OUR PLAIN ENGLISH APPROACH

Praxiom Research Group Limited

Our publications translate complex standards into Plain
English. They are for anyone who is tired of struggling with
sentences that are awkward and muddled, and a writing style
that is technocratic and legalistic. They are for anyone who
is tired of poor quality writing.

If you’re not used to the way technical standards are written,
you probably find them hard to understand. This is not your
fault. You find them hard to understand because the sentences
usually contain too much information. They are usually too
long, too dense, and too complex.

Standards tend to be hard to understand because they're
written by committee. Typically, 10, 20 or more people try to
agree on what a standard should say and how it ought to be
written. Inevitably, the need to reach a consensus is more
important than the need to communicate clearly.

In order to make standards easier to understand, we take
these complex sentences apart and re-assemble them
using plain English. In the course of doing so, we try
to comply with the following rules:

  • Write clearly.

  • Include every single idea.

  • Empathize with the reader.

  • Construct simple sentences.

  • Preserve the original meaning.

  • Use plain Anglo-Saxon English.

The above list points to our definition of quality. For us, good
quality writing is clear, plain, easy to understand, and always
empathizes with the reader. And a good quality translation
preserves the original meaning and covers every aspect of
the original material. In the context of our publications, this
is our special definition of quality. These are the special
characteristics that define the quality of our products.

If you want to learn how to write in plain English, check out the
US "Federal Plain Language Guidelines" (pdf is available free).
This is a good guide to plain language. We highly recommend it .

SOME OF OUR FAVORITE PLAIN ENGLISH INSIGHTS

"There is a time and place for elaborate, complicated language that is open
to interpretation; the kind of language more typically found in literature.
Business documents, on the other hand, should always aim for clarity.

And I do not appear to be alone in being frustrated by documents that
overcomplicate because there’s a rapidly growing interest in the business
world in what’s called “plain language,” or “plain English.” Plain English
doesn’t mean language that “dumbs down” the message though; plain
English means using language that clarifies meaning."

From Financial Post article by Dr. Sandra Folk, The Language Lab.

"Plain language, also called plain English, is language that everyone in your
audience can easily understand. Clear writing in plain language saves time,
money, and lives. You need plain language whether you're preparing a legal
brief, writing a procedure, designing a brochure, running a business,
publishing a newsletter, managing a department, maintaining a
Web site, or training workers."

Plain Language Association International (PLAIN)

"Billions of Dollars Could Be Saved if Government,
Business and Law Used Plain Language."

"Using plain language pays off for everyone in fewer
mistakes, faster compliance, better decisions, and less frustration.
Plain language could even help to restore faith in public institutions."

Professor Joseph Kimble quoted by Reuters.

"Writing in plain language is hard work. ... it’s far easier for writers
to trot out pages and pages of turgid writing. The web is full of it. It is
much harder to turn this into something that is clear and concise,
informative and precise. Ask any writer who has tried."

4 Syllables

“It is much harder to simplify than to complicate. Anybody can take
the sludge from books, thicken it with a few more provisions, and leave
it at that. Only the best minds and best writers can cut through. In short,
writing simply and directly only looks easy. It takes skill and work
and fair time to compose . . .”

Professor Joseph Kimble. “Answering the Critics of Plain Language.”
Article from Vol.5 of The Scribes Journal of Legal Writing (1994-1995).

"Citizens have a right to be able to understand the regulations
that govern their lives, and the government has a corresponding
duty to write those regulations in plain language."

Dr. Annetta Cheek, Plain Language, Michigan Bar Journal, May 2012

"Plain language does not tend to come naturally to the author of any
work and the legislative drafter is no exception. Only the clearest thinkers
and writers can absorb the most complicated subject-matters and present
information in a way which is accessible to a wide audience. The end
product may look easy to write – the reality is that it is much more difficult
to simplify than to complicate when writing about a complex topic. Skill
and time are both essential if writing is to be made clearer."

Plain Language and Legislation by Scottish Parliamentary Counsel.

"... contrary to prevailing wisdom, increasing the complexity of a text
does not cause an essay’s author to seem more intelligent. In fact, the
opposite appears to be true. ...write clearly and simply if you can, and
you’ll be more likely to be thought of as intelligent"

Consequences of Erudite Vernacular Utilized Irrespective
of Necessity: Problems with Using Long Words Needlessly.
Daniel Oppenheimer, Associate Professor, Princeton University

"Executives and managers at every level are prisoners of the notion that
a simple style reflects a simple mind. Actually a simple style is the result
of hard work and hard thinking; a muddled style reflects a muddled
thinker or a person too dumb or too lazy to organize his thoughts."

William Zinsser. On Writing Well, An Informal
Guide to Writing Nonfiction, Third Edition, page 154.

"If you can't explain something simply, you don't understand it well.
Most of the fundamental ideas of science are essentially simple, and
may, as a rule, be expressed in a language comprehensible to everyone.
Everything should be as simple as it can be, yet no simpler."

Albert Einstein

"Any darn fool can make something complex;
it takes a genius to make something simple."

Pete Seeger

“Whatever can be said, can be said clearly."

Ludwig Wittgenstein

OTHER RESOURCES

Clarity International

PlainLanguage.gov

PlainLanguage.com

Plain English Campaign

Plain English Foundation

Center for Plain Language

Plain Language Association International

WriteMark New Zealand Plain English Awards

Legal Writing in Plain English by Bryan A. Garner

International Consortium for Clear Communication

Writing for Dollars Writing to Please by Joseph Kimble

Why Plain Language is Important for Business by Sharon Davis

20 Principles of Good Writing by Ken Roman and Joel Raphaelson

Writing Science in Plain English by Dr Lynn Dicks University of Cambridge

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