In this video, Dr Susan Mandala, an Independent Writing & Language Consultant & Founder of Newcastle upon Tyne-based Writing Works Consulting, joins Paul Lancaster to discuss how effective writing is intrinsically linked to clear thinking & communication of important ideas.
Dr Mandala, who established her consultancy in 2024 after 24 years as an Associate Professor at the University of Sunderland specialising in the choice of language, now focuses on training professionals, academics & creatives to develop critical writing & thinking skills.
The Missing Middle: Figuring Out Why Information Matters
While people are often proficient at collecting information, generating ideas & editing material, Dr Mandala identifies a crucial, often-missing skill: the ability to figure out why the collected information is important.
- The Core Task The essential task is to determine what the information adds up to, what recommendation or stance is suggested & what the argument is.
- The Author’s Role The author’s primary job is to explain why the “stuff” matters & present it in a format that can influence or persuade an audience. This critical thinking & writing skill is often what people struggle with most.
Writing as an Ethical Process of Choice
Every time we use language – even when writing an internal report – we are making choices. Authorship carries a professional & ethical responsibility to be the “keeper of that information”.
- Fair Representation You must deal with all evidence fairly & should not omit information simply because it is inconvenient.
- Conscious Control For tasks like writing policy, strategy or evaluations, conscious control over language choices is critical because the writing has the potential to “impact many lives in material ways”. An example is the choice between active voice (naming who did something) & passive voice (focusing on the action done).
The Power of Drafting
Dr Mandala emphasises that writing is a process that requires drafting, which she describes as a “dialogue with yourself about what you think”.
- Multiple Iterations A piece of writing should ideally go through multiple drafts, where each draft is an “ordered bout of sort of generation & destruction”.
- Embrace the Mess The first draft should be “awful,” as its purpose is simply to get your thoughts down on paper (or in a digital format). It is through this back & forth process that you ultimately figure out & refine your independent, authentic & credible position.
Clarity Over Jargon & Simplicity
Clunky or awkward prose is often a sign not of poor writing but of an incomplete understanding of the subject matter.
- Deep Understanding The solution to unclear writing is to gain a “fuller understanding” of the issue. When you can explain a complex subject in a way that is “clear & simple but not simplistic” you know you understand it & it is ready for a general audience.
- Buzzword Substance Buzzwords should be seen as a tool but they need to be “backed up with something real” to avoid becoming “very empty” shells.
The Executive Briefing is a Clarity Process
Preparing a summary or “one-pager” for senior leaders is a process of clarity, not “dumbing down”.
- Distillation The executive summary or briefing must be a clear, succinct distillation of the report’s main argument & the key evidence for it.
- Argument Structure A strong argument typically consists of one main point supported by 5-10 sub-points of evidence. Having too few (e.g. two) means you haven’t finished thinking & too many (e.g. 27) means you haven’t distilled what is most important.
The Risk of Relying on AI
Dr Mandala cautions that when people use AI tools to structure thoughts or summarise content, they are “abdicating responsibility” for the most crucial part of their thinking.
- Loss of Ability Over time, relying on AI can cause a user to “lose the ability” to perform critical thinking & argument mapping themselves.
- Summaries vs. Understanding If you use an AI to summarise a paper, you are not reading it for yourself & you are removed from the “richness” of the original text & the author’s style. She argues that if you haven’t read the original document yourself, you still don’t have the necessary depth of understanding.
Find this interesting & want to know more?
Dr Susan Mandala is the Founder of Writing Works Consulting & currently offers the following services:
- Workshops & Courses She runs a series of workshops for creative writers, academics, researchers & professionals. These can be booked online via her Eventbrite page & include topics such as:
- How to Really Write Your Literature Review
- Writing Well at University
- Dealing with Language Data as a Social Researcher
- Writing, Thinking & When Not to Use AI
- Report Writing
- CPD on teaching grammar for the education sector
- Consulting and Project Support Dr Mandala also offers fully bespoke expert training solutions, which are longer-term projects involving needs analysis, course design & follow-up support.
You can find more information or contact her:
- Website: Writing Works Consulting (where you can book a free 30 minute video chat)
- Publications: Her LinkedIn profile lists her many publications
- Blog: Literature Reviews: A Blog for the Exasperated (where she digs into what the guidebooks leave out)
- Email: susan@writingworksconsulting.co.uk
ps You can also listen to this interview (& more) on Paul’s ‘SuperConnector Show’ podcast which is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Audible or Spreaker via our ‘Podcasts‘ page.
