4 ms·
The problem is that it takes a lot less time to come up with 50 words. 50 words don't require the kind of organization that 5,000 words require in order to stay
by such_a_casual 11y ago
The problem is that it takes a lot less time to come up with 50 words. 50 words don't require the kind of organization that 5,000 words require in order to stay coherent. It takes an afternoon to write an article. It can take years to write a book. Through bare necessity, longer spans of text require more attention and quality.
- SilasX 11y agoNot true! As the saying goes, "I would have written a shorter letter, but I didn't have the time."[1] Writing a shorter post, especially one that summarizes what you'll get out of an article, typically takes more mental work since you have to pack more insight into fewer words. Writing an investigative article, of course, takes more time and thought but it's not because you're putting more words out; if anything, padding it with flowery novel-style antidotes (that took little research) is how they make them artificially long, and it annoys me greatly. If what you have to say legitimately requires 5000 words, go for it! Otherwise, your long post is not improving the exchange of ideas. [1] https://en.m.wikiquote.org/wiki/Blaise_Pascal https://en.m.wikiquote.org/wiki/Blaise_Pascal
- such_a_casual 11y agoCounter-argument: Bad writers are bad writers. But a longer piece means the author can't hide the fact that they can't write.