The Law (in Plain English)® for Writers Second Edition Few professional writers can afford round-the-clock legal counsel. Fortunately, you can afford to have the next best thing: this down-to-earth guide to every important legal question a writer may face — without the burden of an hourly fee. You’ll get clear advice on the day-to-day issues that can plague any writer — like getting through pages of contract legalese and dealing with agents and legal professionals. Packed with practical answers — plus a special appendix on helpful organizations and a glossary of commonly used legal and publishing terms, The Law (in Plain English) for Writers, Second Edition gives you the insight to: Understand the basic elements of all contracts with book and magazine publishers and keep your taxes low Find the right publisher — and what to know and watch out for if you’re considering self-publishing Make the most of copyright laws and the protections they offer Understand censorship, obscenity, defamation, and libel laws Protect your right to privacy Take advantage of the business laws that pertain to writers Know when it’s in your best interest to find a lawyer and how to go about it

“This easy-to-follow guide is useful both as a general course of instruction and as a targeted aid in solving particular legal writing problems.” —Harvard Law Review Clear, concise, down-to-earth, and powerful—all too often, legal writing embodies none of these qualities. Its reputation for obscurity and needless legalese is widespread. For more than twenty years, Bryan A. Garner’s Legal Writing in Plain English has helped address this problem by providing lawyers, judges, paralegals, law students, and legal scholars with sound advice and practical tools for improving their written work. The leading guide to clear writing in the field, this indispensable volume encourages legal writers to challenge conventions and offers valuable insights into the writing process that will appeal to other professionals: how to organize ideas, create and refine prose, and improve editing skills. Accessible and witty, Legal Writing in Plain English draws on real-life writing samples that Garner has gathered through decades of teaching. Trenchant advice covers all types of legal materials, from analytical and persuasive writing to legal drafting, and the book’s principles are reinforced by sets of basic, intermediate, and advanced exercises in each section. In this new edition, Garner preserves the successful structure of the original while adjusting the content to make it even more classroom-friendly. He includes case examples from the past decade and addresses the widespread use of legal documents in electronic formats. His book remains the standard guide for producing the jargon-free language that clients demand and courts reward. “Those who are willing to approach the book systematically and to complete the exercises will see dramatic improvements in their writing.” —Law Library Journal

“No writer, beginning or experienced, will want to be without this book.” —Jean Auel, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Clan of the Cave Bear and the Earth’s Children series A career as a writer involves much more than the act of writing itself. In The Law (in Plain English) for Writers, Fifth Edition, Leonard DuBoff and Sarah Tugman proffer invaluable advice for the myriad legal and business facets of being a writer. Readers will discover how to succeed in every area affecting a writer's livelihood, such as submissions, dealing with agents, taxes, permissions, royalties, alternatives to mainstream publishers, copyright, book and magazine contracts, and how to prevent disputes. This newly revised edition, keeping up with the changing legal landscape, contains information on a variety of legal issues pertinent to writers of all types, including: Updated coverage on issues such as how to avoid trouble posed by the interplay between the right to free speech, privacy, and defamation law Changes in the copyright law, procedures, and recent cases on copyright protection and infringement Updated and revised chapters on the business of writing New and updated Internet resources For writers of all levels, this comprehensive resource is the key to turning a writing career into a sustainable livelihood.

This book looks at the forces that have made traditional legal language what it is today and suggests some reasoms why the law needs plain English. It also shows why most of its peculiarities are unnecessary.

A complete guide to clean, precise and understandable legal writing So many books give you advice that turns out to be hollow: "know your audience," "structure your writing." The real strength in Plain Language Legal Writing is how, throughout, Stephens provides clear instructions on how to accomplish what she's recommending. Instead of just telling you to plan what you're going to write, she walks you step-by-step through the planning. Instead of telling you to consider your audience before writing, she describes in detail the sorts of audiences a legal document might have (more than you'd expect!) and how to best meet their needs. Plain Language Legal Writing will help you produce documents that people are willing to read and able to understand. More: PlainLanguageLegalWriting.comOther versions: e-book

Writing for Dollars, Writing to Please seeks to change public and legal writing--by making the ultimate case for plain language. The book gathers a large body of evidence for two related truths: using plain language can save businesses and government agencies a ton of money, and plain language serves and satisfies readers in every possible way. It also debunks the ten biggest myths about plain writing and looks back on 50 highlights in plain-language history. The first edition was described by reviewers as "powerful," "compelling," "inspiring," and "astounding." This second edition has been updated and expanded throughout. Professor Joseph Kimble is a leading international expert on this subject. Here is the book that sums up his important work, with a message that is vital to every government writer, business writer, and attorney.

Employing a hands-on, structured approach, the author leads the reader through carefully crafted exercises that allow readers to understand and make practical use of AngloAmerican legal terminology. The layered sequence of topics and exercises leads from the simplest use of legal terminology in conversation to mastery of advanced legal terminology and increasingly complex writing.

Plain English is the art of writing clearly, concisely, and in a way that precisely communicates your message to your intended audience. This book offers 25 practical guidelines helping you to improve your vocabulary, style, grammar, and layout to achieve clear writing. It gives expert advice on all aspects of the writing process: from avoiding jargon and legalese, to organizing written information in print and online. It also shows you how it's done with hundreds of real examples, including 'before' and 'after' versions. All this is presented in an authoritative and engaging way. Completely revised and updated, this essential reference work is now even more useful: the word lists have been expanded; a new list of clichéd and troublesome words to avoid has been added; and examples of real-life stories have been replaced with more recent ones. An improved design gives the book a fresh feel.