Denny Hatch - Write Everything Right!: Let the world’s highest-paid writers show you the secrets of making readers love your: e-mails, letters, memos, blog, ... website and yes, especially your résumé!

WRITE EVERYTHING RIGHT!

Let the worlds highest-paid writers show you the secrets of making readers love your: e-mails, letters, memos, blog, reports, speeches, ads, press releases, articles, books, PowerPoint, website and yes, especially your rsum!

Denny Hatch

WRITE EVERYTHING RIGHT!
Let the worlds highest-paid writers show you the secrets of making readers love your: e-mails, letters, memos, blog, reports, speeches, ads, press releases, articles, books, PowerPoint, website and yes, especially your rsum!

Copyright 2014 Denny Hatch Associates, Inc.

ISBN: 1-931068-73-9
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

No parts of this work covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, Web distribution, or information storage and retrieval systems, or in any other manner without the written permission of the publisher/author.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. Its sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

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Denny Hatch Associates, Inc.
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Philadelphia, PA 19147
215-627-9103
DennyHatch.com

To arrange bulk purchases of this book for educational purposes, please contact the publisher.

Also by Denny (Denison) Hatch

Nonfiction

• Million Dollar Mailings (1993), (2001)
• 2,239 Tested Secrets for Direct Marketing Success with Don Jackson (1998)
• Method Marketing: How to Make a Fortune by Getting Inside the Heads of Your Customers (1999)
• Jack Corbett, Mariner by A.S. Hatch, (2002), Edited by and Afterword by Denny Hatch
• PRICELINE.COM: A Laymans Guide to Manipulating the Media (2003)
• The Secrets of Emotional, Hot-Button COPYWRITING (2010)
• Career-Changing Takeaways: Quotations, Rules, Aphorisms, Pithy Tips, Quips, Sage Advice, Secrets, Dictums and Truisms in 99 Categories of Marketing, Business and Life (2011)

Fiction

• Cedarhurst Alley (1969), (2005)
• The Fingered City (1973)
• The Stork (1976)
• Coldcocked (2010, Kindle edition)

Newsletter

• WHOS MAILING WHAT! (1984-1994)

Online

• Business Common Sense on the Target Marketing website

Thanks, Bob

This book is dedicated to Bob Scott for a lifetime of sound advice and editorial excellence including the painstaking work on this manuscript.

Contents

Two Quickies

A world renowned author once asked the Welsh master of best-selling thrillers, Ken Follett, if he thinks about the reader when writes. Follett said he thought about the reader all the time.

I never think of the reader, the author said. I always write for myself.

Thats why you are a very great author, Follett said. And why I am a very rich author. From a Charles Osgood PBS Interview with Ken Follett

What do you do? a guy at a cocktail party was asked.

Im a brain surgeon, was the reply. What do you do?

Im a writer.

Ah, said the brain surgeon. Ive often thought when I retire Id like to try some writing.

And when I retire, said the writer, I plan try a little brain surgery. Old anecdote

PROLOGUE

Below is an e-mail I received from former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell. Presumably it went to a list of Democratic voters average folks.

Statistically, half the people who received it could not understand it. Here is the governors e-mail in full:

A really big deal
Friday, Mar. 22, 2013 9:21 AM
From: Ed Rendell
To: Denny Hatch

Denny

Right now, Republicans in our state are trying to diminish Pennsylvanias importance in future presidential elections meaning that the issues that are important to you and me will get less attention at the national level. They know they cant win our state on the issues, so theyre resorting to under-handed tactics and undermining the influence of our voters.

Their plan would change the way Pennsylvania allocates its Electoral College votes splitting our votes between the winner and the loser, rather than the traditional winner-take-all approach weve used for centuries. It would end our historical role as a critical electoral state, and create a detour around Pennsylvania on the road to the White House.

In short, its a bad idea that will hurt every Pennsylvanian, Democrat and Republican alike. And its up to us to do everything we can to stop it.

Call Governor Tom Corbetts office right now at (717) 787-2500 and politely let him know you oppose this plan because its neither fair nor the right thing for Pennsylvania. Heres a sample script you can use:

My name is (YOUR NAME) and I live in (CITY). I am calling today because I am opposed to changing the way Pennsylvania allocates its Electoral College votes. This plan will diminish Pennsylvanias importance in future elections and its historical role as a key swing state where candidates spend time and money focusing on issues that are important to Pennsylvanians. I urge you to publicly oppose Senate Bill 538.

After your call, let us know how it went.

Look, it doesnt take a genius to figure out why Republicans are trying to pull this trick in Pennsylvania: They havent carried our state in a presidential election since 1988. They havent been able to beat us, so now theyre trying to rig the game.

This isnt the first time weve seen Pennsylvania Republicans try to rig the election in their favor. In 2012, they tried to change the rules by passing burdensome voter ID laws that would have had the effect of disenfranchising thousands of Pennsylvanians. We fought those laws in the courts, and won.

Now lets join together again and make sure this latest scheme doesnt fly.

Call Governor Corbett at (717) 787-2500, and tell him to stop this bill. Then, click below to report your call:

http://my.democrats.org/PA-Call-Report-Back

Lets do this,
Ed

Governor Ed Rendell

P.S. I can tell you from my experience as Governor: these calls make a difference.

Call right now and tell him you oppose this bill.

Before writing to average folks, know this:

• Nearly half of all Americans read so poorly that they cannot find a single piece of information when reading a short publication. UNESCO: Institute for Statistics
• A sentence of 29 or more words is very difficult for readers to comprehend.

Whats going on here?

Ed Rendell had three goals:

• Infuriate voters.
• Scare hell out of us.
• Get action.

This should be a short, red-hot communication, immediately understood and acted upon. Instead, voters received a 422-word lesson explaining the arcane workings of the Electoral College. Only a policy wonk could make sense of this gibberish.

Misleading subject line

A really big deal sounds like an investment opportunity. It has no relation to the actual message.

The incomprehensible, blah lead sentence

Right now, Republicans in our state are trying to diminish Pennsylvanias importance in future presidential elections meaning that the issues that are important to you and me will get less attention at the national level.

Of this monstrous 35-word sentence, nine words (more than 25 percent) have three syllables or more: