It was nearly two years after I had received “On Writing Well” that I started to read it. William Zinsser is not just writing a book on writing well; he is in love with the art of writing and using the English language. This passion comes through clearly in every page and invites the reader to ride along.
I love William Zinsser’s writing style. He writes about the English language and yet it reads like poetry in several parts. While he is certainly not one with a small vocabulary and knowledge of the language, he writes ever so clearly. With his writing, less is really more and right delivery of the words on paper lies at the heart of all writing.
According to Zinsser, and perhaps countless writers, writing is hard work. It is no easy task to produce good and original content regularly. It takes discipline, determination, practice, daily effort, and countless reviews of what you have written, including a read out loud, for the result to become polished and worthwhile. The room to grow and improve is large, and our efforts should be to fill that room someday.
Zinsser is commanding, bold and brazen in giving advice and delivering his points for the sake of better use of the English Language. He wants us to simplify, and to have a purpose for each word we use. He wants us to use far less clutter. The secret, he says, is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components. His fabulous example of our freedom from clutter is a beautiful piece from the Walden, which I must repeat for your sake:
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach me, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”
Clutter takes away from the strength of our message and adds an air of pomposity to our writing. The chapter on Clutter is my favorite. He entertains while berates us for letting the American language become so infested by clutter and redundancy.
What then would be our style, if all of us strip all our sentences to their bare bones? In response, Zinsser tells us to first strip and simplify, and understand what is clutter and what is essential. Then build your style around that correct foundation.
He warns us to distinguish between the types of readers who stop reading because of sloppy workmanship (your fault) versus those who are not interested in what you have to say (no one’s fault). Just as sloppy workmanship can deter a reader with good intentions, clean, simple, and smooth writing can attract a reader deep into your writing. The key is to know the difference and to apply your skills where it matters.
Words, words, words. What to use, what to avoid. William Zinsser is no fan of journalese, and neither am I. It reminds me of the corporate lingo that we have invented and continue to invent every day. We turn nouns to verbs and verbs to nouns, overnight. While temptation might be strong to use one of these popular phrases (“fire off”, “beef up”, “emote”…), do not give in! The race in writing, he tells us, is not to the swift but to the original. Be original he tells us. After all, words are all the tool we have to use in writing.
When he talks about methods, he touches on a very key element: Unity. Unity keeps the reader’s interest focused. First consider the unity of pronoun: What person are you going to speak in? Whatever your choice, it’s important not to switch back and forth. You can speak in first person or third person, so long as you remain consistent. Second consider unity of tense: Are you going to speak in the past or present? Stories can be told from both tenses but the reader does not want to time travel with us at our will.
Reading is the best pastime for an active mind! If you like to see the other book reviews, check the index of In Print.
One of the most essential chapters of the book is “Bits & Pieces” where William Zinsser takes us through each element of the language and its proper use. Verbs, he tells us, are best when using in active form rather than passive. Most Adverbs and Adjectives are unnecessary, use with caution. The Little Qualifiers, and I liked these guys so much, dilute your style. They are the “very”, “a bit”, “sort of”, “kind of”, you get the point. Then if you are still reading, you get a short lesson in punctuation and learn the difference between use of “That” and “When”.
After the fundamentals, we enter the section where he takes us through all forms of nonfiction as literature. My favorite chapters are writing about people, places and yourself. The chapters are filled with examples of what he finds admirable and what he urges us to avoid.
I love how well William Zinsser can articulate any abstract concept in the realm of writing. In The Sound of your Voice chapter, he articulates style for us. Whatever our style, he tells us not to be crude, verbose, corny, and hence contemptuous of the English language. Stay away from cliches, and be fresh and original, he repeats over and over.
The last pages of the book are some of the best and most inspiring for the English Language lover. Zinsser reminds us that verbs have more vigor than nouns, that active verbs are better than passive verbs, that short words are easier to read than long ones, and that if you would like to write better than every one else, you have to want to write better more than everybody else.
Indeed, he has inspired me to write my own pet-peeves around the English Language by emphasizing hte 19 errors one should in use of the language.
You may also like:
Why I Adore Pippity and Its Stunning Results:
Sometimes, you just get lucky. I looked so hard for months to find the ideal popup for the site. It had to be void of intrusion to my darling readers, professional, gorgeous and reliable. It was pure luck to meet developers of Pippity, beta test this baby in its early stages and now proudly run it with amazing and growing results. You have got to try it - if you want amazing results!
{ 9 brilliant comments, Care to add another? }
I could go on all day about my favorite books, but your reference to prose as poetry reminded me of one of them: American Caesar, by William Manchester. It’s a biography of Douglas MacArthur, published in 1979. I have read it five or six times, not just because the subject matter interests me, but because the book is so well-written. Consider this, a portion of the opening paragraph, which I am writing down here from memory:
“He was a great thundering paradox of a man, noble and ignoble, inspiring and outrageous, the best of men and the worst of men, the most protean, most ridiculous, and most sublime. No more baffling, exasperating soldier ever wore a uniform. Flamboyant, imperious, and apocalyptic, he carried the plumage of a flamingo, could not acknowledge errors, and tried to cover up his mistakes with sly, childish tricks. Yet he was also endowed with great personal charm, a will of iron, and a soaring intellect. He was also extraordinarily brave.”
I’ve made this comment elsewhere, but I do a lot of reading and try always to focus on things that are worth reading, both for their substance and the way the author uses the language. I could go on and on like this, and might share some additional thoughts and quotes with you from time to time.
Garry, very impressive paragraph to memorize and thank you for sharing the book title. I will add it to my long queue. I am always looking for exciting reading. You may share whatever you wish. It is most welcome.
Hi Farnoosh
A super in depth summary of Zinsser’s book.
Having read your review I would definately rush out and buy a copy.
I use his advice for writing prose and for writing speeches – good writing is good writing whatever you want to use it for.
What do you say in your introduction “writing is hard work” – I can agree with that.
Writing refining and writing again until it’s just right.
Thanks for a great review of a classic book.
Hi Keith,
Thank you. I am half-thinking of sending the book over to you but I looked at it and I have written all over it – or in good many places – and the only reason I may want to keep it is if I use it for writing the Iran Memoirs one of these days….Will you be able to obtain a copy rather easily and cheaply? Someone gave me this copy. Great reference for Toastmasters!
Hi Farnoosh
No problem I have a copy – mine is orange and it’s called the “25th Anniversary edition”.
I notice that yours is blue / green.
Please keep it, you will read it all over again in a few years.
Farnoosh,
Just going to a book shop now to browse a few books and I thought I will let you know that, after reading this book review, I am right away purchasing “On writing well”!
Will read the over the next few days…
Ta ta…
Last Fabulous Post by Rashmie @ Gorgeous Karma was I Dare- Bare and Share – My Most Critical Life Lessons!
My dear Rashmie, I missed out on replying to this comment and just today, I hear from you as you’ve been going through my archives
! Hope you are doing fabulous and whether or not you got this book, I have no doubt in your special writing skills.
Stephen Harrod Buhner takes a quite different approach to writing.
He is an amazing writer, the kind who manages to write entertaining, fascinating and lyrical non-fiction.
He is also quite critical of some of the how-to write books
Ensouling Language Nonfiction Writers Life
Sloc, thanks for sharing -I shall have to look it up.
{ 4 brilliant comments, Care to add another? }