AFRO-NETS> Training Manual on Effective Writing available online

[Patrick Burnett <patrick@fahamu.org.za>]

Training Manual on Effective Writing available online
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FAHAMU - Learning for Change
http://www.fahamu.org

TRAINING MANUAL ON EFFECTIVE WRITING AVAILABLE ONLINE

** Do you find writing a chore? Do you spend hours looking at a blank 
sheet of paper, wondering how to start? Then Writing for Change can 
help. **

A major training resource designed to help those working in the not-
for-profit sector hone their writing skills in order to influence, 
persuade and bring about positive social change has been made avail-
able free of charge on the internet, thanks to the support of IDRC.

"The CD-ROM version has been so popular," said Firoze Manji, Director 
of Fahamu, "IDRC and Fahamu decided to make the resource available in 
the public domain as well."

Writing for Change, originally published as an interactive CD-ROM by 
Fahamu and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), is 
designed primarily for people working in the not-for-profit sector, 
including researchers, scientists, project managers, team members, 
campaigners, fundraisers, social activists and writers. Available in 
English, French and Spanish from Fahamu's web site:
<http://www.fahamu.org> the resource is thought to be one of the most 
comprehensive available, running at about 900 pages per language. 

Writing for Change is unique as a training resource because it con-
tains major sections devoted not only to the core skills of writing, 
but also to the two crucial specialised areas of writing - scientific 
papers for publication in journals and documents to help campaign or 
persuade.

People working in research and advocacy organisations need to do lots 
of writing in the form of project documents, articles for magazines, 
papers for publication in scientific journals, proposals and newslet-
ters - the list can seem endless. Many able and committed people find 
writing time-consuming, boring and difficult. Rather than sitting at 
a desk, they would prefer to be doing the real work of setting up the 
next experiment, conducting the field research, lobbying politicians 
or engaging with communities. Yet the world will only know about the 
quality and significance of their work through the documents that ex-
plain or promote it. Success depends on the ability to communicate 
ideas to others - often on paper. Writing for Change can help achieve 
that success.

Writing for Change comprises three sections: 
* Effective Writing: core skills, Writing for Science, and Writing 
  for Advocacy. Core skills helps to develop the skills needed to write 
  clearly and purposefully, organise ideas and express them well. 

* Writing for Science shows how to produce writing for publication in 
  specialist journals. It teaches how to build on the core skills of 
  effective writing and add further skills that apply to this special-
  ised type of writing. This section gives a better chance of getting 
  published, discusses the ethics of authorship, how to respond to edi-
  tors and correct proofs. 

* Writing for Advocacy contains a wealth of advice on how to win 
  hearts and minds and how to adapt core writing skills to lobbying or 
  campaigning documents. The section looks at articles, leaflets, news-
  letters, pamphlets, press releases and posters.

Extra features of 'Writing for Change' include a resource centre with 
suggestions for further reading and links to useful web sites and re-
sources.

"We supported 'Writing for Change' so that our partners would have a 
tool to build their capacity to communicate research results in ways 
that promote action based on evidence and social relevance. The guide 
focuses on effective writing, important both for communicating sci-
ence and advocacy work," said Daniel Buckles from the International 
Development Research Centre. "The combination of guidance on core 
writing skills, writing for science and writing for advocacy makes 
this product unique."

"I can honestly say it is one of the best training programmes I have 
seen. It is very well set out and easy to navigate. It also follows a 
logical progression, there were no missing steps, and it went into 
sufficient detail to provide concrete, practical guidance. I was 
never left thinking, 'But how exactly would I do such and such?' -" 
Sarah Atewell, World Vision.

Writing for change continues to be available on CD-ROM; Price GBP 
20.00

ABOUT FAHAMU

Fahamu is committed to supporting progressive social change in the 
South through using information and communication technologies. We 
believe that civil society organisations have a critical role to play 
in defending human rights, and that information and communication 
technologies can and should be harnessed for that cause. Fahamu, the 
word of which comes from the Kiswahili word for understanding, is 
committed to enabling civil society organisations to use the internet 
in the interests of promoting social justice.

Fahamu
14 Standingford House
Oxford
OX4 1BA
United Kingdom
http://www.fahamu.org
info@fahamu.org
Tel +44-1865-791-777
Fax +44-1865-203-009

ABOUT IDRC

IDRC is a public corporation created by the Parliament of Canada in 
1970 to help developing countries use science and knowledge to find 
practical, long-term solutions to the social, economic and environ-
mental problems they face. Headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, IDRC 
maintains regional offices in Cairo, Dakar, Montevideo, Nairobi, New 
Delhi and Singapore.
http://www.idrc.ca

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