co:writing

On Writing Well

“You have to strip down your writing before you can build it back up” carpentry metaphor {sounds like OCS training}
“A writer is obviously at his most natural and relaxed when he writes in the first person”
“Sell yourself, and your subject will exert its own appeal”
“Writing is an act of ego, and you might as well admit it.”

“Hassle” and “Freak” OK but “notables” and “greats” not
“the pen must at length comply with the tongue” Samuel Johnson
“In general we turned out to be liberal in accepting new words and phrases, but conservative in grammar” p.40
“These may seem like picayune distinctions. They're not. They are signals to the reader that you are sensitive to the many shadings of usage.”

use active verbs
- Hemingway, Thurber, Thoreau, KJV, Shakespeare, Lincoln
- “Joe hit him” vs “He was hit by Joe”
Most adverbs are unecessary e.g. “The radio blared loudly”
Most adjectives are unnecessary (fr elsewhere: quality over extent)
Limit qualifiers e.g. “a bit”, “very”
Keep paragraphs short
“Your subconscious mind does more writing than you think”
Use verbs instead of concept nouns e.g. reaction, cynicism
abolish “The human condition”
avoid concept nouns
- “The common reaction is incredulous laughter” … “most people just laugh with disbelief”

Science

Sequence is key - start with reader knows nothing –> “inverted pyramid” - Chimpanzee ticktactoe

Humor - using it to deliver a serious point “Hairdresser” example
“Humor is the secret weapon of the non-fiction writer. It is secret because so few writers realize that it is often their best tool – and sometimes their only tool – for making an important point” p.134

On Writing Well. William Zinnser