Principles of Professional Writing

This course introduces students to critical practices of professional writing through lecture/lessons, readings, and writing workshops in which students craft and edit a range of professional documents. Students develop writing and editing skills, as well as the language to discuss writing as a way to better advocate for revisions. In addition to a focus on vision and (re)vision, students will explore linguistic principles applied to word choice, sentence structure, and paragraph construction. The ethical, logical, structural, rhetorical, and grammatical dimensions of writing will be explored. Students will discuss the power of visuals to clarify or distort meaning. Students are also introduced to non-writing skills that are essential for professional writers, including considering audience need; interviewing subject matter experts; finding and analyzing reliable research; selecting appropriate formats for content delivery; and organizing information to maximize message effectiveness.