Useful tools

This software is useful for anyone working in MS Word:

PerfectIt — a user-friendly add-in that scans a document and picks up inconsistencies in spelling, hyphenations, use of abbreviations, etc.

StyleWriter 4 (professional) — highlights jargon phrases, difficult words, acronyms and abbreviations. Offers meaningful statistics and ratings you can use to become a better writer.

Websites

Here are some of the websites we like:

CyberText Consulting (http://www.cybertext.com.au) — a useful site for making technical information understandable by esteemed editor Rhonda Bracey.

IPEd ( http://iped-editors.org)

ragan.com (http://www.ragan.com/Main/Home.aspx) — USA but tweet heaven with news, videos and great ideas for communicators. Cost involved for full access but you can still glean some useful tips free.

Books

Effective writing: plain English at work by Elizabeth Manning Murphy with Hilary Cadman. This second edition (2014) is about writing that works. If you want to write in a way that is clear and meaningful, this book is for you.

Style manual for authors, editors and printers (6th edition). Writing for government? You can’t afford to be without this style guide and procedural manual for publishing. It’s old now (Wiley & Sons, 2002) but with constant reprints and widely available. It’s a classic.

Modern legal drafting: a guide to using clearer language by Peter Butt and Richard Castle (Cambridge University Press, 2006). ‘The modern English of a legal document will never read like a good novel, but it can be attractive and effective in a clean, clear, functional style.’ (p. 126). A great study.