Daniel Graham & Judith Graham 
Can Do Writing 
The Proven Ten-Step System for Fast and Effective Business Writing

A simple, ten-step system for mastering the art of effective,
persuasive business or technical writing

‘The Grahams’ system is the best way to transform data and ideas
into meaningful information necessary to make profitable decisions.
Their system works every time.’

–Steven Laposa, Ph D, MBA, Loveland Commercial Endowed Chair
in Real Estate, Colorado State University

‘The Grahams’ straightforward program helps my teams create
clear and concise reports, letters, and other documents with
minimal effort. I want this program to become the standard for my
teams.’

–Bill Walter, Senior Vice President, Government and
Infrastructure Division, KBR

‘The Can Do Writing system made my career! I used it to
write a winning business plan and proposal, and now I use it every
day for all communications. Can Do Writing provides valuable
insights into business and management as well as writing
techniques.’

–Christian Robey, President, DC Progress

You may be an expert at what you do, but if you can’t
communicate effectively in writing it may not matter. For
scientists, businesspeople, and professionals in fields from
engineering to public relations, the art of writing well can be a
vital key to professional success.

Luckily, you don’t need an English degree to produce top-class
writing. If you’re one of the millions of people who have to write
clear, persuasive, understandable documents for your job, Can Do
Writing is for you. Whether you’re writing a business plan, a
scientific paper, a press release, or anything else, this simple,
straightforward guide will show you how to do it quickly, with
style and confidence. You’ll learn how to:

* Understand your audience and subject matter

* Develop a simple, five-part purpose statement to keep you on
track

* Organize your main points into a coherent, sensible order

* Edit your work for clarity, coherence, organization, and
logic

* Economize your words to craft a concise, powerful document

* Make your documents easily readable for any audience

Table of Content

Preface xv

About the Authors xxi

Introduction Can Do Writing 1

Skillset: Analysis 9

Step 1 Analyze Purpose and Audience 13

1.1 What Result Do You Want from the Document? 16

1.2 Who Is the Audience? 17

1.3 What Does the Audience Do with the Information? 19

1.4 What Information Does the Audience Need? 20

1.5 Does the Audience Know Little or Much About the Information? 22

1.6 Does the Audience Need Proof? 23

1.7 Plan How to Write to Multiple Audiences 24

Step 2 Write Your Document’s Five-Part Purpose Statement 27

2.1 Decide the Type of Document or Oral Communication to Use 30

2.2 Pick a Verb That Describes What the Document Does 32

2.3 Assemble the Five Parts into a Purpose Statement 33

2.4 Use the Purpose Statement to Settle Controversies 36

Purpose Statements Make History 37

Practice Steps 1 and 2 Using a Case Study 39

Step 3 Select Facts 43

3.1 Use the Purpose Statement As You Select Facts 46

Step 4 Organize Your Points in a Sentence Outline 49

4.1 Write Your Points Using Short Words in Short Sentences 53

4.2 Evaluate Points to Eliminate Irrelevancies and Redundancies 55

4.3 Order the Points 56

Practice Steps 1 through 4 Using a Case Study 59

Skillset: Composing the Draft 67

Step 5 Compose the Draft 71

5.1 Compose the Draft Body 74

5.2 Compose the Draft Conclusion 75

5.3 Compose the Draft Introduction 76

5.4 If Necessary, Compose the Draft Executive Summary 82

5.5 If Necessary, Compose the Draft Abstract 83

Skillset: Editing 85

Step 6 Review the Draft for Organization and Logic 89

6.1 Test Organization by Answering Three Questions 92

6.2 Use Sentence Outlining Techniques to Improve Organization 93

6.3 Test Logic by Answering Five Questions 95

Step 7 Edit for Coherence 99

7.1 Repeat Key Words throughout Your Document 102

7.2 Ensure That Each Paragraph Begins with a Point 105

7.3 Use Transition Words 106

7.4 Use Vertical Lists for Series of Like Items 108

7.5 Ensure Your Graphics Make a Point 111

7.6 Apply Visual Devices 115

Step 8 Edit for Clarity 117

8.1 Use Concrete and Specific Words 121

8.2 Use Active Voice 123

8.3 Simplify Tense: Stay in Present Tense When Possible 127

8.4 Avoid the Helping Verbs Would, Should, and Could 132

8.5 Identify and Replace Ambiguous Pronouns 133

8.6 Use Standard English Words 136

8.7 Check Sentences for Misplaced or Dangling Modifiers 138

Step 9 Edit for Economy 143

9.1 Cut Useless Verbs 147

9.2 Cut Useless Prepositions 149

9.3 Cut Who, Which, and That 152

9.4 Cut Useless Repetition 153

9.5 Cut Redundancy 154

9.6 Cut Useless Comments 155

9.7 Cut Useless Modifiers 157

Step 10 Edit for Readability 159

10.1 Measure Readability Using the Gunning Fog Index 162

10.2 Replace Long Words with Short Words 164

10.3 Break Long Sentences 165

Conclusion Congratulations! 167

Index 171

About the author

Over the past twenty years, Daniel and Judith Graham have trained more than 70, 000 business and technical professionals in this practical writing system. They’ve helped global corporations and government agencies alike streamline communications while increasing profits. Now you too can learn Can Do Writing’s ten clear steps–and put writing to work for you.