Tuesday, September 2, 2014

A wee bit more about writing...

There's been many books written on how to improve yours, but a couple of the very best are:-


Patricia has been an editor at the New York Times Book Review, and she writes with wit, style, and brevity, and The New York Times said "Strunk & White combined with S. J. Perelman". This should be compulsory reading!


And speaking of Strunk and White, if you haven't, then get it now. 


This little gem I've doodled all over is so old I can't remember when or where it came from, but it is a pocket-sized 64-page cure-all, from long ago. For example, page 8:-
Ten Principles of Clear Writing

Keep Sentences Short
Prefer the Simple to the Complex
Develop Your Vocabulary
Avoid Unneeded Words
Put Action Into Your Verbs
Use Terms Your Reader Can Picture
Tie In With Your Reader's Experience
Write the Way You Talk (Careful There!)
Make Full Use of Variety
Write to Express, Not to Impress
("Big men use little words; little men use big words.")


I've had this one since 1993. Some day, I fully intend to read it! (Just kidding!)
 

2 comments:

  1. Speaking of writing, did you read my post on the blog on Benjamin Franklin?

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  2. Shame-faced, I must confess I haven't, but I will take a peek right now!

    ReplyDelete