Tiny Content Framework

cwonrails

12/30/2016 - 3:06 PM

9_Copyediting_Checklist.md

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Copyediting Checklist

This is a simplification of Amy Einsohn’s checklist in her wonderful book, The Copyeditor’s Handbook.

Publisher’s name
Preferred dictionary
Style manual

Usage

Abbreviations and acronyms

Latin abbreviations or plain English equivalents
Use periods in acronyms or not
Use full capitals or not
Put term in parenthesis on first mention or define it in parenthesis on first mention
State names
Dates and times (a.m. or am, etc.)

Capitalization

Titles, subtitles, and headings
Prepositions within a phrase

Foreign terms, names, and quotes

Use English-style plurals or Latin or Greek
Delete or keep accent marks
Italicize or put quotes around unusual terms

Numbers and numerals

Date formatting (beyond acronyms)
Decades
Spell out numbers under 100, etc.
Always use numerals with units of measure
Which kinds of units of measure are acceptable
Comma usage
Spell out sums or money or not
Spell out “percent” or not
Ranges of numbers

Punctuation

Use the serial comma or not
Hyphenation: when a closed compound would mislead the reader
Possessives, especially with names ending in an “s”

Spelling

Change British spellings (ex: theatre, colour, and endeavour) to preferred American spellings.
Spell out contractions or not

Formatting

Cross references
Lowercase chapter or uppercase it
Spell out the chapter number or not
Change cross references to chapters not pages
Heads: Do or do not open a chapter with an H1
Links
Footnotes
Lists

8_Style_Attributes.md

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Style Attributes

Words to describe good writing (or things to avoid, depending on your style).

Accurate
Alive
Articulate
Calming
Challenging
Clear
Clever
Compelling
Concise
Confident
Conversational
Crisp
Direct
Eloquent
Engrossing
Fascinating
Fast-paced
Fluid
Flowing
Friendly
Generous
Heartfelt
Honest
Illuminating
Incisive
Informal
Insightful
Inviting
Joyful
Layered
Light
Lively
Luminous
Moving
Nuanced
Open
Organized
Precise
Provocative
Purposeful
Readable
Resonating
Rhythmic
Riveting
Simple
Slowing
Solid
Straightforward
Strong
Thoughtful
Transcendant
Trustworthy
Useful
Vibrant
Vivid

7_Editorial_Calendar_Fields.md

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Editorial Calendar Fields

Pick the ones that work for you.

Title
Topic
Content Type
Audience
Purpose
Writer
Topic Expert
Review Date
Publish Date
Keywords
Calls to Action

6_Project_Brief.md

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Project Brief Outline

Summary

What is the purpose of the project? What happened so far?
What do you want people to know? Are there decisions to make?
What’s happening next?

Company

Values: What does the organization care about?
Mission: What is the organization trying to do? What is the ultimate goal?
What are the goals of this project?

Audience

Who are the primary and secondary audiences?
What do they need?

Story

What do we want to say about the product?
What is the narrative?
Why should people care?
How does the product or service improve lives?

Style

What defines the brand? What traits does it have?
Voice: What does the company sound like? How does its personality come through?
Tone: How does the company feel about their audience? What is the mood? Who is speaking to the audience?

5_Case_Study_Questions.md

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Case Study Questions

What is the customer or client’s name and web address?
What did you do for them?
Who was the audience for your work?
What was unique about the project? Did you solve any interesting problems or do something differently?
What were the results of the project? Did you improve any metrics?
Do you have any quotes or press mentions about the work? Feel free to include links or bulky text.

4_Product_Questions.md

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Product Questions

Good writing takes research. Don’t wait for a muse or a stroke of genius. Get the facts down in all of their messy glory and then go from there.

Gather up the facts

Start by making a list of answers to these questions.

Name and purpose

What is it?
Who is it for? How will it help them or brighten their day?

Features and facets

What can you do with it? Why are these features important?
How does it work?
Remember your five senses. How does it taste, feel, look, smell, or sound?
What is it made of? Why did you pick those ingredients or materials? How can people take care of it?
How big is it? Are there different sizes, colors, or formats? What can it hold?
Is there anything special about the packaging? Does it pair well with something or make a nice gift?

Pricing and availability

How much does it cost? How many pieces are included?
Where can you get it?
How long does it take to make and package it?
What are the shipping options? How long does it take for delivery?

Tell your story

Tell people what’s interesting about the product. Teach them something new and share your enthusiasm.

Purpose: How does it fit into your mission and the way you see things?
History: Why did you decide to make it? What led you to the idea?
Process: How did you make it? What did you learn along the way?
Competition: How is it different from other things like it?
Reputation: What are people saying about it? What do you want them to say?
Use cases: How are people using it?

Arrange and revise

Sketch the points you want to make with pen and paper. Put the most important details at the top.

Write a rough draft and play with different variations. Try reordering or rephrasing things. Be careful to use words people will recognize. Focus on real-world benefits. You can add humor or personality, but clarity comes first.

Read the draft aloud to yourself and cut any white lies or fluff. Keep editing until it’s clear, honest, and sounds like something you’d say to a friend or a neighbor. Tell them how you really feel, and be patient with yourself while you rework the copy.

3_Product_Mad_Libs.md

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Product Mad Libs

Write down several words for each of these and discuss them with your client.

{product name} {helps/lets} {audience noun} {verb} and {verb} {object} so they can {verb} {adverb}.

{Sign up for/Join} {product name} to {verb} {plural noun} with {secondary audience noun}.

2_Starter_Questions.md

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Starter Questions

Work

In 1–3 sentences, what do you do?
What’s your favorite thing about it?
Can you describe your industry to me? What is it and how does it work?

Mission and vision

Why did you start your company (or this project)? What led you to the idea?
Why does this work matter?
What are your goals for the next 3–6 months?
Describe where you want to take people. What does the world look like if you’re successful?
For this part of the flow or website, what are the top three goals? What do you want people to do?

Audience

What do you know about your customers? What do they care about?
Why do people use your website or app? Why do you want them to?
How do most people find out about you?
Are there any specific things that your audience is sensitive about?
If a customer was telling a friend about your company, what would you want them to say?
What are your core messages? What do you want people to understand?

Brand and personality

Who do you see as your competition? How are you different?
If your brand was a person, how would you describe them? List as many characteristics as you can think of.
Who inspires you online or elsewhere? Who do you want to emulate?
Are there any associations that you want to avoid? What would alarm or deter your readers?

Workflow

What tools does your team use to write and publish new content?
How do you keep track of feedback during the process?
What sort of schedule would be reasonable for removing/updating outdated content (e.g., quarterly, twice a year, yearly)?

1_Tiny_Content_Framework.md

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