The CQ Press Writing Guide for Public Policy

284 Pages·2018·4.17 MB·English

by  Andrew S Pennock

The CQ Press Writing Guide for Public Policy
This book is dedicated to my four sons, Sam, Abe, Daniel, and Luke.
I hope it helps make the world in which you’re growing up a better
place for you, and for others, to live, one little bit at a time.
The CQ Press Writing Guide for
Public Policy
Andrew Pennock
University of Virginia
Brief Contents

1. Preface
2. Acknowledgments
3. About the Author
4. Part 1: Introduction
1. Chapter 1 Audiences and Audience-Centered Writing in Public Policy
5. Part 2: The Skills of Policy Writing
1. Chapter 2 Generating and Organizing Your Argument
2. Chapter 3 Improving Your Writing: Sentences and Words
3. Chapter 4 Writing Well: Paragraphs and Sections
4. Chapter 5 Visually Communicating: On Creating and Writing About
Tables
5. Chapter 6 Visually Communicating: On Creating and Writing About
Graphs and Other Figures
6. Chapter 7 Pulling It All Together: Creating Professional-Quality Work
6. Part 3: Policy Genres and Their Purposes
1. Chapter 8 The Issue Brief
2. Chapter 9 Policy History
3. Chapter 10 The Decision Memo
4. Chapter 11 Op-Eds
5. Chapter 12 Legislative Testimony and Public Comment: Writing to
Persuade the Government
6. Chapter 13 Writing for Nontraditional Formats: Email and Social
Media
7. Index
Detailed Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Part 1: Introduction
Chapter 1 Audiences and Audience-Centered Writing in Public Policy
What Is Audience-Centered Writing?
Who Is the Audience in Policy Settings?
The Different Audiences in Policy Settings
Elected Officials
Bureaucrats
The Media
What Do These Policy Audiences Need to Know?
Learning the Skills of Audience-Centered Writing
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Part 2: The Skills of Policy Writing
Chapter 2 Generating and Organizing Your Argument
Example: The Problem of Sharing Economy Businesses
Writing Is Thinking, Then Communicating
The Process of Creating a First Draft
Learn About the Contours of the Issue
Develop a Problem Statement
Create an Outline
A Standard Policy Outline
Write in Your Outline
Gather Evidence for Your Argument
Documents
People
Think Critically About People’s Perspectives and Incentives
Revise Your Draft
Solicit Feedback on Your Drafts
Conclusion
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Chapter 3 Improving Your Writing: Sentences and Words
How to Identify and Create Good Sentences
Principle 1: Characters Make Good Subjects
Example: Put Subjects in Their Places
Missing Characters
Principle 2: Actions Make Good Verbs
Example: Activate Your Verbs
When Are Nominalizations Useful?
Principle 3: Choose Words Wisely
Conclusion
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Answer Key
Chapter 4 Writing Well: Paragraphs and Sections
Cohesion: Do My Sentences Connect Together?
The Importance of Connections
Example: Improving a Paragraph
Coherence: Does My Paragraph Make Sense as a Whole?
Editing at a Global Level: Making the Document Make Sense as
a Whole
Global Coherence: Decide if All the Paragraphs and Sections
in Your Draft Should Stay
Global Cohesion: Help Your Readers Understand How the
Sections Fit Together
Conclusion
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Chapter 5 Visually Communicating: On Creating and Writing About
Tables
Principles for Designing Visuals
Tables
Elements of a Successful Table
A Bad Example
A Better Example
Best Example
Writing About a Table
A Bad Example
A Better Example
Best Example
Conclusion
Checklist
Tables Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Chapter 6 Visually Communicating: On Creating and Writing About
Graphs and Other Figures
Elements of a Successful Figure
Graphs
Bar Graphs
Line Graphs
Scatterplots
Complex Scatterplots (or, What Hans Rosling Has Wrought)
Figures
GIS Maps
Resized Maps
Treemaps
Process Maps
Conclusion
Exercises
Bibliography
Chapter 7 Pulling It All Together: Creating Professional-Quality Work
Polishing Your Document
Principle 1: Orient Your Audience From the Start
Principle 2: Create an Effective Executive Summary (When
Needed)
Principle 3: Don’t Bury Important Information in the
Conclusion
Principle 4: Create a Global Map Using Headings and
Subheadings
Principle 5: Use Bulleted Lists and Font Alterations
Judiciously
Principle 6: Write in the Appropriate Tone
Principle 7: Be Absolutely Error Free (or, Pass the Brown
M&M Test)
Writing Ethically: The Responsibilities of Policy Writing
Principle 8: Be an Excellent, Audience-Centered Writer
Principle 9: Don’t Obfuscate (or, Write Directly)
Principle 10: Give Credit Where Credit Is Due
Principle 11: Don’t Lie
Conclusion
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Part 3: Policy Genres and Their Purposes
Chapter 8 The Issue Brief
Distinctive Aspects of Issue Briefs
Narrowly Focused on Communicating One Important
Message
Very Brief
No Specific Audience
Focus on Communicating the Facts
Heavy Use of Visual Aids
Neutral Tone
Example Issue Briefs
Issue Brief Example 1: Voluntary Home Visiting in
California (an Excellent Example)
Issue Brief Example 2: Connecting CalWorks With Home
Visiting (an Issue Brief That Could Be Improved)
Example 3: Economic Well-Being of Rhode Island Families:
The Promise and Practice of Two-Generation Approaches (a
Longer, Plainer Issue Brief That Is Well Written)
Conclusion
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Chapter 9 Policy History
Distinctive Aspects of Policy Histories
Legislative History
Regulatory History
How to Organize a Policy History
Example Policy Histories
Example 1: Cyber Security Efforts by the Legislature and
Commissions
Example 2: Legislative History on American Indian Health
and the ACA
Example 3: Regulatory Actions by the United States’ Office
of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)
Conclusion
Checklist
Exercises
Bibliography
Chapter 10 The Decision Memo