Plain language distraction

Joe Kimble

Another morning with dis-ease. This time brought on by ICT hiccoughs. But it is very mild.

A new book arrived in the post - Joseph Kimble (2012) Writing for dollars, writing to please – the case for plain language in business, government and law. ISBN 9781611631913. 

Joe is a fellow member of ‘Clarity’ and of ‘Plain’ and, by email, I have enjoyed his wit and wisdom for many years. I read the first couple of chapters of his new book and got a warm glow from communing with a like minded soul.

http://www.clarity-international.net/

http://www.plainlanguagenetwork.org/

 

I have been interested in plain language for as long as I can remember. It was at the heart of lesson planning when teaching general science and biology in several countries; it was central to the preparation of one-pagers about leadership, management and administration in Lesotho; it was positively and strongly flagged in the preparation of popular policy documents dealing with poverty reduction in Tanzania; and it was the main point of my editing documents for the ILO in Geneva.

http://www.toonloon.bizland.com/nutshell/leadersh.htm

http://www.hakikazi.org/plain_language.htm

 

And now there are these blog posts written with publication on the internet in mind. I cannot, just at the moment, think of an effective and comprehensive way of knowing the interests and opinions of visitors. But the statistics suggest a large and diverse readership:

Changing minds                1,123 page views since 24 Jan 2013: 15 visits/day

Existential Soft Rock        27,976 page views since 17 Nov 2002: 9 visits/day

Easy Speak                    3,819 page views since 25 Nov 2002

“No more broken promises? A plain language guide to the Millennium Development Goals” has had 110,338 visits since April 2003, and the 17 documents at Scribd.com have been ‘read’ hundreds of times since December 2011 - ‘Zanzibar without Poverty’ has been read 806 times.

http://www.srds.co.uk/mdg/

http://www.scribd.com/george_clark_25

 

So there has been mild dis-ease followed by a warm glow; and both disappeared in distraction and busy-ness. Time was filled. Meaningfully? 

How does writing compare with knitting, gardening, and cooking? Who asks such questions? And why are they asked?