[stylist] Tips for PR writing

Sat May 7 13:56:46 UTC 2011

Good thoughts and thanks for  the book reference Donna. We'll know 
things have changed too far when we see things like BTW, JMO, and so 
forth in a press release or formal article :).

Brad

On 5/6/2011  02:50 PM Donna Hill said...
>Brad, Bridgit and all,
>First let me say that these are good guidelines, but in light of Brad's
>questions, allow me to play the devil's advocate.
>
>The AP Style Book, though widely recognized and used, is not the only show
>on the road. The New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune and many
>other papers have their own style books, and they all differ from one
>another in many small -- but to their editors significant -- ways. Language,
>grammar, spelling and punctuation are fluid and ever-changing. For instance,
>many of us have used website as one word for years. Nonetheless, AP had it
>listed as two words until a few months ago.
>
>Anyone who loves language and would like to read a great book on the fine
>points upon which professional writers and editors disagree should check out
>"The Elephants of Style" by Bill Walsh of the Washington Post. Both NLS and
>Bookshare carry it. Yes, it's "Elephants" and is a humorous reference to
>"The Elements of Style" by William Strunk, Jr., and E. B. White.
>
>On the matter of not using postal abbreviations, my sense is that they
>aren't used in part, because they are defined as codes not abbreviations. As
>for abbreviating March, May, June and July, the M and J months are already
>short, and length translates to ink and paper which translate to dollars.
>There probably isn't enough of that to be saved in these cases.
>
>The crucial things in writing press releases and so on are the facts
>presented and the way they are used to get the journalist's attention. In
>that context, the fine points of style are a service only when they are
>consistent. I doubt seriously that a good press release would be rejected
>because the writer used the New York Times' abbreviations am & pm, instead
>of using the periods. When I put together the material for our upcoming
>Guide to Writing Press Releases page on the Writers' Division website, I was
>looking through my old press releases for examples of successful ones. I was
>surprised -- though I don't know why I should have been -- to find many
>examples of style errors. Most of these are mistakes I no longer make. One
>such error was using three asterisks instead of three number signs after the
>text of the release. Neither paper that carried the story mentioned it.
>
>I bring these things up for two reasons. First, as writers, many of us are
>fascinated with the nuances of language and how rules are explained. Second
>and more importantly, for the sake of getting stories out there about
>blindness issues, I believe it is important to empower those who do not
>think of themselves as language buffs or writers. Though a certain level of
>literacy is required (proper spelling, sentence structure & punctuation), I
>am concerned that over-emphasis on style books could burden would-be
>volunteer publicists to the point of being so bogged down with
>technicalities that they fail to submit anything at all.
>
>Donna
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>Behalf Of Brad Dunse'
>Sent: Friday, May 06, 2011 9:48 AM
>To: Writer's Division Mailing List
>Subject: Re: [stylist] Tips for PR writing
>
>I like this but have a couple questions if anyone knows the
>answer.  Why do you suppose they've not adopted the post office state
>abbreviations? When I see stuff like Neb., Mich., and so forth it
>seems extremely dated to me.  The same goes for  the use of a. m. p.
>m. as oppose to AM PM. The other thing is why aren't June, July,
>March and so forth abbreviated as the others when others are allowed
>to be abbreviated?
>
>The rest makes perfect sense to me oddly enough. Something to be said
>for osmosis :).
>
>Brad
>
>
>
>Brad Dunse
>
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Brad Dunse

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