We’re kicking off the New Year with simple tricks and heuristics that are guaranteed to improve your writing and help you develop a sharper sense of style. But, unlike the confusing and sometimes counterintuitive rules of traditional style guides, this series offers a refreshing and relevant take on writing readable texts of all kinds.
Look to the classic style to develop good prose and clarity.
There are many writing styles from which to draw inspiration. But when it comes to developing clarity and conciseness, most literary scholars agree that no style is better than the classic.
The primary goal of classic style is to present things to readers in a way that is clear and simple enough for them to understand, no matter how complex the subject. To achieve this, the author must abandon the pedantic or unnecessarily analytical tendencies that so often appear in other writing styles, especially in academia or in business and legal professions.
Physicist Brian Greene, for example, used the classic style in his writings for Newsweek to expertly explain an incredibly complex topic: the theory of the multiverse. He used clear, everyday images and examples to describe how our universe could simply be one of an infinite number of coexisting universes.
Specifically, Greene compared the multiverse to a well-stocked shoe store — one which can guarantee that you’ll find your size — as a means of explaining the perfect conditions of our particular universe to exist within the multiverse. The more shoes there are, the greater the chances of your finding the right pair; the more universes there are, the greater the chances of there being one with the right conditions.
When written well, the classic style can make the reader feel like a genius. Bad writing, on the other hand, can make the reader feel like an idiot.
The classic style assumes that author and reader are equals, and the text aims to guide the reader to an understanding of the concept under discussion. Bad writing, on the other hand, has the opposite effect and often leaves the reader feeling lost. It is typically full of inexplicable references and intimidating passages that the average reader could not easily understand.
Whereas clumsy writers often qualify and obscure their arguments with words like virtually, seemingly, somewhat, or phrases like “I would argue” or “to some extent,” the classic style presents the information clearly and confidently.
Until tomorrow…
Love reading The Writing Desk? Share our newsletters with an aspiring author in your life and give him or her the gift of writing tips and inspiration every day.