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Write More Good: An Absolutely Phony Guide
Still clinging to your dog-eared dictionary? So attached to The Elements of Style that you named your rabbits Strunk and White? Maybe you’re a beleaguered reporter, or a type-A newspaper reader who unwinds by e-mailing the editor about whether “tweet” is a verb?
It’s time to face up to Writing clearly, checking facts, and correcting typos are dying arts. Whether you’re a jaded producer of media or a nitpicking consumer of it, this book will help you to embrace, not resist, the lowering of standards for the written word!
Part dictionary, part journalism textbook, part grammar and writing manual, Write More Good is a “comprehensive” “guide” to today’s “media,” in all its ambulance-chasing, story-fabricating, money-hemorrhaging glory. (LEGAL The authors are not responsible for consequences that may result from actually using this book as a dictionary, textbook, or grammar and writing manual.)
Let The Bureau Chiefs, the ritin’ and reportin’ geniuses behind the Twitter phenomenon @FakeAPStylebook, teach you
* Proper usage!
“World War” should be used only for conflicts involving countries on at least three continents. For large-scale battles against clones, killer tomatoes, or a fifty-foot woman, use “attack” instead.
* Entertainment Journalism!
When writing about a celebrity for an online audience, save your readers time by linking directly to nude photos of him or her.
* Science Reporting!
When writing about those robots that seek out and consume houseflies for energy, the parenthetical aside “(OH GOD, WE’RE DOOMED!)” is implied and is therefore not necessary to include in your story.
And much, much, more!
It’s time to face up to Writing clearly, checking facts, and correcting typos are dying arts. Whether you’re a jaded producer of media or a nitpicking consumer of it, this book will help you to embrace, not resist, the lowering of standards for the written word!
Part dictionary, part journalism textbook, part grammar and writing manual, Write More Good is a “comprehensive” “guide” to today’s “media,” in all its ambulance-chasing, story-fabricating, money-hemorrhaging glory. (LEGAL The authors are not responsible for consequences that may result from actually using this book as a dictionary, textbook, or grammar and writing manual.)
Let The Bureau Chiefs, the ritin’ and reportin’ geniuses behind the Twitter phenomenon @FakeAPStylebook, teach you
* Proper usage!
“World War” should be used only for conflicts involving countries on at least three continents. For large-scale battles against clones, killer tomatoes, or a fifty-foot woman, use “attack” instead.
* Entertainment Journalism!
When writing about a celebrity for an online audience, save your readers time by linking directly to nude photos of him or her.
* Science Reporting!
When writing about those robots that seek out and consume houseflies for energy, the parenthetical aside “(OH GOD, WE’RE DOOMED!)” is implied and is therefore not necessary to include in your story.
And much, much, more!
252 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2011
14 people are currently reading
269 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
March 6, 2011
Write More Good is your AP Stylebook unshaven and hungover after the latest round of media layoffs. Editors, writers, and sticklers will enjoy the satire, but the poop jokes are for everyone.
October 11, 2011
This is a funny book.
It is not a serious book. It is not an educational book. It's not an eye opening book.
However, it is funny.
At times, it's almost laugh out loud funny. The downside? At times, it's the same joke over and over again. The glossary section at the end of each chapter got especially old. HA HA...it's another silly definition...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
The introduction by Roger Ebert may be the funniest section of all. He's just a hoot. If you're involved with newspapers, journalism, or any sort of writing, you should read this--because the "inside baseball" jokes are fast and furious. If you're not, you probably will enjoy it, but much of the humor will be the equivalent of Einstein telling a 4-year-old a "relativity joke."
"So two beings traveling faster than then speed of light walk into a bar..."
This is probably not a good book to read in a single sitting (or in consecutive sittings) because you need space for the jokes not to get old. It would do well on a desk sitting quietly waiting to be referenced--just to give yourself a break.
It is not a serious book. It is not an educational book. It's not an eye opening book.
However, it is funny.
At times, it's almost laugh out loud funny. The downside? At times, it's the same joke over and over again. The glossary section at the end of each chapter got especially old. HA HA...it's another silly definition...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
The introduction by Roger Ebert may be the funniest section of all. He's just a hoot. If you're involved with newspapers, journalism, or any sort of writing, you should read this--because the "inside baseball" jokes are fast and furious. If you're not, you probably will enjoy it, but much of the humor will be the equivalent of Einstein telling a 4-year-old a "relativity joke."
"So two beings traveling faster than then speed of light walk into a bar..."
This is probably not a good book to read in a single sitting (or in consecutive sittings) because you need space for the jokes not to get old. It would do well on a desk sitting quietly waiting to be referenced--just to give yourself a break.
January 17, 2012
I was following the FakeAPStyleBook on Twitter, and enjoying it, and then all these bloggers I like started shilling for Write More Good, written by the same folks. I sprang for it without realizing that a lot of those bloggers were contributors (people like Mike Sterling, Chris Sims, Dorian Wright and my inspiration, Dave Campbell)! As someone who works in media (I've been on both sides of the fence), I possibly enjoyed even more than you will (what, you're not taking my humble recommendation?). Funny to the last drop, Write More Good could have simply published a long list of tweets and been amusing. It goes a lot further and becomes a satirical and extremely knowing instruction manual on how to become a journalist. I reflexively smirked the whole way through. And it never shies away from the most ridiculously geeky references. A book after my own heart. Awesome, guys!
April 8, 2011
Purely hilarious. One of those books that I couldn't read after I went to bed and after Kip was asleep because I was giggling too loudly. But I think probably it's going to be the most funny for journalists.
January 27, 2013
Not for everyone. If you don't recognize scarcasm, run away. This book is for old newspaper people who realize the world in going to Hell in a Linotype machine and there is little, other than weep and commiserate with each other, we can do. But for journalists over 30, it's a must-read.
April 21, 2011
The funniest fake journalism textbook I've ever read. Maybe the funniest book I ever read, period.
May 16, 2011
Reliably clever and enough of a departure from the twitter feed that spawned it to feel fresh. If you're a journalist or an avid media consumer, there's jokes in here for you!
January 17, 2012
The AP style book was my Bible all my years in the newspaper business. Not that I actually paid much attention to it. Most of it was common sense, a lot of it arcane, and some of it verging on silly.
It used to say, for example, that all federal agencies or departments must be referred to by their full official titles the first time you wrote about them in a story. Which led to the silliness of writing "the Federal Bureau of investigation", which everyone in the world knows better as the FBI. In fact, FBI is immediately more comprehensible than the full title on a quick read, which is all any newspaper story gets.
So when I saw in Village Books, my favorite bookstore, "An absolute phony guide on how to Write More Good," a delightful parody of newspaper stylebook, I had to buy it.
It has strictures on everything from politics to science writing, sex to religion. The religion section is the shortest. The only entry is "Not on your life."
There is a preface by Roger Ebert that includes one of my favorite quotes from my newspaper days: "If your mother says she loves you, check it out." [A.A. Dornfeld].
Ebert notes that many newsmen live by another motto: "Never check a great quote twice."
He adds: "The authors of (this book) exists in the no man's land between these quotes. They know about Dornfeld's rule. They also give voice to the deep cynicism and cheerfully ironic worldview that has infected city rooms since time immemorial."
Probably my favorite part of the book are the definitions. Under entertainment, for example, we find:
Clear Channel - See Skynet
frak - Should only be used if you're fighting Cylons.
free verse - Poetry written by lazy people.
It made me nostalgic for the good old days.
It used to say, for example, that all federal agencies or departments must be referred to by their full official titles the first time you wrote about them in a story. Which led to the silliness of writing "the Federal Bureau of investigation", which everyone in the world knows better as the FBI. In fact, FBI is immediately more comprehensible than the full title on a quick read, which is all any newspaper story gets.
So when I saw in Village Books, my favorite bookstore, "An absolute phony guide on how to Write More Good," a delightful parody of newspaper stylebook, I had to buy it.
It has strictures on everything from politics to science writing, sex to religion. The religion section is the shortest. The only entry is "Not on your life."
There is a preface by Roger Ebert that includes one of my favorite quotes from my newspaper days: "If your mother says she loves you, check it out." [A.A. Dornfeld].
Ebert notes that many newsmen live by another motto: "Never check a great quote twice."
He adds: "The authors of (this book) exists in the no man's land between these quotes. They know about Dornfeld's rule. They also give voice to the deep cynicism and cheerfully ironic worldview that has infected city rooms since time immemorial."
Probably my favorite part of the book are the definitions. Under entertainment, for example, we find:
Clear Channel - See Skynet
frak - Should only be used if you're fighting Cylons.
free verse - Poetry written by lazy people.
It made me nostalgic for the good old days.
May 13, 2012
I got this book as a birthday present this year. I don't think I would've bought it for myself, even if I do find the FakeAPStylebook twitter feed humorous. It was a good choice for a gift, though; I enjoyed it.
The book is far more than a compilation of funny tweets, though I did recognize several tweets within the text. They fleshed it out into sections by subject. The first is about news in general. The next few sections are about politics, entertainment, sex, religion, sport, technology, science, pseudoscience, the military, citing and attributing, punctuation and grammar, and media law. The book wraps up with a section on newspaper reporting through the ages.
It's all delivered in a journalistic style guide sort of tone, and you can't believe a word of it. The humor in this book relies heavily on irony, with very few laugh-out-loud lines. If you like your humor dry, you may want to consider picking this one up.
However, the book is also written with the assumption those reading it have some background in journalism. There are a lot of in-jokes, some of which sailed over my head, because I'm not a journalist. I still found the book overall entertaining and funny, but I got the feeling the book wasn't trying to appeal to non-journalists.
If you follow @FakeAPStylebook on Twitter, and you find their tweets entertaining, I would recommend you pick up this book. Also, if you write for anything that reports on the news in any kind of formal way, you'll probably find the irreverent advice humorous.
The book is far more than a compilation of funny tweets, though I did recognize several tweets within the text. They fleshed it out into sections by subject. The first is about news in general. The next few sections are about politics, entertainment, sex, religion, sport, technology, science, pseudoscience, the military, citing and attributing, punctuation and grammar, and media law. The book wraps up with a section on newspaper reporting through the ages.
It's all delivered in a journalistic style guide sort of tone, and you can't believe a word of it. The humor in this book relies heavily on irony, with very few laugh-out-loud lines. If you like your humor dry, you may want to consider picking this one up.
However, the book is also written with the assumption those reading it have some background in journalism. There are a lot of in-jokes, some of which sailed over my head, because I'm not a journalist. I still found the book overall entertaining and funny, but I got the feeling the book wasn't trying to appeal to non-journalists.
If you follow @FakeAPStylebook on Twitter, and you find their tweets entertaining, I would recommend you pick up this book. Also, if you write for anything that reports on the news in any kind of formal way, you'll probably find the irreverent advice humorous.
February 25, 2012
I went into my first tweet book, Write More Good by The Bureau Chiefs (aka @fakeapstylebook), with the expectation of giggles and light entertainment brought on by clever observations about the sometimes ridiculousness of English structure, grammar, and mechanics. After all I follow @fakeapstylebook on Twitter and I find their tweets generally delightful. But what I got was tired rants disguised in already worn-thin novelty that led to a boring book that I couldn't finish reading. I concluded that the problem, which I imagine to be the same with all tweet books, is that while flashes of brilliance can come easily 140 characters at a time, a whole book of that same "brilliance" becomes repetitive and dull.
The Commonly Confused Words section in the chapter "Punctuation and Grammar: LOL" was my favorite section in the book, but it wasn't more than three pages long. There were some hilarious example sentences and some great new confusions thrown in. (i.e. jam, jamb, jambone and night, knight, Knight Rider) In the end, as in any Twitter feed, there are moments of hilarity and maybe even brilliance in Write More Good, but is it worth reading every tweet in your feed to make sure you find every entertaining nugget? Probably not.
The Commonly Confused Words section in the chapter "Punctuation and Grammar: LOL" was my favorite section in the book, but it wasn't more than three pages long. There were some hilarious example sentences and some great new confusions thrown in. (i.e. jam, jamb, jambone and night, knight, Knight Rider) In the end, as in any Twitter feed, there are moments of hilarity and maybe even brilliance in Write More Good, but is it worth reading every tweet in your feed to make sure you find every entertaining nugget? Probably not.
August 12, 2011
I hate to call this a non-fiction book because so much of it is fabricated, well sorta, actually non of it is fabricated, they just don't put the right definition with the right word. It's a hilarious romp through journalism writing and in my opinion anyone who has any desire to write should read it. Just remember don't take this book, or yourself too seriously.
I think my favorite parts were the glossaries, oh my heck so funny. Really.
And maybe because I've been in such an unemployment funk, it was funnier to me than it really is, but I don't think so. This is good humor.
Here are some random examples from the Glossary:
album aside (archaic) In general, approximately one half of a Pink floyd song or one quarter of a Grateful Dead song. (pg. 67)
avant-garde Will involve nudity. (pg.68)
command line "On your knees, you pathetic worm!" )pg.130)
dicta Legal term used my judges in opinions for the sole purpose of giggling behind chamber doors. (pg.225)
It's just filled with stuff like this, I was really entertained.
I think my favorite parts were the glossaries, oh my heck so funny. Really.
And maybe because I've been in such an unemployment funk, it was funnier to me than it really is, but I don't think so. This is good humor.
Here are some random examples from the Glossary:
album aside (archaic) In general, approximately one half of a Pink floyd song or one quarter of a Grateful Dead song. (pg. 67)
avant-garde Will involve nudity. (pg.68)
command line "On your knees, you pathetic worm!" )pg.130)
dicta Legal term used my judges in opinions for the sole purpose of giggling behind chamber doors. (pg.225)
It's just filled with stuff like this, I was really entertained.
September 28, 2012
This is a humor book for journalists. I'm a writer and an avid news reader, so I was able to enjoy much of the humor even though I've never endured the newsroom slog. I have enjoyed the posts by "the Bureau Chiefs" (aka the authors) on Facebook and knew I wanted to read their book. The wit is consistent, enough to make me smile as I read, but there were only a few times I laughed out loud.
Many of the chapters featured a glossary, and this was often my favorite part. There were definitions such as the one for "firewall" in the internet chapter, "Magical spell that protects computer from intrusion by setting intruding computers on fire. Requires a mage of third level or higher to cast." In the sports chapter, "hat trick:" When a hockey player makes a bunny appear on the ice out of NOWHERE!" There's actually a whole section on understanding hockey penalties, which I need to have my hockey-loving husband read.
However, with my books shelves as crowded as they are, I don't think this is a keeper. But would I gift it to journalist friends? Absolutely.
Many of the chapters featured a glossary, and this was often my favorite part. There were definitions such as the one for "firewall" in the internet chapter, "Magical spell that protects computer from intrusion by setting intruding computers on fire. Requires a mage of third level or higher to cast." In the sports chapter, "hat trick:" When a hockey player makes a bunny appear on the ice out of NOWHERE!" There's actually a whole section on understanding hockey penalties, which I need to have my hockey-loving husband read.
However, with my books shelves as crowded as they are, I don't think this is a keeper. But would I gift it to journalist friends? Absolutely.
April 6, 2013
I'm slightly hesitant to start this off with a snarky, "I'm in on the joke" sort of introduction on account of the recent passing of Roger Ebert, who wrote the book's forward. I will say that that forward was intelligent and witty, which should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with Ebert's writings.
As for the rest of this book... Well, in short, it's hilarious. I had kind of forgotten, in the time between acquiring the book and reading it, that Fake AP Stylebook existed, but as a reminder, this was grand. Anyone who is interested in writing should read this, though perhaps not journalists, as the Bureau Chiefs are all too cognizant of the current fumbling state of that august profession.
I feel I should note that this is also a signed copy, one that I think a friend had signed for me. I'm certain that, should Mr. (or Mrs.) "Joelh Drud" ever gain worldwide fame and fortune from the career that began with this book and its associated Twitter account, his (or her) words of "Stay gold, Vowfrog..." will become all the more inspirational.
As for the rest of this book... Well, in short, it's hilarious. I had kind of forgotten, in the time between acquiring the book and reading it, that Fake AP Stylebook existed, but as a reminder, this was grand. Anyone who is interested in writing should read this, though perhaps not journalists, as the Bureau Chiefs are all too cognizant of the current fumbling state of that august profession.
I feel I should note that this is also a signed copy, one that I think a friend had signed for me. I'm certain that, should Mr. (or Mrs.) "Joelh Drud" ever gain worldwide fame and fortune from the career that began with this book and its associated Twitter account, his (or her) words of "Stay gold, Vowfrog..." will become all the more inspirational.
June 12, 2015
Though portrayed as a style guide parody, this book is actually more of a lampoon of various types of journalism through helpful advice and tidbits of misinformation. Each chapter focuses on a separate subject, from science to celebrity, and is accompanied by a glossary giving one-liner definitions of industry terms. Not all of the humor works, but each part is short enough that you’ll be at something funny before long. For my tastes, the best sections were “News & Headline Writing & You & Journalism” (the broadest chapter, “Politics: When the Horse Race Lasts Thirty Months”, one about how to properly cite such sources as bumper stickers, bad tattoos and inappropriate jokes, and the chapter about journalism throughout history. Go ahead and give this book a shot; after all, its humor is probably a more nuanced lens to view the news from than most.
June 1, 2011
An invaluable resource for aspiring journalists!
Really, it actually is useful, despite (and in some cases, because of) its tongue-in-cheek style!
I've loved The Bureau Chiefs' Fake AP Stylebook twitter feed since it first appeared on the intertubes. The book presets more of the same amazing sense of humor, except in long-form. They probably could have gotten away with just publishing a book of tweets, but they repressed that urge and actually spent some time on this little treasure trove of journalism tidbits.
Really, it actually is useful, despite (and in some cases, because of) its tongue-in-cheek style!
I've loved The Bureau Chiefs' Fake AP Stylebook twitter feed since it first appeared on the intertubes. The book presets more of the same amazing sense of humor, except in long-form. They probably could have gotten away with just publishing a book of tweets, but they repressed that urge and actually spent some time on this little treasure trove of journalism tidbits.
August 5, 2016
I think we acquired this book back in 2011/12 when Dave was first researching successful writing & publishing methods to assist in his novel writing. I don't think we read the smaller portion of the title...it is not a helpful writing guide at all. It is, however, a fun read. It is not a sit down and read it all at once book; I found myself getting angry like I do when I spend too much time with "people of Walmart" and reality TV. I would read a section when I had 10-15 minutes to kill & wanted a bit of fun...like a sitcom but on paper. For that purpose it was perfect!
April 14, 2012
Very funny book satirizing the newspaper business. I was hoping for more grammar and writing jokes, that I used to see come across the @FakeAPStyleGuide twitter account, and as implied by the title. Nevertheless, it was a great commentary on politics and the news of the last 3,000 years, broken into categories like Computers and Legal. I LOLed in a few places.
Disclaimed: I got this book for free. Won it in a Twitter contest.
Disclaimed: I got this book for free. Won it in a Twitter contest.
September 12, 2011
An entertainingly cynical guide on how to be a print journalist in this day and age. I don't follow the FakeAPStylebook Twitter account, so I don't know how much book content is duplicated from the feed; however, it seems like almost all of it is new (since it's in longer form than Twitter snippets). A fun, light read.
July 26, 2016
I've been following @FakeAPStylebook on Twitter for a while, so I was excited to pick this one up. I'll echo the comments of Roger Ebert from the forward that it is nice that they actually published a book of new content instead of just packaging up all of their tweets. This book is funny, but I felt the joke wearing a bit thin after a while.
May 26, 2012
a humorous bit of satirical wit targeted towards writers and journalists (aka - baristas) who have no idea that pursuing an english degree (seriously?!?!) was a REALLY bad idea.
but seriously, it was a pretty humorous book and not just a collection of tweets from @fakeapstylebook - and in today's market of books spawned by the intertubes, that's saying A LOT.
but seriously, it was a pretty humorous book and not just a collection of tweets from @fakeapstylebook - and in today's market of books spawned by the intertubes, that's saying A LOT.
July 10, 2011
Just as Helen Hunt did for Jack Nicholson in the movie As Good as It Gets, this book makes me want to be a better man.
Also, for the sake of full disclosure, I am one of the Bureau Chiefs.
Also, for the sake of full disclosure, I am one of the Bureau Chiefs.
July 28, 2011
parts are really funny - it's like The Onion or SNL - when it's funny it really funny - laugh out loud funny - but that's not the whole book and like The Onion or SNL ...when they aren't funny ...they are kinda boring. After reading about a third of the book I found myself just skimming it.
Read
April 1, 2013Absolutely hilarious musing on the art of journalism from the guys who gave us https://twitter.com/FakeAPStylebook. Second favorite humor site to follow on Twitter after https://twitter.com/FakePewResearch.
July 30, 2013
The tone of this is very much like "The Daily Show", but for print journalists. I thought it was hysterically funny, and highlighted a number of good bits to share with friends on Facebook. Well worth reading!
April 11, 2011
A fun spoof on journalism - some parts are funnier than others. Great purse book for waiting rooms and such.
April 26, 2011
It's ok. Kinda hard to pull off a gimmicky book like this, but I laughed out loud a few times, and it was easy to rip through. And the book is depressingly on-point most of the time.
Want to read
May 27, 2011From the folks behind the @FakeAPStyle twitter feed.
July 16, 2011
Pure fun!
July 18, 2011
Very funny and well written. Fine for the lay reader but you'll enjoy it more if you've worked at a newspaper or somewhere that the use of a stylebook is required.
March 7, 2012
Some really funny stuff in here!! Definitely read it for the laugh factor - especially if you're fed up with the current state of news media.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews