Write simply (2021)
paulgraham.com
Write simply (2021)
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Re: Write simply (2021)
#2Something a boss of mine told me once was, after drafting an email, re-read it and cut its length roughly in half. If an email isn’t succinct, no one will read it fully.
Re: Write simply (2021)
#3Let's not called it complex, or fancy. It's bad writing, so let's just call it that.
Re: Write simply (2021)
#4amen
Re: Write simply (2021)
#5I consider the books by Rudolf Flesch pretty much the final word on this issue.
E.g., the art of readable writing, but there is also a book for people writing legal texts.
Re: Write simply (2021)
#6PG is an international treasure
Re: Write simply (2021)
#7>
And remember, if you're writing in English, that a lot of your readers won't be native English speakers
Just because some readers might not be proficient in English, we have to write plainly to accommodate them? What if they are seeking prose that makes them better at the language? This is a classic symptom of not having read enough literature. There is a visceral beauty in writing, and trying to place conditions on how it ought to be done is like asking of the painter how he ought to paint.
Re: Write simply (2021)
#8Also invent words wherever you can:
https://twitter.com/chiefchimpanzee/status/16157090455785062...
Re: Write simply (2021)
#9> And remember, if you're writing in English, that a lot of your readers won't be native English speakers Just because some readers might not be proficient in English, we have to write plainly to accommodate them? What if they are seeking prose that makes them better at the language? This is a classic symptom of not having read enough literature. There is a visceral beauty in writing, and trying to place conditions o…
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Re: Write simply (2021)
#10This may be good advice for an instruction manual or children's books, but I think good prose is something of an art in and of itself. Some of the most successful writers do the opposite. Look at the articles that go viral ..you see that the prose is varied and even complicated, not just simple.
The best prose is that which conveys the intended message for the intended audience in the best way possible. I think it's also a revealed vs stated preferences problem. People state they want/like simple writing but revealed preferences show otherwise.
I think the reason why so many business authors give this advice is confusing cause and effect. Writing simply does not make you successful or persuasive, but that people who are involved in business write that way naturally, but success at one does not follow from the other. Just like Bill Gates did not get rich by being good at bridge.