by Sue Horner | Feb 2, 2024 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
I’m always on the lookout for examples of good and bad writing, and you’ll find plenty out in the world. Here are some of the articles recently shared online, all related to plain language and getting rid of jargon and lawyer-speak. Plain language is all about helping...
by Sue Horner | Apr 25, 2023 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Just four minutes into its launch on April 20, Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship engine “experienced rapid unscheduled disassembly.” Not sure what that means? The engine blew up. Actually, SpaceX said they “commanded” a “flight termination system” to intentionally blow it...
by Sue Horner | Sep 19, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
You may or may not be on social media. Almost certainly, you aren’t seeing every interesting link that flashes past. So here are more links to helpful posts I’ve shared that you might have missed: Word choice “Don’t be mealy-mouthed about mortality,” says John...
by Sue Horner | Aug 29, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Two weeks after Bell Media and CTV announced that their Chief News Anchor and Senior Editor, Lisa LaFlamme, was leaving after 35 years, the uproar continues. It’s a dumpster fire set with weasel words and fanned by rumours of ageism, sexism and a toxic work...
by Sue Horner | Mar 19, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
The mysterious case of PXO began with a pile of traffic cones at two nearby parks. A few weeks later, signs arrived, announcing a “PXO Program.” It was a term I’d never heard, and the name of the contractor involved (Aqua Tech Solution Inc.) suggested water might be...
by Sue Horner | Mar 11, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
If you spend any time on social media, you know that words disappear in as little as a few seconds. So when I find interesting, helpful or just plain funny posts, I like to share them. Here’s another collection of content you might appreciate and might have missed:...
by Sue Horner | Feb 17, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
The 2022 winter Olympics are in full swing, and so is the insider language. Normally I recommend using words people understand and explaining jargon, acronyms and unusual terms. Announcers during fast-paced Olympic sports don’t have time for that, or they assume...
by Sue Horner | Feb 4, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
As we all know, the lifespan of words posted on social media is pretty short – as little as a few seconds. So when I find interesting, helpful or just plain funny posts, I like to share them. Here’s another collection of content you might enjoy and might have missed:...
by Sue Horner | Dec 13, 2021 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
A lot of information flashes by in the 575,000 tweets that flood Twitter every minute. And yes, there’s anger and fake news aplenty. But you’ll also find helpful hints, smart advice, late-breaking news and hello – adorable dog thoughts and kittens and hedgehogs and...
by Sue Horner | Sep 2, 2021 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Roughly this time last year, I was lamenting the overuse of words like cadence that have turned them into jargon or buzzwords. It’s still everywhere, as in this recent example: “Prime Your Revenue Engine with a Prospecting Cadence.” It’s also been a big year for...
