Business and Technical Correspondence

Audience analysis is an essential part of a professional communicator's job. As shown in the examples on page 122, a professional communicator must balance purpose with personality or risk audience misinterpretation and dissatisfaction. The first example on page 122 is efficient, but insults the reader; hence, it is not effective. The writer's "matter-of-fact" tone not only informs the recipient of the rejection, but makes her feel as if she is beneath the company and that the company doesn't really "look forward to doing business" with her.

Reader-based writing is centered on diplomacy, not neutrality. Neutral writing attempts to communicate in an impersonal way, but only contradicts itself: to write neutrally is to write to no one. Instead, David Lewis suggests writing the way you talk. My only concern with this notion is that some people speak incorrectly and could do more damage to document comprehension than good. Even in an attempt to encourage their readers' understanding, the writers of this book compromise proper grammar, such as ending sentences with prepositions (example on page 125).

On another note, I still feel very awkward using personal pronouns in my writing. Throughout my schooling, I was trained to only use them for personal narratives or letters and not research papers and other documents. Moreover, I still worry about my writing being too "flowery" and not getting straight to the point. Yet, as Fielden and Dulek note, in order to write effectively, it is my responsibility to teach myself how to avoid "circuitous" writing. As long as I remember to focus my writing on the intended audience, accomplishing my writing goals are possible.

Three additional points:
1. What do the letters "CYA" on page 143 represent?
2. Did you notice that "comma" is misspelled on page 161?
3. Are the examples on page 164 the same, or did I stare at them too long?