The Art Of Explanation by Ros Atkins

I picked this up because it's this month's IndieWeb Book Club pick. Wouldn't have found it otherwise, and that's exactly why book clubs matter. If you've got a place on the internet, why don't you join us in reading? Or, even choose a book for a future month?

Review

A BBC journalist writing about clarity shouldn't surprise anyone...but this surprised me. It isn't just 'be clear' and left at that.

He reverse-engineers the whole process: how to think about what you're saying before you open your mouth, and why most of us skip that step.

His method is deceptively simple. Set up, gather, distil, organize, link, tighten, deliver. It's not just for communicating in professional contexts, it's almost my own (aspirational, at least) creative process reflected back at me. Turns out explaining something well and telling a good story share the same basis: know what matters, cut what doesn't.

What I love most is his insistence brevity isn't 'over-simplifying.' It's respect.

The book is practical without being dry, structured without being rigid.

Something you finish in a weekend and then start applying on Monday. Whether you're blogging, giving talks, or trying to send an email.

If you communicate in any capacity...read this. Your words will land better for it.

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