It is for this reason that I found this video so enlighting. Here are the ten pieces of advice we are offered:
10 Write a draft, then let it rest
9 Read a lot
8 Never use a long word when a short one will do
7 Never use the passive voice when you can use the active voice
6 Know your audience
5 Recycle and read the good stuff before you write
4 Honour the miraculousness of the ordinary
3 Good copy = draft -10%
2 Look at every word in a sentence and decide if they are really needed. If not, kill them. Be ruthless.
1 Remember, writing doesn’t love you. It doesn’t care. Nevertheless, it can behave with remarkable generosity. Speak well of it, encourage others, pass it on.
Easier said than done, though.
H/T to Larry Ferlazzo.
