Plain Writing: Your Audience and Its Goals

One of our bedrock principles at ProofreadingPal—as I’ve emphasized many times in this blog—is that writing is a tool for communication. With few exceptions, the end goal of writing is not beauty or elegance or virtuosity of language but clarity. Beauty and elegance are nice to have, of course, but the most basic writing that still conveys its intended meaning is a success, whereas the most musical passage of prose is a failure if it cannot be understood.

Plain Writing Act of 2010

In most cases, clear communication is best achieved through the use of plain language. What exactly constitutes “plain language” is (perhaps ironically) a bit nebulous, but one initiative of the US government aims to codify a standard. The Plain Writing Act of 2010 requires federal agencies to craft their official documents and websites so that everyday Americans can easily find, understand, and use the information they need.

The act was inspired by the independent efforts of a loose affiliation of government employees across a number of agencies who in the 1990s began compiling strategies for better communication. Versions of these guidelines circulated privately for years before being made official. Now they are freely available online, and they’re worth reading for anyone who wants to write with better clarity.

Rather than simply paraphrase this document, which I do encourage you to read, I’d like to use the next few blogs to consider the federal plain-language guidelines not as a prescriptive set of dos and don’ts, but as an invitation to write consciously, keeping five things at the front of your mind as you work:

• Your audience;
• Your project’s organization;
• The mechanics of good writing;
• Your project’s medium; and
• How you will test your work.

We’ll use this blog for the first one: audience.

Audience

The directive “write with your audience in mind” seems like no-brainer advice, but many writers fail because they forget the most important word, “your” and write for a presumed or general audience instead of the one they actually have. Now, if you’re writing for a major America newspaper, for instance, you aim for an audience of an eighth-grade level of reading comprehension.

Chances are, though, that the readership for your writing will be far smaller and more specific.

The requirements of plain language vary from reader to reader. Education level is only one factor at play; cultural and professional background, English proficiency, access to resources, and learning abilities can all affect reading comprehension. For example, I was talking recently to the head of a nonprofit that creates instructional materials for incarcerated people who told me that plain language is especially important for this audience. Not only do many inmates lack formal education, but they can’t just consult Google when they hit an unfamiliar word. Even a printed dictionary might be hard to find in prison.

Tone

Tailoring your writing to your audience and to your audience’s goals in reading your work will affect more than your vocabulary and the complexity of your diction. It will also influence your tone. Informational writing may require a tone of authority, but your readers may be less receptive to your message if they suspect that you are talking down to them. Business audiences may appreciate the no-nonsense voice of a professional addressing other professionals. Incarcerated people, according to my friend at the nonprofit, respond well to a friendly, conversational tone, perhaps because they are so seldom addressed that way in their daily lives.

Consider too that the same document might have multiple audiences. Imagine you’re writing orientation materials for a middle school. Portions of the project, such as the rules of classroom conduct and procedures for catching the school bus, will be aimed squarely at children, whereas provisions for handling medical absences will be addressed to parents. The writing of the various sections should reflect the intended readership.

Research Your Audience

Your audience and its needs must be top-of-mind from the very beginning of the project. It’s best understood as part of your research process: Your sense of audience will determine the voice, syntax, and structure of the work, and you’ll get the best results if you give it due thought before putting pen to paper, rather than trying to fix it in the edit. How you say it is just as important as what you say. Don’t make assumptions about your readers. Let your decision be an informed one. It’s essential to do your homework, because one size does not fit all: As the federal guidelines put it: “Only write for eighth graders if your audience is, in fact, an eighth-grade class.”

In a couple months, we’ll continue our look at the Federal Plain Language Guidelines with strategies for organizing a document to be accessible and useful to your readers. See you then!

Jack F.

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