Everybody Needs an Editor

July 8, 2024
Harris and Bane (Friendshipping)—the founder and creative director, respectively, of marketing agency M. Harris & Co.—present a concise and effective manual for improving writing in professional settings. Most of the advice focuses on punching up emails, as when the authors encourage readers to keep messages as short as possible and, when relaying bad news, to present it “clearly and directly in the first two sentences.” Other guidance covers how to generate speeches (“Say it out loud as you write”) and headlines (“Start with keywords” and think about what elements of the article will most interest the intended audience). Harris and Bane also outline general rules of thumb, discouraging readers from overworking metaphors, needlessly replacing “use” with “utilize,” or including such clichés as “beating a dead horse.” The authors can be delightfully snarky, such as when they caution against turning nouns into verbs and ridicule a job posting that used “laddering” as a verb: “Garage the laddering. Unless you need to reach a kitten who is treeing.” The sound suggestions are usually provided as bulleted lists (when writing an “irresistible subject line,” “make your purpose clear” and “create a sense of urgency”), making this easy to skim. This handy reference will be a boon to white-collar workers. Agent: Monika Verma, Levine Greenberg Rostan.