On Writing Well, 25th Anniversary: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

William Zinsser's on writing well has a history of being used in writing courses. He advocates a writing style is direct, clear and crisp. He divides the book into four sections: The Principles, Methods, Forms and Attitudes. Probably the best parts are the first two. The Principles covers keeping your writing simple, removing clutter, writing for the audience, word choice and usage. The Methods covers things such as unity within the writing, the lead and ending and various other aspects of writing methods. The section on Forms covers various specific writing techniques and styles for different forms of writing. Specifically it covers areas such as the Interview, Travel Articles, the Memoir, Business Writing and Technical Writing. If you have a specific need for one of these forms then the section has some very good advice. Finally the section on Attitude covers the required Attitude of the writer.

Throughout the book you learn that writing is indeed a craft that can be learned. Zinsser points out the most important patterns and techniques of successful writers so that you can follow their lead. This book is still one of the most recommended texts for people just beginning to learn to write and with good reason, it should be on the bookshelf of anyone serious about writing.

Zinsser asserts that writing well can be learned. This is good news. I thought I wrote well until I compared my reviews to those of some of the consistent top reviewers on Amazon. How do they do that?

According to Zinsser (and affirmed by Tom Clancy on a TV interview), good writers follow rules, editing each sentence and paragraph multiple times. They write against deadlines whether or not they're feeling inspired. When done properly, the finished product can look deceptively simple to write. Following is my liberally abridged summary of Zinsser's rules:

1. Do - prune out every word that does not perform a necessary function. Strip each sentence to its cleanest components. A clear sentence is no accident.

2. Do - use the thesaurus liberally. Learn the small gradations between words that seem to be synonyms.

3. Do - try to improve the rhythm by reversing the order of a sentence, substituting a word that has freshness or oddity, and by varying the lengths of sentences.

4. Do - make your first sentence the best one - your lead must capture the reader.

5. Do - make each sentence lead into the next. Readers think linearly.

6. Do - Take special care with the last sentence in your paragraph - its the springboard to the next paragraph.

7. Do - make your paragraphs short. Readers think in segments.

8. Do - pay special attention to the last sentence. The perfect ending should take your reader slightly by surprise and yet seem exactly right.

9. Do - Read it aloud to see how it sounds and re-edit - then do it again. Clear writing is the result of lots of tinkering.

On the other hand:

1. Don't - use passive verbs unless there is no comfortable way to use an active verb.

2. Don't - use adverbs that convey the same meaning as your strong active verb - prune it out.

3. Don't - use adjectives when the concept is already in your carefully chosen noun - prune it out.

4. Don't - use small words that qualify how you feel: "a bit," "a little," "sort of," and dozens more. Good writing is lean and confident.

5. Don't - use concept nouns:
Instead of - "The common reaction is incredulous laughter."
Write - "Most people just laugh with disbelief."

6. Don't - use the exclamation point unless you must, do use the period more frequently, don't forget the versatile dash, and cut down on the use of semi-colons and colons. If you don't know how to punctuate, get a grammar book.

The next book I read was the New York Times bestseller, "Shadow Divers," by Robert Kurson. I read slowly with Zinsser's rules in mind, analyzing individual words, sentences and paragraphs. I looked for clutter, excess wordage, grandiose exaggerations, qualifiers, bad punctuation - and other common errors Zinsser considered awful. I couldn't find any. What I consistently found were techniques listed in the "do" list and just good creative writing. No wonder this author was successful. Within two chapters I was hooked, dropped my analysis, and finished the book very late that night.

Clancy said, "I hate writing - it's too much work. I put off starting as long as possible, and when I do start, it takes a year for me to write a book." Maybe not a recommended method for plugging a book, but Clancy's statement reveals the sweat equity he puts into each phrase.

Zinsser's book says we can learn to write better using proven techniques, and offers plenty of advice in this story-book type narrative. I plan on keeping it close by, next to my new thesaurus.

This is a wonderful book on writing. It is more than just a guide to writing grammatically well, it also teaches how to write interesting, meaningful pieces. Though this book includes its fair share of grammar and syntax lessons, its main focus (and the largest portion of its pages) is in the ART of writing well.

Parts I and II cover the basics on style--how to eliminate clutter, write clear, tight sentences, etc. Part III, the bulk of the work, deals individually with a variety of subjects that you might write about--people, places, business, sports, the arts, etc. This is where the book is most handy, where Zinsser steps out of the writing-guide mold and gives us something unique, something very useful.

Part IV deals much with the process of revision, and talks about the final product. This is useful to anyone who has goals of being published. Throughout, this book is full of humor and wit, as well as a writing style that is very fun to read. The only negative (in my opinion): Zinsser uses too many of his own pieces as a basis of comparison. Yes, I agree, he IS a good writer. But he's not the ONLY good writer out there. I would have liked to see less of his own work. The examples he uses from other writers are great--I just wish there were more of them.

Overall, this is a must-have for any aspiring writer, or for anyone who likes to write and wants to improve his or her style. This is not the best writing book out there, but you'll definitely see an improvement in your style for having read it.