E-mail: A Write It Well Guide: How to Write and Manage E-mail in the Workplace

by Janis Fisher Chan

Overview

This writing course presents techniques to improve the quality of job-related e-mail and reduce its quantity. Seasoned professionals and new hires alike will review ways to save more time and improve results with every e-mail they send out.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780963745590
Publisher:	Advanced Communication Designs, Inc
Publication date:	08/15/2014
Edition description:	Updated ed.
Pages:	186
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	16 Years

About the Author

Janis Fisher Chan has been developing training programs and conducting classroom training for more than 25 years and is the author of books and self-study guides on writing and other topics. In addition to the writing or co-writing the books in the Write It Well series, she has written four books for the American Management Association's Self-Study Division. A skilled classroom teacher and instructional designer, she has developed and taught workshops in business and technical writing, meeting planning, supervising and managing, interpersonal communication, and other topics. She has taught business and professional writing at the University of California business extension since the early 1980s.

Table of Contents

Preface     ix
Introduction     1
Why This Book     1
Why We Use E-Mail     2
About This Book     3
Before You Begin     5
Think Before You Write     7
Plan Your Writing     8
Is E-Mail the Appropriate Choice for This Message?     9
What's My Purpose?     12
What's My Reader's Point of View?     15
What's the Most Important Message?     18
What Does My Reader Need to Know?     23
What's the Best Way to Organize the Information?     27
Write Out Your Message     28
Use E-Mail Templates     29
E-Mail and Hand-Held Devices     32
Instant Messaging     33
Apply What You've Learned     36
Launching Your Message     41
Read For Sense     42
Check the Tone     42
Make the E-Mail Easy to Read     44
Salutations     51
Closings and Signatures     53
Proofread!     57
Sending Attachments     59
The Subject Line     62
Last But Not Least: Address the Message     66
Apply What You've Learned     71
Managing Your E-Mail     75
Quick Quiz     76
Reduce E-Mail Interruptions     76
Responding to Messages     80
Keeping Your Inbox Clean     82
Create an Electronic Filing System     87
Apply What You've Learned     91
Present a Professional Image     97
For a Seamless Style     99
Use Active Language     99
Use Plain English     102
Cut Out the Clutter     106
Use Specific Language     108
Strengthen Those Sentences     109
Watch Those Modifiers     110
Use Complete Sentences     112
Keep Sentences Short, Simple, and Focused     113
Make Sure That Subjects and Verbs Agree     115
Use Pronouns Correctly     116
Use Gender-Neutral Language     120
Punctuate Properly     122
Using Commas     123
Using Semicolons     125
Using Apostrophes     126
Using Dashes and Parentheses     127
Apply What You've Learned     130
Cautionary Tales     141
Quick Quiz     142
E-Mail Is a Public Medium      142
E-Mail Is Permanent     143
Your Organization Owns Your E-Mail     144
How Secure Is Secure?     144
E-Mail Landmines     145
Setting Up an E-Mail Policy     149
Apply What You've Learned     152
The Back of the Book     155
Learning More About Communicating in Writing     156
Learning More About Using E-Mail Software     157
A Quick Look at E-Mail Terminology     162
About the Author     166
About Write It Well     166