Customer Reviews

Business Writing Makeovers: Shortcut Solutions to Improve Your Letters, E-Mails, and Faxes

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Business Writing Makeovers should be useful to business people, teachers of writing, and anyone who wants to write better. It is also fun to read: I enjoyed the letters in which a company official complains to a supplier that the huge ice sculpture ordered for a sales conference had been set up so it melted onto an electrical unit, causing a short circuit that ruined the conference's most important presentation. Roddick's sample letters and emails show ways to make your writing more precise, concise, correct, and graceful. They will help you choose the right tone to adopt in a letter, the right details to include, and the right structure to convey information and ideas. I found good suggestions here for writing with greater tact, better grammar, and stronger impact. Roddick's own writing is elegant and clear--an excellent example for her readers.

The book covers so many occasions for communication, in and out of what is strictly business, that it is a useful guide to writing in general. It warns of pitfalls and recommends ways around them, but what I found most engaging were the transformations from Original to Makeover, the details and stories coming into focus: the "demotion" story, for instance, or the "retirement" details. Besides its practical purposes, the book discovers the inner workings of many business activities, and it is indeed enlivened by the novelist's invention.

Business Writing Makeovers by Hawley Roddick is a tremendously useful book. It is full of excellent information and advice that would benefit both business and non-business writers. Roddick's use of before and after letters, memos, reports, etc. is a practical and effective way to make important points. The concise checklists that follow are valuable aids. And joy of joys, the examples of writing deal with varied subjects and issues that are interesting, informative, and entertaining to read about! I highly recommend Business Writing Makeovers to anyone who wants to be the best communicator he or she can be.