Ben, thanks for this post. I tell lawyers in my office this all the time. Don't waste your first sentence. Don't waste your first paragraph. This article gives me ammunition. We try to state why we win in the first sentence of the brief. If not the first sentence, then certainly the first paragraph. Abbreviations, COMES NOW, NOW COMES all distract from that. https://underwoodlawoffice.com
Hi Ben and thanks for this post. I am super curious on the lineage of the term "capsule summary" or just "capsule" in the context of prose nonfiction, period. I've seen it elsewhere but can't quite place where, and it doesn't seem commonplace like "roadmap" or "umbrella" or "signpost." The metaphor is great!
Thanks! Unfortunately, I can’t remember where it came from either. I’ve used it for a long time, but I’m quite certain it didn’t come up with it myself. Sorry to disappoint, now I wish I could remember.
Ben, thanks for this post. I tell lawyers in my office this all the time. Don't waste your first sentence. Don't waste your first paragraph. This article gives me ammunition. We try to state why we win in the first sentence of the brief. If not the first sentence, then certainly the first paragraph. Abbreviations, COMES NOW, NOW COMES all distract from that. https://underwoodlawoffice.com
Thanks, Mark! Couldn't agree more. Glad I'm not fighting this fight alone.
Hi Ben and thanks for this post. I am super curious on the lineage of the term "capsule summary" or just "capsule" in the context of prose nonfiction, period. I've seen it elsewhere but can't quite place where, and it doesn't seem commonplace like "roadmap" or "umbrella" or "signpost." The metaphor is great!
Thanks! Unfortunately, I can’t remember where it came from either. I’ve used it for a long time, but I’m quite certain it didn’t come up with it myself. Sorry to disappoint, now I wish I could remember.