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Want to write well?
Some starter rules:
-Avoid the passive voice
-Don't invent words or in any other way attempt eccentricity unless your audience ADORES you
-After you're done writing, go back through and eliminate as many adjectives and adverbs as you can without losing meaning
Some starter rules:
-Avoid the passive voice
-Don't invent words or in any other way attempt eccentricity unless your audience ADORES you
-After you're done writing, go back through and eliminate as many adjectives and adverbs as you can without losing meaning
"Avoid passive voice" examples:
No: No attempt was made
Yes: He / they made no attempt
No: That just isn't done
Yes: Nobody does that
No: Not a word was spoken
Yes: Nobody said a word
No: His experience was applied to his work
Yes: He applied his experience to his work
No: No attempt was made
Yes: He / they made no attempt
No: That just isn't done
Yes: Nobody does that
No: Not a word was spoken
Yes: Nobody said a word
No: His experience was applied to his work
Yes: He applied his experience to his work
Re invented / eccentric words:
Don't write "fanboi" or "simp." Write "adulator" or "kiss-ass" or "sycophant."
Don't write "King Trudeau." Write "Trudeau." Feel free to argue he fancies himself king. But word-inventiveness is often a lazy shortcut to a point you should just state.
Don't write "fanboi" or "simp." Write "adulator" or "kiss-ass" or "sycophant."
Don't write "King Trudeau." Write "Trudeau." Feel free to argue he fancies himself king. But word-inventiveness is often a lazy shortcut to a point you should just state.
Re eliminating adjectives and adverbs: Look for nouns or illustrations that work on their own without adjectives or adverbs.
No: She's so beautiful and charismatic that everyone is solicitous toward her.
Yes: She's a beauty with charisma. Everyone wants to light her cigarette.
No: She's so beautiful and charismatic that everyone is solicitous toward her.
Yes: She's a beauty with charisma. Everyone wants to light her cigarette.
