Writing is not Magic, It's Design

Designers are visual thinkers: they are used to sketches, not drafts, and rely on visuals instead of words. As a result, writing is a strange skill for a designer, leading to blank-page anxiety and procrastination. But no more! This book helps designers overcome the challenge of communicating with words. It introduces a writing method that fits how designers think, guiding them in clarifying thoughts, breaking down complex ideas into manageable pieces, and using writing to spark new ideas. Writing is a communication problem at its core: the writer knows something the reader doesn’t and must show it using words. So, like design, writing should be simple, clear, and precise. By mastering the craft of writing, designers shape more than just sentences; they shape thoughts. Writing is a journey into harnessing the human mind’s ability to generate insights. And while writing may look like a skill, it’s a creative superpower, and - thanks to his book - one anyone can master! Author: João Batalheiro Ferreira is a designer and professor interested in creativity, learning, and communication design. He is an assistant professor at IADE–Faculty of Design, Technology and Communication in Lisbon. João holds a PhD in Design from the Delft University of Technology. He is an expert in how designers learn, which helped him create a writing method tailored to how designers think. His research has been published in international peer-reviewed journals such as The Design Journal and She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation.