Garbl's Action Writing Links--writing persuasively, letters to editors and politicians, news articles, Web pages

Garbl's Writing Center

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Writing Worth Reading

American Prospect

Center for American Progress

Common Dreams

In These Times

Mother Jones

The Nation:
Act Now! | Capital Games--David Corn | National Affairs--William Greider

New York Times:
Paul Krugman | Bob Herbert

Salon.com:
Election 2004 | Iraq War | Sidney Blumenthal | Joe Conason | Arianna Huffington

Tolerance.org:
Fight hate and promote tolerance.

TomPaine.com:
Opinion | Action

WorkingForChange:
Activism | Columnists | Geov Parrish

Death by Bush: family members, friends, colleagues ...

People killed in Bush's War: Americans | Iraqis | Cost | Faces of death

Welcome to everyone who opposes the corrupt goals and actions of political extremists George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.

We must speak out strongly -- and write clearly -- about their foreign-policy failures and trickle-down economics that make the rich even richer. This lying, incompetent president and his dishonest, self-righteous vice president have weakened the United States. Cheney, in particular, is an evil manipulator of facts and people, intent on protecting the unearned and undeserved wealth and power of the privileged few.

Speaking out: Your right. Your responsibility.

Use your writing, speaking and thinking skills to make a difference in your country and world.

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Garbl's Action Writing Links is an annotated directory of Web sites that can help you get people to read your writing, keep readers interested and persuade them to respond while they're reading or afterward. In a democracy, we each have the right and the responsibility to speak out on matters that concern us.

	Writing persuasively
	Writing news articles, Web pages and more
	Writing elected officials
	Writing letters to the editor
	Speaking out: Your right. Your responsibility -- Use your writing, speaking and thinking skills to make a difference in your country and world.

Writing for the Web

Besides the desirable reader responses described elsewhere on this page, we also may want people to keep reading and using our Web sites--without clicking away.

This annotated directory lists Web sites that can aid you in writing for the Web. Also visit the Plain Language page for advice valuable to Web writing.

Why do you write or want to write? To entertain? To inform? To explain? To persuade? Those are the most common purposes for writing, at least if you're writing something for someone else to read.

Whatever our purpose in writing, we usually have some hope or expectation that the reader will respond in some way--in what she or he feels, thinks or does.

The response we seek as writers might be subtle, small and invisible, or it might be substantial, enormous and observed by thousands:

All we may hope for is a smile or a jog of the memory or a clarification of a particular fact.
Or we may seek an e-mail message from a friend in return, a letter printed in a newspaper, a published news release about our community club event or a top grade on a research paper.
Or we may be hoping for that book contract, that phone call from an employer for an interview, that changed vote of our elected representative.

Even if you're not interested in writing letters to editors or politicians or getting a news release published, the tips provided by the Web sites listed here can aid you in making your writing more effective.

In combination with the advice on the Plain Language page, the advice here can help you fulfill your needs as a writer by helping you meet the needs of the people to whom you write.

The Secret of My Success--Harley Hahn, writer, computing consultant and author of many Internet books, including Harley Hahn's Internet & Web Yellow Pages
"Whenever someone spends more effort helping you than it would take to write a thank-you note, send a note."

LetterRep.com--Robert Noyes, Florida
Hundreds of pre-written sample letters that you can copy, paste, edit and print--for free. Letters include complaints, condolences, congratulations, cover letters, recommendations and requests.

Writing persuasively

Persuasive Writing--Anne Creed, SuperWriter.com, Columbia, South Carolina

"Our message must always be crafted to appeal to our audience's self-interest."

Strategies for Writing Persuasive Letters--Washburn University Writing Center, Topeka, Kansas

"The purpose of the persuasive letter is to promote a product, service, idea, issue, or change which the intended reader may be hesitant to accept or may know little about."

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Writing news articles, Web pages and more

Basic news writing is built on a writing method called the inverted pyramid. Journalists use it effectively, but it's also useful for other types of writing--from writing for the Web to writing letters to friends and employers to writing executive summaries in corporate reports. An essential ingredient is a beginning that grabs the reader immediately because it is interesting, informative or important.

Electronic Documents Should be Top-heavy--Dennis G. Jerz, Engineering Writing Centre, University of Toronto, Canada

"People do judge books by their cover; and they will judge web pages by what they can see without scrolling."

How Users Read on the Web--Jakob Nielsen, Ph.D., user advocate and principal of the Nielsen Norman Group, Fremont, California

Renowned expert on Web usability recommends use of highlighted words, subheadings, bulleted lists, one idea per paragraph and inverted pyramid writing style.

State your conclusions first and elaborate on them afterwards--School of Physics, University of Exeter, United Kingdom

"This sells the page to prospective readers--after reading the first sentence they can decide whether to read the rest of the article.

Thoughts in Progress on Writing for the Web--Nancy DuVergne Smith, editorial/Web consultant, West Newton, Massachusetts

This brief guide compares web writing with broadcast news writing: "Readers should be able to understand initial messages in seconds ..."

Web Writing for Many Interest Levels--Nathan Wallace, founder of Synop Software, Sydney, Australia

"A writer should help each reader get their desired level of information as quickly as possible."

We Can Learn From Newspapers--Dan Bricklin, founder and chief technology officer, Trellix Corp., Concord, Massachusetts

This article describes some newspaper techniques applicable to screen-based Web documents, including sections, heads, leads and the inverted pyramid.

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Writing elected officials

How to write your congressperson--Protest.Net, a site for progressive activists

"Whether you use the Internet or the postal system, there are certain basic rules to follow when writing to elected officials."

Influencing Legislation by Writing Letters--Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, Santa Barbara, California

"Letters to politicians and officials are most effectively written in plain language reflecting that a particular issue represents a lot of votes."

Tips on Writing Your Elected Officials--American Civil Liberties Union

Six tips for increasing the effectiveness of your letter.

Tools for Citizens: Writing Letters--20/20 Vision, a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the environment and promoting peace through grassroots action

"The more personal your letter is, the more influence it will have."

Writing to elected officials--Sierra Club

"Choose the three strongest points to support your argument and develop them clearly." Also includes tips on writing letters to the editor.

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Writing letters to the editor

Tips on Writing a Letters to the Editor--American Civil Liberties Union, New York, New York

"Keeping your letter brief will help assure that your important points are not cut out by the newspaper."

How to Communicate with Journalists--Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting

"When you write to journalists, be factual, not rhetorical."

How to Write Letters to the Editor--Schaffer Library of Drug Policy

"The letters are usually short and to the point, and the editors have edited them even further to make them shorter."

Writing Effective Letters to the Editor--20/20 Vision, a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the environment and promoting peace through grassroots action

These tips will help you fine tune your letter writing skills and increase your chances of getting published.

Writing Letters to the Editor--Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Calgary/Banff Chapter

"You can bet that politicians and other decision-makers review the letters page to gauge which way the winds of public opinion are blowing."

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Created and maintained by Gary B. Larson of Seattle, Washington, garbltoo@gmail.com.

Updated June 9, 2008.