that the content entry/migration phase of web site project is always underestimated.
- Writing is a series small and frequent revisions.
- There is a clear process for getting from first draft to final copy.
- There are some great best practices for writing for the web that most people are clearly not applying.
- People like Ginny should be put in front of the customer before a web site project starts.
- I can review a web site and the bad practices now just leap off the page.
- I’m now even less tolerant of poor web content.
What I didn’t like?
- The cartoon character illustration of the middle aged man with the monk cut hair do.
