Copyright 2014 by Arthur Fricke

Writing for the Web(aka: Portfolio Advice)

Engl 3365

The Goal

I want the “portfolio” project to hopefully be practically useful, not a time-suck nightmare

if something about how you are doing your portfolio (formatting, reflection, attaching files, etc) seems like pointless busywork, then ASK ME for some help & advice

your portfolio does not have to be perfect, just effective the portfolio grade very well might not move your final grade much,

so BE PRAGMATIC

I hope the “portfolio” project encourages folks to consider saving things to use later for creative career strategies

your “wordpress.com” account is free and permanent, so you can always do the minimum for the “portfolio” assignment now and then make more practical use of your portfolio later

portfolios are GREAT for switching careers – they are easy to share and can PROVE you have great “transportable” skills

Why practice web writing?

Web tools are common and important for professional workplace writing

it’s a CHEAP medium for sharing information it’s a POWERFUL medium for sharing information

E-MAIL supplanted PAPER MEMOS as a primary form of internal organizational communication

BLOGS and other WEBWARE are supplanting PAPER REPORTS as a primary form of external organizational communication in many different fields

What are some web writing tips?

Basic principles are the same for traditional report writing excellence

make audience & goal of the site / document very clear use text / wording that’s easy for audience to use use descriptive links / section headings include standard sections / web tools aim for CLARITY aim for EASY SKIMMING

audience & goalBE CLEAR

CLEARLY state who should use the site and what they should get out of it

critical for web documents, since distribution = anyone

use “FAQ”, site description, or an intro post or “click here first” section to VERY CLEARLY and EXPLICITLY state who the site is written/designed for and what the site does for them

text & wordingBE USEFUL and BE CORRECT

Use wording that matches the medium this means SHORT, SIMPLE, and CLEAR statements !!!! NOBODY wants to read long complicated sentences on the web

Use text that is EASY for your audience to read clearly DO NOT use funky fonts, backgrounds, etc just because you can DO use “snipped” info, frequent headings, short ¶s make certain it is EASY to skim the site QUICKLY

DO NOT make grammar, spelling, or typo mistakes correctness is a KEY measure of a web document’s believability

and legitimacy typos will KILL your credibility

links & headingsBE DESCRIPTIVE

Use CLEAR & HELPFUL file names DO NOT attach files like “grtwoot4362.doc” DO use descriptive “TRUCKING REPORT word file” links

Use DESCRIPTIVE page and section headings use clear page & section headings to say very clearly what

each area of a website contains and does help the audience navigate QUICKLY by using headings

that are very descriptive

Use “internal links” to speed navigation MINimum of two ways to find any info MAXimum of three levels from all info

web toolsBE HELPFUL

More “internal link” examples hyperlink “table of contents” links at the top of long pages category links, tabs, or other tools to help people move

from one area to another search boxes to find info in large sites

Standard sections a “FAQ” section is useful for really big websites an “about this site” or “click here” for small websites

DO NOT use fancy tools just because you can consider your main audience’s preferences & limitations,

and RESPECT your main users’ needs!

simplicityrequires THOUGHT and WORK

Simplicity requires careful ANALYSIS & PLANNING must consider things from the audience’s point of view this is like organizing a report outline based on audience needs

and preferences

For example, “easy for Art to grade fast” would mean: making a blog post for each assignment using the exact assignment title for each blog post title organizing posts chronologically making an exact assignment title category for each post

IF “Art Fricke” is not the audience and “easy to grade fast” is not a goal, then:

the site will be organized COMPLETELY differently!

weblog portfolio gradinggeneral grading strategy

I’ll evaluate each portfolio in six focused categories: defining a clear audience & goal having useful content (matches audience & goal) following assignment directions writing effectively (style) editing effectively (correctness) organizing & designing effectively (easy navigation)

I’ll give each category a letter grade, and then I’ll average them together to calculate an overall grade

portfolio gradingdefining a clear audience & goal

This is what can make it practically useful! you can choose ANY AUDIENCE and ANY GOAL for example: future employer / to showcase writing

skills

Art Fricke / to be easy to grade

your mom / to show what you do at TTU

future students / to help them choose wisely

Requirements: audience and goal must be VERY CLEAR audience and goal must match blog content audience and goal must match blog design & organization

portfolio gradingproviding useful content

This is how a portfolio makes sense! the audience must be interested in what you talk about for example: employer / how well do you

communicate?

me / how can the course be better?

mom / what did you like or not like?

future students / how can you ace the work?

Requirement: talk about things that CLEARLY match the audience and

goal you define for your portfolio

portfolio gradingfollowing directions

This is a BASIC professional skill! would you hire someone who couldn’t follow directions? would you like to work with people who CAN FIGURE OUT

exactly what you need, how to organize it, and what format is best for you?

Requirements: portfolio must be COMPLETE

(for example, include EVERYONE’s progress memos) portfolio must FOLLOW ASSIGNMENT DIRECTIONS

(for example, reflections must average ~400 words) Portfolio must FOLLOW PROJECT DIRECTIONS

(for example, include info from someone in your job field)

portfolio gradingwriting effectively

Layout must match genre people read websites quickly and often skim pages use very short paragraphs & consider using section headings evaluate font styles, sizes, and colors very carefully

Style must match audience and goal do you know ANYONE who likes websites with long, complicated,

and unclear sentences? use SHORT, SIMPLE, and CLEAR SENTENCES !!!! use a tone that matches audience and goal

(very formal, formal, semi-formal, informal, sarcastic?) use PLAIN LANGUAGE !!!!

(“formal” DOES NOT mean “sounds complicated and business-y”)

Requirements: follow the writing style I’ve asked you to practice all semester use effective document-level and paragraph-level organization

portfolio gradingediting effectively

Genre research shows: people evaluate web credibility in a “threshold” manner typos, formatting, & grammar are KEY credibility markers a few minor problems are okay, but “a few +1” is NOT

Requirements (for “A” in category): must have NO obvious wording typos must have NO spelling typos must have VERY FEW formatting inconsistencies

(UNLESS you clearly explain them in a convincing way) must have RELATIVELY FEW grammar problems

(less than ~two per ~400 words)

portfolio gradingorganizing & designing effectively

Blog DESIGN should appeal to audience flowers, fireworks, & puppies theme not good for an employer boring corporate blue theme not good for your mom

Blog ORGANIZATION should match audience make it easy for audience to find info use categories, sticky posts, pages, descriptive titles, external

links, and other elements for easy blog navigation

Requirement: make the blog appealing and easy for the audience to use

using wordpresswelcome to professional reality

You will need to learn new technologies imagine using a PC for the first time on your first real workday at your

first real engineering job imagine learning to use “the inter-net”, “windows” software, or how to

make and send “electronic mail” for the first time on the job you’ll be CONSTANTLY challenged to learn new software, hardware,

and procedures no matter what your career field is

You can do this easily and effectively by: working ahead to prevent deadline crises utilizing opportunities for help and advice NOT requiring personal tutorials on everything you’ll need to learn NOT dragging other people into last-minute nightmares

So, for this project: learn to use the “wordpress.com” service effectively and efficiently DO NOT procrastinate until it is too late to get help

1993, first day in your real professional careerfirst time using a word processor on a PC

first time ever seeing a “Windows 3.1” screenfirst 30 draft pages of the proposal is due in seven days -- GOOD LUCK !!!