Here is a short list of writing tips from one of the great masters of the craft, CS Lewis.
I’ve always been a bit suspicious of overly long essays on writing advice, and I’ve seen some big name authors do just that. In my opinion, all the really important rules for good writing can be boiled down to a few basic points. If you can’t summarize it on one page, you’re trying to say too much. So I’ve come to really appreciate these six points from Lewis. It succinctly captures the really important rules for good writing, separating it from the amateurish.
Lewis’ Six Tips for Writers
On June 26, 1956, C.S. Lewis replied to letter from an American girl named Joan with advice on writing. Here’s what he said:
- Always try to use the language so as to make quite clear what you mean and make sure your sentence couldn’t mean anything else.
- Always prefer the plain direct word to the long, vague one. Don’t implement promises, but keep them.
- Never use abstract nouns when concrete ones will do. If you mean “More people died” don’t say “Mortality rose.”
- In writing, don’t use adjectives which merely tell us how you want us to feel about the things you are describing. I mean, instead of telling us the thing is “terrible,” describe it so that we’ll be terrified. Don’t say it was “delightful”; make us say “delightful” when we’ve read the description. You see, all those words (horrifying, wonderful, hideous, exquisite) are only like saying to your readers “Please, will you do my job for me.” (My note: In other words, show – don’t tell, which is the cardinal rule of good writing.)
- Don’t use words too big for the subject. Don’t say “infinitely” when you mean “very”; otherwise you’ll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite.
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