A compendium of writing by Larry Leporte.
Online Marketing Copy for Law Practices
Law firms, take note. Having done a fair amount of research, here are two things that I have (with all due respect) observed:
Most law practices - especially small and medium-sized ones - have a unique, compelling culture and value proposition that drives the practice.
Yet it’s remarkable how often dynamic and highly accomplished law firms have an online presence that feels tired, perfunctory, and indifferent. Despite their generous store of intellect and wit, their websites rely heavily on stock phrases and bland generalities.
The fact is, excellent lawyers are far too busy lawyering to write copy for the firm’s website.
Could I perhaps help you do justice to what you have to offer?
Editing and Coaching for Essays and Papers
Many of the great intellectual monuments of our civilization take the form of the essay. Think, for instance, the work of Emerson, Montaigne, Chesterton, George Orwell, and Joan Didion. Think MLK and the Birmingham Jail, or David Foster Wallace and the lobster.
True, it’s a chore to have to write one. But consider that every time you sigh deeply and sit down with a rough outline and a couple of pages of notes, you’re like Michelangelo contemplating the block of stone from which the David emerged. You’re presented with an opportunity to produce a masterpiece.
I am an ardent and unapologetic lover of essays. I especially love the craft involved in their creation, and I am honored whenever I get the chance to guide and assist someone in chiseling out his or her own masterpiece.
Maybe I could help you with yours.
Note: If you are a student, please be aware that I work in only accordance with the ethical guidelines for editing student material that have been produced by the Editors’ Association of Canada. (I’m not Canadian, but in my opinion these guidelines take the correct approach.) Among other things, the guidelines allow editors to flag issues in student work product but prohibit editors from correcting or rewriting the text itself. Note also that I only work with students who are at the collegiate level or above, and I do not advise on college application essays.
Commissioned Essays, White Papers, and Blog Posts
At times, I am available to write essays, white papers, and blog posts for businesses, non-profits, publications, and other clients. My areas of interest are law, philosophy, ethics, literature, and religion. I don’t do partisan politics, but I will write on political issues and current events from an independent-minded perspective.
In relation to white papers, my default disposition is curiosity. I am always interested in writing about innovative products, processes, or services.
About Me:
Retired lawyer, writer, philosopher, and teacher.
“Philosopher”? Really? Pretentious much?
Yeah, I get it, but the fact is I can’t really describe myself accurately without that. Ever since I got the philosophy bug as an undergraduate and decided to major in it, I’ve been reading and writing philosophy. For better or for worse, it’s an essential part of who I am.
My professional background, though, is this:
I practiced law for over 20 years, as a corporate lawyer in large law firms. I got my law degree in the US (Northwestern) and practiced for a couple of years in the United States before getting the chance to go to London and help out in a branch office of an American law firm. I ended up staying in England for over 15 years, qualifying as an English solicitor, and ultimately leading a corporate law department in a British law firm.
I left law practice to go into business, and I ran various businesses for several years. When I finally retired from all of that, I found that I had more physical and intellectual energy than ever. I’ve been fortunate enough to land an adjunct teaching job that enables me to talk philosophy with graduate business students, and I’ve ramped up my writing output. My writing ranges from the practical (producing high quality marketing copy for law practices) to the more esoteric (essays on philosophical topics, as well as some fiction).
I created this website in order to try to corral the various elements of my professional and intellectual activity - to “tie the room together,” as the Dude Lebowski would put it. Please feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions or comments on any of this, or if there’s any way that I may be able to help you with your written materials.
“A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.”
- Thomas Mann
