Closing the distance between writer and reader
Writing closes the distance between what the writer knows and what the reader understands. Attention to the reader, conviction about the subject, respect for conventions and careful pacing help sustain that relationship.
Attention to the reader
Writing is a private act with a public intent: the writer aims for the reader to share knowledge and an attitude towards it. The writer first gauges the distance to the reader, then designs the writing to reduce it. Effective writing answers a reader's question, so the writer needs to anticipate the reader's concerns.
A writer behind a computer screen can lose sight of the audience and favour personal preferences in grammar, structure and clarity. Humility about what good writing looks like in other contexts can help. Life experience also helps, making diversity in culture, race, class and gender identity important for good medical writing.
Clear messages and firm ideas are not enough: the writer also needs to remain sensitive to readers' needs to avoid losing them. The relationship resembles a tango leader suggesting movements and responding flexibly to a partner's interpretation: concentration on the leader's own performance may lose the connection, while attention to the partner allows time and room for a response.
Conviction about the subject
Subject matter should be presented with passion and dedication. Conveying its essence convincingly requires intimate knowledge of it as well as passion and dedication.
Interest can develop through closer attention: music that initially sounds repetitive can reveal differences between a dominant beat, lyrical passages, uplifting waltzes and discordant modern tango. In the dance analogy, the interpretation should convey the music so clearly that someone watching through a soundproof window could imagine hearing it.
Conventions and credibility
Writers should know and respect the conventions of their domain, including advertising, where breaking a convention can be deliberate. Particular care is needed with culturally sensitive matters such as history, politics, religion, national pride, feelings and gender.
A 2017 account of a medical complaint demanding substantial compensation and threatening court action illustrates the risk: it was sent as a poorly written email with photographs of hospital records and a mobile-phone signature. In the translator's judgement, that format breached the conventions expected of such a claim and reduced its credibility independently of the seriousness of the complaint.
Pacing and guidance
Readers may know less about the subject than the writer and need time to adjust, so the subject should be introduced carefully. Headings, topic sentences and introductory clauses can guide readers by signalling what comes next.
The dance analogy is a set of three similar tango pieces, often from the same orchestra, in which new partners gradually discover their common repertoire: the first for tasting, the second for trying out and the third for enjoying.
Discipline and continuity
Writing should maintain a coherent line without unmotivated digressions or displays of ego. In the tango analogy, couples move counter-clockwise around the floor, maintaining their circle, respecting other couples' space and keeping an even distance to create a shared flow.