How to Write Good. (Updated)

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I've recently blogged about communication skills as a critical resource for today's leader. (That post is here.)

Along with all the other facets of communication (verbal, non-verbal, visual, etc.) effective writing is a foundational element.  Nothing loses a reader faster than bad writing.

Years ago, before Al Gore invented the Internet, a list of rules made the rounds through fax, photocopy, and word of mouth.

 I was able to find a complete list of them here.

Consider this a guest post for your edification. Here they are for your reading (and learning) pleasure.

The first set of rules was written by Frank L. Visco and originally published in the June 1986 issue of Writers' digest.

The second set of rules is derived from William Safire's Rules for Writers.

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My several years in the word game have learnt me several rules:

Avoid Alliteration. Always. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with. Avoid cliches like the plague. (They’re old hat.) Employ the vernacular. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive. Contractions aren’t necessary. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos. One should never generalize. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.”

Comparisons are as bad as cliches. Don’t be redundant; don’t use more words than necessary; it’s highly superfluous. Profanity sucks. Be more or less specific. Understatement is always best. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement. One word sentences? Eliminate. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake. The passive voice is to be avoided. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed. Who needs rhetorical questions?

Parenthetical words however must be enclosed in commas. It behooves you to avoid archaic expressions. Avoid archaeic spellings too. Don't repeat yourself, or say again what you have said before. Don't use commas, that, are not, necessary. Do not use hyperbole; not one in a million can do it effectively. Never use a big word when a diminutive alternative would suffice. Subject and verb always has to agree. Placing a comma between subject and predicate, is not correct. Use youre spell chekker to avoid mispeling and to catch typograhpical errers. Don't repeat yourself, or say again what you have said before. Use the apostrophe in it's proper place and omit it when its not needed. Don't never use no double negatives. Poofread carefully to see if you any words out. Hopefully, you will use words correctly, irregardless of how others use them.

Eschew obfuscation. No sentence fragments. Don't indulge in sesquipedalian lexicological constructions. A writer must not shift your point of view. Don't overuse exclamation marks!! Place pronouns as close as possible, especially in long sentences, as of 10 or more words, to their antecedents. Writing carefully, dangling participles must be avoided. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky. Everyone should be careful to use a singular pronoun with singular nouns in their writing. Always pick on the correct idiom. The adverb always follows the verb. Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors. If you reread your work, you can find on rereading a great deal of repetition can be by rereading and editing. And always be sure to finish what

New! If you have read to the bottom of this post, you are obviously interested in making your writing much less painful for others who have to read it.

Jeff Goins has a great post on Five Weak Words that Make Your Writing Less Effective. Jeff's blog is filled with practical advice on improving your writing. Read his other posts at GoinsWriter.com

Now pardon me while I go scour my blogs for weak words.