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Has nobody noticed that the best, most vivid, most engaging, most loved authors were not the briefest? Mark Twain. Shakespeare. Joyce. Toni Morrison. Gladwell.
by ahoyhere 17y ago
Has nobody noticed that the best, most vivid, most engaging, most loved authors were not the briefest?
Mark Twain. Shakespeare. Joyce. Toni Morrison. Gladwell. Ackerman. Etc.
It's true that brevity is better than futile padding. But brevity itself shouldn't be a goal, unless you give up and admit up front that you're a terrible writer, and brevity is the best way to make your writing go from terrible to palatably mediocre.
- kalid 17y agoYeah, I think "brevity" isn't the perfect word because it seems to imply shortness. I mean it to be more of making every word tell, which I think those writers do.
- ahoyhere 17y agoNo offense, but what's the point then of regurgitating William Zinsser badly? He said it better than you ever could. If you really think brevity is important, read: "On Writing Well"