Magnum Steno

[Erica Abbott]

Hello everyone! Hope this month is going well for you all. I have been kind of slowed down because of the Holiday season. It happens every year.

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone had advice on the magnum steno. I know this has been kind of tossed back and forth on here, but I would like to know if anyone has the book. It is extremely expensive, but I am also extremely interested;) I have only been working for two years in January, but I want to be better. I also was curious if anyone has been doing the magnum steno club and actually seeing improvements, etc.

So I guess my questions are; is it worth the money to buy the book? What does it actually have in there? How is the monthly steno club, and is anyone seeing improvements??

I truly thank you all for any information. It frustrates me to not be better and spend hours editing jobs, and I just want to be better and feel better about myself as a reporter (maybe that I don't suck;).

[Erica Abbott]

what is in that book? Is it like brief encounters and just has a ton of briefs or is it actually showing you how to change your writing theory to write differently? I am so very interested! I did get the brief encounters for Christmas, and I am already loving it!!!

[Tami]

Erica,

It's 520 pages. Spiral bound.

It has word lists, such as Common Multisyllabic Words, Proper Nouns, US States and Capitals, Science, etc.

It also introduces new "theory" concepts to add to your own writing style, such as for prefix and suffix usage.

My favorite: common words to phrase and extensive phrasing concepts.

Some of it can be a bit overwhelming, but I find what I like, try my best to devour it, and when I think I've gnawed on it long enough, I move to the next new concept/chapter that catches my eye.

I think it's a wonderful tool to have in my endeavor to keep writing shorter, so I can keep working.

Happy Writing Short!!

[Glen Warner]

Tami --

If I recall Clay's (now nuked) Depoman review of Magnum Steno, he said the difference between the Stenomaster book and the Magnum Steno book is that SM teaches the theory, while MS is more like a dictionary. Is that correct?

If not, what is the difference?

Finally, if anyone wants to buy a copy of Stenomaster, they can get it here:

http://www.selfstudycourtreporting.com

Thanks, Tami.

--gdw
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"For a Good (steno) Time ...."
http://www.cheapandsleazy.net

[Tami]

GDW,

Lots of great things got nuked. I felt like I needed to attend a funeral after that loss. :)

There are a lot of concepts in the new book that the old theory book doesn't have. It's a great resource for incorporating a new shorter writing style into your own.

I, too, need to get back on the stick and tackle a few more chapters.

[Glen Warner]

All --

I was not quite correct when I pointed everyone to the selfstudy site as a good place to buy JUST the Stenomaster book; seems when someone tried, they were offered the book, plus lots of dictation (which she didn't want) for $1700.

You don't have to be a mathematician to know that $1700 is way more than $250 ...!

So, I asked Mark Kislingbury where to get JUST the Stenomaster book. Here's what he said:

The best way to get *just* the book is to telephone my assistant, Samuel, at 713-837-6595. His e-mail address is [e-mail].

Hope that helps ....!

--gdw
--------------------------
"For a Good (steno) Time ...."

[Tami]

Great news, GDW. Thanks for looking into that.

The theory book is AWESOME!

[Tami]

Awesome, Patricia.

I hope you enjoy it.

[Rhoda Collins]

I have been in it a month. Got the book also. I can see a difference in myself. I have already used some of Mark's writing defines, so that helps. The speed is fine, as it is to push you. I am not sure I would want slower, as it is the push he is looking for. When I hit a depo now they seem so slow, LOL!
rho

[Tami]

And how's that RT coming along, Rhoda??

Usually when you have more time to think, your writing gets cleaner and cleaner. Hence, your editing time becomes less and less.

So glad to hear it's making a difference.

I think you're the first person whom I've heard say "The speed is fine."

[Rhoda Collins]

RT...not yet! LOL! I have seen a difference in my editing too! It is insane and I don't get it all, but that push really works! Another CR from my firm is practicing w/me and she is seeing a difference too. I feel the speed also gets you 'focusing' more on what they are saying. It really makes a normal day seem SO slow, lol.

[Erica Abbott]

Rho, seems how you know the same exacty theory I do, I was wondering if the book itself is worth the money or if there isn't a whole lot that's different from what we've learned seems how we already learned a realtime, conflict free theory. I am really interested in building more of speed. I find myself making new briefs for everything lately and I'm trying to do tapes. I just got the brief encounters book too, so is Mark's book just going to overlap a lot of the words/phrases in there???


THANK YOU ALL FOR HELPING WITH THIS!:)

[Rhoda Collins]

Erica,
His is WAY different than ours, lol. He uses the * key. You could start w/just doing the $30 a month for the online stuff, as he covers pages of his book in there. Then decided later. We could set sometime if you wanted to see the book, we could meet, if you wanted.