Contents
The two foundational questions to good writing, according to On Writing Well are:
- What am I trying to say?
- Have I said it? Is it clear to someone encountering the subject for the first time?
The author, William Zinsser, shares a heavily marked-up draft of this very section of the book which was itself already the product of four or five rewrites.
With each rewrite I try to make what I have written tighter, stronger and more precise, eliminating every element that’s not doing useful work. Then I go over it aloud, and am always amazed at ohw much clutter can still be cut.
This reminds me of how as simple as possible, but no simpler.
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- An interactive essay about writing more simply to make writing more readable for everyone, especially people with intellectual disabilities.