Hi! My name is Marie Buckley and I am a lawyer and a writing coach. I have coached over 1,000 lawyers and I speak frequently at major firms about writing and advocacy. The American Bar Association just published my book, The Lawyer’s Essential Guide to Writing: Proven Tools and Techniques.
My years of coaching have left me with strong convictions about what makes for powerful writing. My clients are usually very accomplished writers, so I have listened and learned as I have worked with these talented lawyers. But lawyers also share their deepest, darkest fears about writing with me. In this blog, I’ll address both the techniques for strong writing and the common concerns about writing that keep us all awake at night.
The techniques we’ll discuss here apply to all forms of written communication, from email and blogs to formal legal memoranda and briefs. For a quick sense of my approach to writing, start with link to the Three Essential Rules at the top of this page. I’ll also explore topics such as the structure of powerful writing, how to develop efficient work habits, how to think deeply about the cases, and techniques for working with junior colleagues. I’ll focus on the techniques for strong writing and try to avoid picking on bad writers (with, perhaps, an occasional irresistible exception). While I can’t post my entire book, I’ll try to be helpful.
If you subscribe to this blog, you’ll receive one or two weekly tips for improving your written communication. I tweet links to new posts, so you can also follow me on twitter to see what’s new.
So fear not. Sleep well. Find your own voice.
-Marie
P. S. If you are interested in my programs, click on the link to My Programs in the right sidebar to visit my website. If you are interested in my book—and I hope you are— follow the link at the top to My Book. Finally, this blog is not legal advice and please play fair and respect my copyright in this blog.
