Comments on: Tommy Tomlinson: making words work for a living

By: Tommy

Tommy — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:12:03 +0000

Joey, that’s a good question, but I don’t know that anyone has ever tried to find that out. I know from experience that we have a lot of blue-collar readers without a lot of education, but I’m not sure how the reading level averages out. Most newspapers reach a wide range of readers — that’s the whole idea of a mass-market paper.

By: Joey Godbold

Joey Godbold — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 10:35:05 +0000

I would like to know the overall, or average, reading level of the Observer.

By: Challenges And Opportunities For New Media Communicators | Margarita Persico.com

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 20:37:28 +0000

[...] on a print deadline, how do we get them to a deadline that is 24/7 all the time,” says Tomlinson, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for commentary in [...]

By: Tommy Tomlinson on Ze Frank, newspapers and what comes next – Nieman Storyboard - A project of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard

Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:50:06 +0000

[...] switching jobs to embark on a storytelling experiment for the paper. A former Nieman fellow (and a Storyboard contributor), Tomlinson was also a Pulitzer finalist for commentary in 2005. We’ve covered other [...]

By: Ren

Ren — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 10:10:47 +0000

Couldn’t agree more. I’ve never considered clear, plain language as ‘dumbing down’. Readers shouldn’t have to struggle through a piece of complex writing, and the message being conveyed shouldn’t have to be ‘earned’. Too many writers delight in their own prowess at the risk of making readers feel inadequate or stupid.

By: Writing Simply is Difficult « Words 101 Blog

Writing Simply is Difficult « Words 101 Blog — Thu, 20 May 2010 00:22:32 +0000

[...] May This blog post written by a columnist at The Charlotte Observer talks about what we’ve been saying for many [...]

By: legal writing professor

legal writing professor — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:06:14 +0000

I share this lesson frequently with my first-year law students. They are currently learning how to write briefs for federal court. I keep circling cumbersome, fancy words and writing “plain English?” in the margins. The law and its application may be complex and nuanced, but my 1Ls need to communicate it in straightforward language that can be understood quickly.

By: Diane Stresing

Diane Stresing — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 18:36:46 +0000

Hear, hear.

Ideally, a 5th-grader will read and remember what you’ve written, Mr. Tomlinson. I have fond memories of reading The Columbus Dispatch from about that age.

I still remember some of the gems I picked up, like a quote from Abraham Lincoln: “Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” I don’t recall what the article was about, but I internalized that quote and it has served me well for many years.

Come to think of it, Mr. Lincoln had a knack for simple language, and it served him quite well.

By: Lynn Wolf Dulcie

Lynn Wolf Dulcie — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 16:53:01 +0000

Tommy — Love your writing! I’m gonna share this piece with my creative writing/journalism/yearbook students at Rock Hill High School in SC. I hadn’t seen this until I got it on Connie Schultz’ FB site. (she and I worked together at the Daily Kent Stater in college — love her writing, too).
I agree wholeheartedly! My husband is an engineer — not a great novel reader — but he explains nuclear power and its plants in a way anyone can understand — I wish that were true of reporters covering the beat — we’d all be better off.
Thanks for your insight into good writing — it will serve my students well. Continued success — I love your columns in the Observer.
Lynn W. Dulcie

By: Tommy

Tommy — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 20:23:44 +0000

Amber, let me guess: College student?