Garbl's Plain Language Writing Guide
[
Home ] [
Style Manual ] [
Plain Language Home ] [
Concise Writing Guide ] [
Writing Bookshelf ] [
What's New ]
Other plain-English resources
For more information about plain English/plain language, concise writing and global English, check out the online
and print resources below and
Garbl's Concise Writing Guide, which provides simpler alternatives to wordy,
verbose, overstated or pompous words and phrases.
U.S.government|
Other governments|
Other organizations|
Print and web
Plain-language programs of
U.S.government agencies
U.S. Plain Language Action and Information Network--a government-wide
group of federal employees working to improve communications from the government to the public. The group originated with a
presidential memorandum on plain language in June 1998.
Federal Plain Language
Guidelines--major guidance document of the U.S. Plain Language Action and Information Network to help federal government
employees write plain-language documents that readers understand on first reading.
Plain Language Online Training--free
interactive program developed by the National Institute of Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (use the
Browse button for non-NIH employees)
Plain Language: A Handbook for Writers in the U.S.
Federal Government, Richard Lauchman (PDF, 287KB)
-
Plain Language Campaign--Florida Department
of Management Services
-
Plain Language Works Best--Los Angeles County, Quality and Productivity
Commission
-
Easy-to-Read NYC: Guidelines for Clear and Effective
Communication (PDF)--New York City, Mayor's Office of Adult Education/Mayor's Office of Immigrant
Affairs
-
Writing for Easy Reading--Department of
Administrative Services, State of Oregon
-
Plain Language Project--Office of Consumer Credit
Commissioner, Texas
-
Various Plain English Statutes--New York, Connecticut,
Pennsylvania, Florida, Minnesota, California
-
Plain Talk, Governor's Office, Washington
State--guidelines, examples, resources and the governor's executive order requiring all state agencies to use simple and
clear language when communicating with citizens and businesses.
-
Plain Talk at Ecology--principles, resources and other information on
writing clearly at the Washington State Department of Ecology.
-
Plain Language--Communications Nova Scotia, Canada.
-
Clear Writing--Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,
Food & Rural Affairs, Canada
-
Plain Language: Papers and documents on using plain language--Office of
Parliamentary Counsel, Australia.
-
Making written information easier to understand for people
with learning disabilities(PDF)--Office of Disability Issues, Department of Health, United Kingdom
-
How to Write
Clearly(PDF)--European Commission of the European Union.
- "
The importance of well-drafted originals in plain language in the multilingual European Union" (PDF)--speech by
Leonard Orban, European commissioner for multiculturalism, European Union
-
Plain Language Association InterNational--a volunteer group of plain-language
advocates and professionals in public, nonprofit and private organizations. PLAIN's website provides free articles,
tutorials and web links about writing, government programs, legal resources, literacy, and other related topics.
-
Plain Train: Plain Language Online Training--helpful tips and
techniques for improving your communication skills with the use of plain language.
-
Center for Plain Language--a U.S.-based nonprofit membership
organization of people in government, academia and business who are dedicated to promoting and supporting the use of plain
language in the public and private sectors.
-
Clarity--an international association promoting plain legal
language.
-
Plain Language Commission--a private organization in the United Kingdom that offers
free articles on writing, readability, jargon, standards of English, legal English and grammar.
Other print and web references
-
An Introduction to Plain Language, Cheryl Stephens,
co-founder of Plain Language Association InterNational
-
Answering the Critics of Plain Language, Professor Joseph
Kimble
-
The Complete Plain Words, Ernest Gowers, revised by Sidney Greenbaum and Janet Whitcut
-
The Dictionary of Concise Writing: More Than 10,000 Alternatives to Wordy Phrases, Robert Hartwell Fiske
-
Edit Yourself: A Manual for Everyone Who Works with Words, Bruce Ross-Larson
-
The Elements of International English Style: A Guide to Writing Correspondence, Reports, Technical Documents and Internet
Pages for a Global Audience, Edmond H. Weiss
-
From Plain English to Global English, Rachel McAlpine
-
Global English for Global Business, Rachel McAlpine
-
The Global English Style Guide: Writing Clear, Translatable Documentation for a Global Market, John R. Kohl
-
Legal Writing
in Plain English, Bryan A. Garner, author of
Garner's Modern American Usage |
Exercises from
Legal Writing in Plain English
-
Oxford Guide to Plain English, Martin Cutts, leader of the Plain Language Commission and co-founder of the
Plain English Campaign. An excellent, easy-to-use resource!
-
The Plain English Approach to Business Writing, Edward P. Bailey Jr.
-
Plain English at Work: A Guide to Writing and Speaking, Edward P. Bailey Jr.--includes
The Plain English Approach to Business Writing)
-
Plain English Lexicon: A guide to whether your words will be
understood(free PDF download), Martin Cutts, Plain Language Commission, United Kingdom
-
Plain Style: Techniques for Simple, Concise, Emphatic Business Writing, Richard Lauchman--author of
Plain Language: A Handbook for Writers in the U.S. Federal Government(listed above under
Plain-language programs of U.S. government agencies)
-
"Using Microsoft Word's Readability
Program"(PDF)--
Michigan Bar Journal, January 2009.
-
Write Tight: How to Keep Your Prose Sharp, Focused and Concise, William Brohaugh
-
Writing for Dollars, Writing to Please, Professor Joseph
Kimble
-
Writing for the Web 3.0,
Crawford Kilian
This page updated July 11, 2012.
[
Home ] [
Style Manual ] [
Plain Language Home ] [
Concise Writing Guide ] [
Writing Bookshelf ] [
What's New ]
Back to
top
To
Plain Language home page
|