by Sue Horner | Jan 13, 2009 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
You’d expect a “word of the year” to be something special, wouldn’t you? So it’s somewhat disappointing that the American Dialect Society’s word of the year for 2008 is…drumroll…bailout. Even Grant Barrett, chair of the...
by Sue Horner | Jan 12, 2009 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
You can’t argue with the Publication Coach, Daphne Grey-Grant, when she encourages writers to use metaphors. “They add interest, colour and power to your writing,” she says. “As readers, we all do better when we can visualize something concrete.” I keep a file...
by Sue Horner | Jan 8, 2009 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
If all your money was invested in the stock market, you’d be feeling pretty nervous when prices start dropping. That’s why financial advisors suggest you diversify — mix it up between stocks, bonds, guaranteed investment certificates and other products with...
by Sue Horner | Jan 6, 2009 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
You knew it, and usability expert Jakob Nielsen confirms it: we’re drowning in irrelevant information, squandering an hour or more each day simply dealing with email and other distractions. So if you haven’t picked a new year’s resolution yet,...
by Sue Horner | Jan 1, 2009 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Happy new year! Word nerds enjoy this time of year, when various dictionaries and other authorities name top and top 10 words: Merriam-Webster lists bailout as the word of the year for 2008 after it received the highest intensity of lookups on Merriam-Webster Online....
by Sue Horner | Dec 29, 2008 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
I can’t resist sharing Bill Dyszel’s “freelance national anthem,” about the joys of being a freelance writer. Appropriately enough, it’s sung to Ode to Joy (written by German poet Friedrich Schiller but best known in its musical setting...
by Sue Horner | Dec 24, 2008 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Did you know that Santa’s blogging this year, and he’s planning to podcast next year? Dave Fleet, who listed what he’d do if he were Santa’s PR guy, directed me to Santa’s blog. Sadly, the blog is no longer live, but the list of 100...
by Sue Horner | Dec 23, 2008 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
We had lots of snow on Friday and a little more over the weekend, dropping a heavy blanket over the trails where Jake and I usually walk. Snow like this always makes me think of my favourite Robert Frost poem, Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening, which I just learned...
by Sue Horner | Dec 18, 2008 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
The quest to rid employee communications of buzzwords and management-speak can never rest, so it’s always encouraging to find support. Of course, it’s unlikely those who speak in “methodologies” and “strategic imperatives” will read...
by Sue Horner | Dec 16, 2008 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Here’s one for communications guru Les Potter, ABC: Krudzu: Any proliferating management fad — or simply dumb concept — that overtakes and eventually strangles a company or organization. (From Buzzwhack.com.) Why Les? Because we had a discussion...
