by Margot Carmichael Lester | Mar 28, 2023 | Content & Content Operations
A lot of us rely on outside editors and proofreaders. And while I know it sound self-serving because we offer some of those services here at The Word Factory, the honest truth is that it's a great idea. *We* even do it. Why you need an outside editor or proofer It's...
by Margot Carmichael Lester | Mar 7, 2023 | Blogs & Blogging, Content & Content Operations, Marketing, Advertising & Promotion, Writing/How to Write
I just heard from a client who's struggling to find freelancers who don't plagiarize and who do cite the most recent data. My first response was a typical "are you kidding me?!" But I held my tongue. Look, if you find yourself having to remind writers about this, you...
by Margot Carmichael Lester | Sep 27, 2022 | Content & Content Operations, Writing/How to Write
It always surprises people when I tell them that punctuation is one of the last things I think about when writing. Sure, I want things to be correct (although that desire brings its own baggage), but while I'm drafting I'm not futzing over whether I need a comma...
by Margot Carmichael Lester | Sep 13, 2022 | Content & Content Operations
I presented my advocacy writing workshop at the Environmental Educators of North Carolina conference last week, so I updated my examples of effective persuasive content. Click here to download the playbook containing the models (and more): A successful fundraising...
by Margot Carmichael Lester | Aug 30, 2022 | Content & Content Operations, Writing/How to Write
Yesterday we were discussing how to present a set of recommendations in a report on redesigning and decolonizing the hiring process in an industry sector. Should we cast the recommended practices as short- and long-term goals or as new level and next level? Timeframe...
by Margot Carmichael Lester | Aug 17, 2022 | Blogs & Blogging, Content & Content Operations
For the last couple years, there's been a lot of chatter in healthcare -- and its marketing and brand journalism groups -- about representation, language and de-centering white people. To quote Lizzo, "it's about damn time". I read two articles this week that cover...