Learn to write and edit some of the most popular genres that populate the web. Become a versatile Web writer or editor, able to handle whatever your boss throws at you. Develop a deep portfolio to show future employers and clients
You’ll see how each genre has evolved as a virtual conversation between thousands of users, and thousands of writers, over time. Each element in the standard structure responds to a particular type of question asked by a lot of users. When you understand the give-and-take of this exchange, you can write the individual components much more easily. For each genre, then, we focus on what your users want, and what standard elements you need to write or edit, to respond.
You’ll also learn how to tune your style for particular audiences. Some want extremely personal rants; others talk like Sergeant Friday, saying they just want the facts, M’am. As you adjust your tone for different groups, and different purposes, you became a more flexible, and accomplished web writer.
And you’ll learn to write web content that works—-persuasive marketing copy, press releases that get picked up by journalists, FAQs that help users navigate your site, news stories that provoke discussion, successful e-mail newsletters, entertaining webzine articles, a Weblog giving your personal vision to the world, and an electronic version of your resume.
Each week, you will receive course materials from me, with guidelines, tips, and challenges, and you will read a chapter in our book, Hot Text: Web Writing that Works. You can email me questions, stray thoughts, or concerns at any time, and I will get back to you as quickly as I can. When you have read the material and done the challenges, you send those to me by email. You will usually get my comments back within 24 hours, along with materials for the next module. The course is designed to help you become a professional, so I invite you to ask any questions that occur to you, along the way.
Required text: Hot Text: Web Writing that Works, by Jonathan and Lisa Price (New Riders, 2002), ISBN 0-7357-1151-8, USD $40.
With a doctorate from Yale, Jonathan Price teaches web writing, information architecture, content management, and XML at the University of California, Santa Cruz, the University of New Mexico, the Society for Technical Communication, and many major corporations. Jonathan and his wife Lisa are writers and editors for sites such as AOL, Disney, Hewlett Packard, Intuit, and KBKids. Lisa and Jonathan have written The Best of Online Shopping, and Hot Text: Web Writing that Works.
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