7 Tips on Clear Writing: The Strait and Narrow Mind Set

In the style of many romantic-age writers, Dostoevsky and James Joyce, protégés write sentences such as this; extremely long and complex with a plethora of words that don’t have any necessary job except to make the sentence sound more enlightened.

That style is fine. Writing well thought-out paragraphs is fine. Obey the rules of grammar, appeal to a highly literate audience and continue. It worked for many great writers.

I am here to tell you a different way to write. This is a style, not a mandate. There are plenty of different ways to write, just as there are different ways to paint. Picasso and Van Gogh both created masterpieces in different ways. That's how writing works, as well. So here are seven steps to a simpler style:

1. Take out whatever you are working on right now, and cut out every “so” and “very” you find. In the words of Mark Twain: “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you're inclined to write ‘very’; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.”

If you are using “so” and “very” to amplify something, then the word you chose just isn’t strong enough. Instead of saying, “she was very tired,” write “she was exhausted.” See the difference? Concise and easy to understand!

2. Write for an audience, not for an ego. Sure any writer can use the longest word From Shakespeare’s works, “Honorificabilitudinitatibus.” Have fun trying to fit that comfortably into speech. Unless you are making a ridiculous example, your audience will probably just get annoyed and give up reading. Slip the tough ones in, but don’t force language.

3. If you can’t read the sentence in one breath, edit it down. If the voice in your head can’t even read it in one breath, chop it up. There is an art to a quick and informative style that keeps a reader going. While lassoing the audience in with the beginning of a sentence will keep them for a while, they will get tired of being tied. Instead, play jump rope with the reader. Let them jump, jump and jump to ideas. It is a quick and catching style, and contrary to belief, its simplicity can keep a reader engaged.

4. Pick up a newspaper. Look at the style. Usually it is crisp and to the point. No extra adjectives or adverbs, no speeches that don’t fit content and a story that is easy to follow. I like to write fiction like I write news.

This is the most important point I can make. You are writing the story, yes, but it grows on its own. The writer guides, he does not make. While you can strictly create with no regard for the characters or their integrity, it will be unrealistic and cold. Let the characters make decisions, even if they are stupid decisions. That is why so many authors end up with characters who are miniature versions of themselves. They do not separate themselves from the characters they write.

So write simply like a news story where objectivity is the key. Be the reporter who listens, not the journalist who twists.

5. Get the big details. If you take this advice the wrong way and cut out the death speech of the main character, readers can feel cheated. Cut what doesn’t have a job in the story. While things can have metaphorical meanings, they can also appear to have metaphorical meanings. If it sounds phony, cut it. If you are unsure, cut it.

6. Don’t worry about losing all that hard work. Open another document, get a blank sheet of paper or just copy out what you are cutting. Save it somewhere else if you are afraid of too drastically changing. When I work on a large story, I keep at least three copies going by the end. Fear will hold you back, but precaution is always smart.

7. Finally, if you are afraid you have cut too much (or are afraid to cut too much), do not be afraid to ask for help. You know who can tell you if the story isn’t clear? Anyone who isn't you can probably help. Someone who doesn’t know the story will pick up pretty quickly if it doesn’t make sense.

Ask a friend, brother, mother, aunt, neighbor, cousin, classmate or even just a random stranger on the train for a quick read. Listen to what they are missing or don’t understand. Get a few opinions. As the author, the box that holds the tale, you will have a hard time noticing key points that may have slipped through the colander-like drain of storytelling. Don’t be afraid to cut, because it is an important part of any writer’s toolbox.