Mary Pipher, Writing to Change the World. Epigraph, courtesy James Baldwin: “You write in order to change the world, knowing perfectly well that you probably can’t, but also knowing that literature is indispensable to the world. … The world changes according to the way people see it, and if you alter, even by a millimeter, the way people look at reality, then you can change it.”
Call me hopelessly naive, but I believe there is no excuse for any variety of “business writing” that should be crafted any less carefully or aim any less high than a great novel or great inaugural address. After all, we do aim—day in and day out—to change the world via our human collectivities called enterprises. Right?