UX Writing Basics
UX Writing Basics
A book about writing to create better user experiences
About the Book
UX (user experience) writing has seen steady growth in the last decade. More jobs with UX writer titles are opening up in small and big tech companies. However, because the profession is still fairly new and UX writers often come from a design or a copywriting background, there are very few books and courses that help people bridge the gap between the two disciplines. This guide's aim is to help designers and copywriters learn from each of these disciplines to confidently call themselves UX writers.
The UX Writing for Beginner’s Guide is a work in progress. A new chapter is released every couple of weeks. When it will be complete, it will cover the following topics:
- A short history of UX
- The role of a UX writer
- Basic laws of design for better writing
- UX-focused content strategy
- All about microcopy
- The art of information architecture
- Storymapping, user journeys and personas
- The future of UX writing
License
About the Author
Table of Contents
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Introduction
- Starting with the right foundation
- What does UX writing have to do with building homes?
- Writing UX copy is like building a house
- Who this book is for
- Let me share the story of how I fell into UX.
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Chapter 1 - The history of UX (writing)
- What do all these acronyms mean?
- What are all these things if they’re not UX?
- How do CX, UX, UI, CS and HCD fit together?
- The definition of user experience is
- History moments that shaped UX
- Today UX is…
- Summary
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Chapter 2 - Role of a UX Writer
- What’s the purpose of a UX writer
- Does design or writing come first?
- What team does the UX writer belong in?
- What does it take to be a UX writer?
- What does a UX writer do, exactly?
- So, are you a UX writer?
- Summary
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Chapter 3 - Principles of UX writing
- Give your copy purpose
- Write short(er) copy
- Humanise your copy
- Be as clear as you can
- Include everyone
- Focus on accessibility
- How to use the principles of UX writing?
- Good to know: Laws and principles of design
- Where writing meets design
- Summary
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Chapter 4 - Content strategy
- What is a content strategy?
- Why do you need a content strategy?
- What does a content strategy look like?
- What’s in a UX content strategy?
- How do you get started on a content strategy?
- Putting it all together
- How do you know you got it right?
- Summary
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Chapter 5 - Personas
- How many personas do you need?
- Which elements make up a persona?
- Mistakes to avoid when creating your personas
- How do you use your persona?
- Summary
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Chapter 6 - Information architecture
- What’s the definition of Information Architecture (IA)?
- How to define your IA
- How do you organise the information you have?
- A simple approach to user journeys
- What do you do with your IA and user journeys now?
- Summary
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Chapter 7 - Wireframes and content tracking tools
- Why you need a wireframe
- How to make a wireframe
- Translating your wireframe into a content tool
- What comes next?
- Summary
-
Chapter 8 - Style guide
- What’s in a UX style guide?
- How to develop your style guide
- Inspiring style guides
- Summary
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Chapter 9 - Microcopy
- Principles of UX writing
- Rules, tips and tricks for better UX copy
- The microcopy editing checklist
- Presenting your microcopy
- Summary
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Chapter 10 - Tracking, testing, iterating
- What kind of data should you track?
- How to test your UX copy
- Usability testing methods
- How to iterate
- A special note for freelancer UX writers
- Summary
-
Chapter 11 - The future of UX writing
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Chatbots
- Intelligent devices and writing for voice commands
- What about other devices and upcoming inventions?
- Summary
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Conclusion - What will you do next?
- Try techniques from this book, one at a time
- Learn specific UX writing skills
- Share what you learn
- UX and Writing Communities
- Keep an eye on UX Writing Basics
- Thank you
- Glossary
-
References
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 - History of UX
- Chapter 2 - The role of a UX writer
- Chapter 3 - Principles of UX writing
- Chapter 4 - Content Strategy
- Chapter 5 - Personas
- Chapter 7 - Wireframes and content tracking tools
- Chapter 8 - Style guides
- Chapter 9 - Microcopy
- Chapter 10 - Tracking, testing, iterating
- Chapter 11 - The future of UX writing
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