Peer to Peer Magazine

WWW.ILTANET.ORG 83 Rearrange this sentence: Shemya Island, four miles long, two miles wide, lies only 200 miles from Siberia, at the extreme western tip of the Aleutians. . . . to put Siberia at the end . . . Shemya Island, four miles long, two miles wide, lies at the extreme western tip of the Aleutians, only 200 miles from Siberia. . . . and the sentence "feels" colder and more desolate than the first, which was key to the defendant's case. Why does this work? Because readers pause at a period, even for a nanosecond, and they remember what they just read. Usually the opportunity arises where one sentence contains two pieces of information. If we examine each, we see that one is the supporting point; the other is the main point: The community groups committed to a design review of over 1,000 hours from the very beginning. If we open our sentence with the important point (above), our reader has to poke around in the middle to find it. But if we set the stage by opening with the supporting point, then follow with the main point, it's right there where our reader pauses: From the very beginning, the community groups committed to a design review of over 1,000 hours. Randi Mayes is the Executive Director of ILTA where she is responsible for oversight of all operations and serves as editor-in-chief of the association's numerous publications. A member of the American Society of Association Executives and the Texas Society of Association Executives, she has spoken and written on topics related to leadership development and association management. She's more than a little nuts about good writing. Gary Kinder is a lawyer and New York Times best-selling author. He has taught over 1,000 writing programs for the American Bar Association and for law firms and corporate law departments around the country. He is also the creator of WordRake, the clear and concise editing software, which Harvard Law School recently recognized as "Disruptive Innovation." When we arrange the information in the correct order, we usually find that it's chronological: What happens first, should go first, as we see by flipping the two clauses in the example below; it automatically puts the important point at the end: A court would be unlikely to return a buyer's earnest money with no evidence of actual harm caused by the amendment. With no evidence of actual harm caused by the amendment, a court would be unlikely to return a buyer's earnest money. CONDITIONAL CLAUSES Conditional clauses usually begin with if, when, where, because or although. Because they are a condition, they will always be the supporting point and should be placed at the beginning of the sentence to set the stage for our main point. Please contact me if you need any additional information to support your determination. If you need any additional information to support your determination, please contact me. And now, I will disappear. You'll enjoy Gary's humor and expertise on a regular basis by subscribing to his Weekly Writing Tips at http://www. wordrake.com/writing-tips/. And if you're attending ILTACON 2015 in Las Vegas, enjoy Gary's humor and learn from his session on Wednesday, September 2 at 3:30 p.m. Power Editing: Enhancing Your Credibility with Colleagues: Clear, concise, lively writing telegraphs professionalism. Our presenter will demonstrate a simple editing system to ensure your writing is a reflection of your high standards. You'll learn to communicate clearly with fewer words, enliven your sentences with verbs and the active voice, and streamline your communications for faster reading and retention. We'll also cover the difference between a dozen often- confused word pairs. This session will benefit anyone who communicates routinely!

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