On Writing Well

The Day You Became a Better Writer

Scott Adams

I went from being a bad writer to a good writer after taking a one-day course in "business writing." I couldn't believe how simple it was. I'll tell you the main tricks here so you don't have to waste a day in class.

Business writing is about clarity and persuasion. The main technique is keeping things simple. Simple writing is persuasive. A good argument in five sentences will sway more people than a brilliant argument in a hundred sentences. Don't fight it.

Simple means getting rid of extra words. Don't write, "He was very happy" when you can write "He was happy." You think the word "very" adds something. It doesn't. Prune your sentences.

Humor writing is a lot like business writing. It needs to be simple. The main difference is in the choice of words. For humor, don't say "drink" when you can say "swill."

Your first sentence needs to grab the reader. Go back and read my first sentence to this post. I rewrote it a dozen times. It makes you curious. That's the key.

Write short sentences. Avoid putting multiple thoughts in one sentence. Readers aren't as smart as you'd think.

Learn how brains organize ideas. Readers comprehend "the boy hit the ball" quicker than "the ball was hit by the boy." Both sentences mean the same, but it's easier to imagine the object (the boy) before the action (the hitting). All brains work that way. Notice he didn't say, "That is the way all brains work."

That's it. You just learned 80% of the rules of good writing. You're welcome.

Five Common Word-Usage Mistakes

David Foster Wallace

English 183A, 25 September 2002 — Your Liberal-Arts $ at Work. ⊕ From Wallace's Pomona College handout for his advanced fiction writing class.

1. The preposition towards is British usage; the US spelling is toward. Writing towards is like writing colour or judgement. Except for backwards and afterwards, no preposition ending in -ward takes a final s in US usage.

2. And is a conjunction; so is so. Except in dialogue between particular kinds of characters, you never need both conjunctions. "He needed to eat, and so he bought food" is incorrect. In 95% of cases like this, what you want to do is cut the and.

3. For a compound sentence to require a comma plus a conjunction, both its constituent clauses must be independent. An independent clause (a) has both a subject and a main verb, and (b) expresses a complete thought. In a sentence like "He ate all the food, and went back for more," you don't need both the comma and the and because the second clause isn't independent.

4. There are certain words whose appearance at the beginning of a clause renders that clause dependent. You may have learned to call these kinds of words Signal Words or Temporal Adverbs in high school. Examples include since, while, because, although, and as. They keep the clause from expressing a complete thought.

   The crucial question is whether the clause that starts with a Signal Word occurs first in the sentence or not. If it does, you need a comma: "As the wave crashed down, the surfer fell." If the relevant clause comes second, you do not need a comma: "The surfer fell as the wave crashed down."

5. In real prose stylistics, the Signal Word thing can get tricky. Because is a funny word, and sometimes you'll need a comma before it in order to keep your sentence from giving the wrong impression.

   Say Bob's been murdered; the question is whether Rhonda did it:

   a. "Rhonda didn't do it because she loved him."

   b. "Rhonda didn't do it, because she loved him."

   Sentence a really says that Rhonda did kill Bob but that her reason wasn't love. Sentence b says that Rhonda did not kill Bob and that the reason she didn't is that she loves him. In 99% of cases, what someone'll be meaning to say is what b says. So, though nonstandard in the abstract, b can be semantically correct.

A Guide to Writing Well

Joshua Sowin

This guide was mainly distilled from On Writing Well by William Zinsser and The Elements of Style by Strunk and White.

Before You Start Writing

Before you start writing an article, ask the following questions:

1. How will I address the reader? (Reporter? Provider of information? Average man or woman?)
2. What pronoun and tense will I use? (Impersonal reportorial? Personal but formal? Personal and casual?)
3. What attitude will I take toward the material? (Involved? Detached? Judgmental? Ironic? Amused?)
4. How much of the subject do I want to cover?
5. Have I done enough research and/or have enough experience with the subject?
6. Is there anyone I can interview to gather more information on the subject?
7. What is the one point I want to make? "Every successful piece of nonfiction should leave the reader with one provocative thought that he or she didn't have before. Not two thoughts, or five—just one." — Zinsser, p. 53

General Principles

1. Be yourself. Don't alter your voice for a subject. Relax and write with confidence. "Never say anything in writing that you wouldn't comfortably say in conversation." — Zinsser, p. 27
2. Write for yourself — that will make it interesting to the reader.
3. Write with humanity and warmth.
4. Omit needless words. Write simply and without clutter. ⊕ "A sentence should contain no unnecessary words." — Strunk & White, p. 23
   "Strip every sentence to its cleanest components." — Zinsser, p. 8
   "Rich, ornate prose is hard to digest." — Strunk & White, p. 72
5. Be clear. Clear writing comes from clear thinking. Know logic, rhetoric, and your subject. ⊕ "Muddiness is not merely a disturber of prose, it is also a destroyer of life." — Strunk & White, p. 79
   "Jaw-breaking words often cover up very sloppy thinking." — Thomas Sowell
6. Avoid fancy words. ⊕ "Never use a long word where a short one will do." — George Orwell
   "Avoid the elaborate, the pretentious, the coy, and the cute." — Strunk & White, p. 77
7. "Write as if you were dying. What would you begin writing if you knew you would die soon?" — Annie Dillard
8. Develop a respect for words and a curiosity about their shades of meaning. Use a dictionary and thesaurus.
9. Talk about a person, not people. Specificity will raise interest.
10. Pay attention to your metaphors — what are you communicating with them?
11. Have a unity of pronoun, tense, and mood.
12. "Don't ever become the prisoner of a preconceived plan. Writing is no respecter of blueprints." — Zinsser
13. Don't save good ideas for later. "Give it, give it all, give it now." — Annie Dillard
14. Don't over-explain. Don't annoy your readers by telling them something they already know or can surmise.
15. After every sentence, ask yourself what the reader wants to know next.
16. Use orthodox spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.
17. Make your writing interesting. Use humor, anecdote, paradox, or unexpected quotations.
18. Learn to interview others and weave their quotes into your writing.
19. Learn to write about place.

Usage Principles

1. Use active verbs. "Joe saw him" instead of "He was seen by Joe."
2. Most adverbs are unnecessary. Replace them with precise verbs.
3. Most adjectives are unnecessary. Kick the "adjective-by-habit."
4. Remove common clichés, cheap words, and made-up words.
5. Remove qualifiers: a bit, a little, sort of, kind of, rather, quite, very, too, pretty much.
6. Keep sentences short. "Most writers don't reach the period soon enough." — Zinsser, p. 71
7. Remove laborious phrases. Use "now" instead of "at the present time."
8. Remove "experiencing." "Does it hurt?" instead of "Are you experiencing pain?"
9. Remove unnecessary euphemism.
10. Remove long words when a short one will do. Assistance → help. Facilitate → ease.
11. Remove word clusters that explain to go about explaining: "I might add," "It should be pointed out."
12. Remove verbal camouflage. "A negative cash-flow position" means bankrupt.
13. "Don't use words too big for the subject. Don't say 'infinitely' when you mean 'very'." — C. S. Lewis
14. Use exclamation points sparingly.
15. Alert the reader to mood or subject changes. Use: but, yet, however, nevertheless, still, instead, thus, therefore, meanwhile, now, later, today. ⊕ Sentences can begin with "but."
    "Don't start a sentence with 'however' — it hangs there like a wet dishrag." — Zinsser, p. 74
16. Use contractions when they sound natural.
17. Don't be ambiguous — use personal nouns.
18. Don't use overstatement.
19. Place the emphatic words of a sentence at the end.
20. Don't use dialect unless your ear is good.
21. Avoid foreign words. Use English.
22. Regarding quotations: When you use a quotation, start the sentence with it. Don't strain to find synonyms for "he said."
23. That/which: Always use "that" unless it makes your meaning ambiguous.
24. Regarding e.g./i.e.: e.g. = "example given" (exempli gratia). i.e. = "in effect" (id est, "that is").

The Introduction

The most important sentence in any article is the first one. If it doesn't induce the reader to proceed to the second sentence, your article is dead. Zinsser, p. 55

General Principles:

1. Make your lead as long or short as it requires.
2. Look for material everywhere — find an odd fact or daily absurdity.
3. Tell a story if possible.

Questions to Ask Yourself:

1. Does my lead capture the reader's attention?
2. Does it tell the reader why this is written?
3. Is my lead fresh?

The Conclusion

An article that doesn't stop where it should stop becomes a drag. Zinsser, p. 64

1. Give as much thought to the last sentence as the first.
2. Don't conclude with a summary.
3. "When you're ready to stop, stop." — Zinsser
4. Don't use "In conclusion."
5. The perfect ending should take readers by surprise yet seem exactly right.
6. Conclude with a sentence that jolts.
7. Bring the lead story full circle.
8. A surprising quotation often works best.

Rewriting

Rewriting is the essence of writing well. Zinsser, p. 17

1. Clear writing is the result of much tinkering.
2. A first draft can usually be cut by 50 percent.
3. Rewriting is tweaking, not starting over.
4. Read your writing aloud to listen for rhythm.
5. Have a friend read and critique.
6. Rewriting is rereading. — Annie Dillard

Genre-Specific Advice

Interviews

• Interview people who are passionate.
• Research the person before the interview.
• Ask questions that elicit interesting answers.
• After the interview, distill the essence. Link related thoughts even if they were far apart.
• Never fabricate quotes.

Travel

• Avoid "travelese" (soft words like attractive, charming, romantic).
• Be specific and selective.
• Practice locally first.
• Bring out the place and the people.

Memoir

• Memoir is a "window into a life," not a summary. Zinsser, p. 136
• Bring in details whenever possible.
• Summon back the people who crossed your life.

Science and Technology

• Assume the reader knows nothing and explain concepts accordingly.
• Imagine an "upside-down pyramid" — start with the one essential fact. Zinsser, p. 150
• Include the human element.
• Write like a person, not a scientist.

Reviews

• Know and love the medium.
• Don't give away too much of the plot.
• Use specific examples of why writing is poor or good.
• Avoid ecstatic adjectives (wonderful, marvelous).
• Take your stand with conviction.

Humor

• Humor is the secret weapon for making an important point.
• Don't strain for laughs; humor is built on surprise.
• Making yourself the victim or dunce can be funny.

Questions & Answers

How do I get better at writing?

1. Know the rules and learn when to break them.
2. Establish a schedule. Trollope wrote 250 words every 15 minutes.
3. Practice, practice, practice.
4. Read good writers and imitate them.
5. Ask for the truth from friends who critique.

Where should I write?

Write where you are most productive. Regarding computers: they are an invitation to distraction. Paper and pencil are alternatives.

What should I write?

1. Write about what you know and love.
2. It makes more sense to write one big, ambitious project than many small ones. — Annie Dillard

I'm stuck on a sentence, what should I do?

Solve it by getting rid of the sentence or starting it over.

On Writing Better

Jason Zweig

• Good writing flashes between the concrete and the abstract.
• Just talk it out onto the page without overthinking.
• Once you start, keep pouring as fast as you can. Do not revise as you go.
• If stuck, say: "I want you to know about all this because…" and write down what follows.
• Instead of trying to sound distinctive, just sound like you.
• Don't use nine words when six will do better.
• Purge passive language.
• Whatever you like most in your own writing is likely what readers like the least. This is the classic "kill your darlings" advice, often attributed to Faulkner but echoed by nearly every master of prose.

Tips for Cutting Your Writing

• First, make it longer — throw in every idea.
• If you can't cut your writing by a third, it isn't worth reading.
• Identify the weakest paragraphs and delete them.
• Kill all adverbs. Slaughter every weasel word.
• Let it rest for a day or longer.
• The essence of rewriting is destruction. It's killing your darlings.
• If it sounds like writing, rewrite it. Echoing Elmore Leonard's famous tenth rule of writing.
• If you're afraid something isn't good enough, it's not. Start from scratch.

Appendix: Orwell's Six Rules of Clear English

George Orwell

1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

Appendix: Mark Twain's Rules of Story Writing

Mark Twain

⊕ Condensed from Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses.

1. A tale shall accomplish something and arrive somewhere.
2. Episodes must be necessary.
3. Characters shall be alive (except corpses).
4. Conversation shall sound like human talk and have meaning.
5. The author's description of a character shall be justified by that character's conduct.
6. Use the right word, not its second cousin.
7. Eschew surplusage.
8. Employ a simple and straightforward style.