How to Write an Essay Well
Few people realize how badly they write. Nobody has shown them how much excess or murkiness has crept into their style and how it obstructs what they are trying to say. If you give me an eight-page article and I tell you to cut it to four pages, you’ll howl and say it can’t be done. Then you’ll go home and do it, and it will be much better. After t
... See moreWilliam Zinsser • On Writing Well, 30th Anniversary Edition: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction
I’m often asked if there is something I think writers ought to do, and recently in an interview I heard myself say: “Several things. Love words, agonize over sentences. And pay attention to the world.”
Maria Popova • Susan Sontag on Storytelling, What It Means to Be a Good Human Being, and Her Advice to Writers
“A few tips on how to be a better writer:
– write about what fascinates you
– make one point per sentence
– use stories to make your point
– cut extra words like “really” and “very”
– read the whole thing out loud
– post publicly (you’ll try harder when you know others will read it)
And finally, be more thoughtful about what you consume. The quality of id... See more
– write about what fascinates you
– make one point per sentence
– use stories to make your point
– cut extra words like “really” and “very”
– read the whole thing out loud
– post publicly (you’ll try harder when you know others will read it)
And finally, be more thoughtful about what you consume. The quality of id... See more