On the important lesson of not trying too hard
Don't rush into the new year
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Scott Adams has some interesting nuggets on writing. Check them out. Reread them if you are already familiar.
The Day You Became A Better Writer
I went from being a bad writer to a good writer after taking a one-day course in “business writing.” I couldn’t believe how simple it was. I’ll tell you the main tricks here so you don’t have to waste a day in class.
Business writing is about clarity and persuasion. The main technique is keeping things simple. Simple writing is persuasive. A good argument in five sentences will sway more people than a brilliant argument in a hundred sentences. Don’t fight it.
Simple means getting rid of extra words. Don’t write, “He was very happy” when you can write “He was happy.” You think the word “very” adds something. It doesn’t. Prune your sentences.
Humor writing is a lot like business writing. It needs to be simple. The main difference is in the choice of words. For humor, don’t say “drink” when you can say “swill.”
Your first sentence needs to grab the reader. Go back and read my first sentence to this post. I rewrote it a dozen times. It makes you curious. That’s the key.
Write short sentences. Avoid putting multiple thoughts in one sentence. Readers aren’t as smart as you’d think.
Learn how brains organize ideas. Readers comprehend “the boy hit the ball” quicker than “the ball was hit by the boy.” Both sentences mean the same, but it’s easier to imagine the object (the boy) before the action (the hitting). All brains work that way. (Notice I didn’t say, “That is the way all brains work”?)
That’s it. You just learned 80% of the rules of good writing. You’re welcome.
“Don’t Try”
After years of toiling away for nothing, Bukowski’s writing finally started getting noticed. He became an overnight success except that overnight meant 30 years of fluttering consistency.
Very few people achieve overnight success that lasts. Diligence and persistence are often considered prerequisites to success, and they are. Bukowski himself hustled for well over three decades to get what he wanted since he was teenager getting knocked around at school and at home by his dad.
That is why it is baffling to know what his gravestone reads —“Don’t Try.” A message that on the surface seems exactly opposite to what he actually did to make his mark as a writer.