Bonnie Trenga

Oops, Roadguy, did you use it's instead of its?[:-graduat

I do think that reads fairly well. You could eliminate some weak verbs and nominalizations to improve it. Perhaps you can try to rewrite it and send both versions to curiouscase@hotmail.com. Good luck! Well, I don't really have boilerplate. 99% of what I write is off the cuff. However, I do have a challenge for you. Here's a short handout that I wrote about FPE panels. My goal is to persuade people to replace these panels. I want it to: be persuasive anticipate opposing points of view and demolish them in advance be intersting enough to keep people engaged throughtout remain one page or less in length It's ok as it is, but I'd like it to be less choppy and dry. Any suggestions? - Jim Katen, Oregon Download Attachment: FPE_Katen_R.doc 29.65 KB

Kurt, can't find it on the site. Any chance you could send the page/paste the link to curiouscase@hotmail.com? Thanks a bunch! I don't get paper; zero paper in my house. I get NYT online w/TimesSelect which costs (about) $8 per month. I've noticed that the online version has more stuff like book reviews than the paper version. The review was several months ago; it was a feature in the "highlighted" section of the online version Home Page; you even got a graphic. You received quite favorable comments; laudatory. It's why I ran out & got the book. Boilerplate can be very useful; there's some stuff that we have to say over & over, so I agree w/Walker that it's not all hackneyed. I've got a "comment database/library" of about 850 phrases for a lot of stuff to keep me from having to type it over & over again. Specific material descriptions is where it comes in most handy; stuff like EIFS, or asbestos comments. So, why don't folks simply write gooder? Having been in the discussion w/many, many HI's, it's sort of like everything else. Each individual brings their own personal approach to the task, including writing, even though they have absolutely no education or background w/the topic. Most folks are sure that they're genetically predisposed to be good writers, and no amount of reality will take them off that position. At a report writing workshop in Florida several years ago, the presenter (Walter J.) had a couple guys go ballistic because they thought passive voice was the only "correct" method for writing anything. No amount of gentle discussion would dissuade them from their position. Why? They didn't know, but they were absolutely sure we didn't know either. It's sorta like everything else in the house biz. Everyone watches someone on TV do a remodel, so they imagine themselves to be competent builders/remodelers because they saw it on TV.

Hi. Send on those sentences if you like! As far as a technical guide, not necessary: the point of Curious Case is that all writing, no matter what the subject, suffers from the same problem. So my advice applies to all kinds of subjects. And thanks, Roadguy, for saying you'll buy the book. I look forward to hearing your comments! actually do so, I hope, for your sake, you have a very, very large e-mail server. [:-bigeyes Maybe you could work on a technical writing manual/guide that is in the same vein as your well-reviewed "...Missing Modifier". Is this a possibility?

Back to the topic at hand: for anyone who's interested, what do you want to improve in your particular writing? Why don't you send me what you think is the worst sentence in your particular report and I can suggest how to improve it.

Oops, I meant a BA! Forgot to proofread myself!

I suppose you can guess that I'm a BA, then! As a writer/editor, not a home inspector, I don't know what ASTM is. Perhaps you could explain a bit about the process of writing your reports and your professional requirements, etc. I was under the assumption that each inspector could prepare his/her own report. Not true? I guess the upshot of my participation here is not to revolutionize an industry but to help people realize that writing doesn't have to be a dull chore. You can use anything you learn from my book to make your professional or personal writing more enjoyable to produce and more enjoyable/informative to read.

Hi. Just checking my dictionary on the meaning of "boilerplate" cuz I hate being wrong! It "appears to be" (ha ha) that the meaning is: "standardized, formulaic or hackneyed language." Hackneyed is not a good thing. Does anyone want to send me one of these horrible boilerplates so I can see for myself? curiouscase@hotmail.com By the way, where is the NYT review of my book, Kurt? I couldn't find it online and didn't know it was reviewed. Thanks, Kurt.

Why not rewrite the boilerplate so it contains information, not fluff? If you have a solid starting point, your end product will be much improved. If the report-writing seminars are so crappy, perhaps you should ignore them! As far as bad spelling, just use spell-checker as a last check, but don't rely on it to find mistakes like it's/its. I would agree that a one-page report would be more readable than a 23-page one. One of the comments I make in the book is that the best writing teacher I ever had made us write no more than a paragraph to get our ideas across, so we had to make every word count. There's no need to dress up a report with fluff, jargon and verbiage. People buying/selling a home want a simple piece of writing they can understand, and one that contains information about the home. Yes, get rid of the phrase "appears to be"! I don't think I could lead a seminar. I did, however, write my book to be accessible to everyone. One reviewer on Amazon said it was like having me sitting right next to him. I've been a copyeditor for 10 years and wrote the book because I kept changing the same weak writing mistakes in everything from a PhD thesis on some math concept I didn't understand to a fiction novel about duck hunting. I don't think it's just home inspectors who haven't learned to write. I think it's most everybody. I was hoping my book would start discussion, as it seems to have here (excellent!).

Hi. So what kinds of writing problems come up for you guys the most? Bonnie, author of "The Curious Case of the Misplaced Modifier: How to Solve the Mysteries of Weak Writing"

Hi Brandon and others who want to write better reports. I'm Bonnie Trenga, author of "The Curious Case of the Misplaced Modifier," a book you seemed to have enjoyed and mentioned in a post here. I noticed you were a Cornellian. Me too. Class of 1991. You? Anyway, if any inspectors would like to chat about writing or grammar, please e-mail me at curiouscase@hotmail.com or post a note here. Thanks, Bonnie