LawProse Lesson #397: The formula for success.

LawProse Lesson #397: The formula for success.

Many beginning legal writers think that established ones must have a formula for success. That’s just not so. The only secrets of success—beyond constant study of quality nonfiction and effective editorials—are dogged research, unstinting discipline, the embrace of individuality, and the spurning of complacency. These qualities lead to a kind of organized freedom.

What makes writing such a lively and exciting endeavor is the omnipresent possibility of failure. You can learn perhaps more from your failures than you can from your successes. Luck has nothing to do with success or failure: skill is what matters, and skill is what you must relentlessly cultivate.

With guidance, legal writers can improve at any phase of their careers. We’ve seen it happen because we’ve often been the guides. Don’t ever assume that you’ve reached your ultimate plateau.

Live seminars this year with Professor Bryan A. Garner: Advanced Legal Writing & Editing

Attend the most popular CLE seminar of all time. More than 215,000 people—including lawyers, judges, law clerks, and paralegals—have benefited since the early 1990s. You'll learn the keys to professional writing and acquire no-nonsense techniques to make your letters, memos, and briefs more powerful.

You'll also learn what doesn't work and why—know-how gathered through Professor Garner's unique experience in training lawyers at the country's top law firms, state and federal courts, government agencies, and Fortune 500 companies.

Professor Garner gives you the keys to make the most of your writing aptitude—in letters, memos, briefs, and more. The seminar covers five essential skills for persuasive writing:

  • framing issues that arrest the readers' attention;
  • cutting wordiness that wastes readers' time;
  • using transitions deftly to make your argument flow;
  • quoting authority more effectively; and
  • tackling your writing projects more efficiently.

He teaches dozens of techniques that make a big difference. Most important, he shows you what doesn't work—and why—and how to cultivate skillfulness.

Register to reserve your spot today.

Have you wanted to bring Professor Garner to teach your group? Contact us at info@lawprose.org for more information about in-house seminars.

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