Summary
The first part of the book shows the fundamental principles that Zinsser tries to lay down for all writers, both novice and experienced, who struggle to express themselves freely and clearly in their work.
It offers answers to some most essential questions:
1. what is writing?
2. what are the most common mistakes one can make in writing?
3. How can we acquire a style?
4. Who are we writing for?
5. Why are some good words good and bad ones bad?
He tells us that writing is more a craft than an art. It’s hard and it takes practice. Writing is also a personal transaction, a way to make others feel what you feel and think what you think.
Simplicity is the basic rule for written words. We should avoid unnecessary word, circular constructions, pompous frills, and meaningless jargon. The beauty of a piece usually lies in the humanity and strength of its language. Every word and sentence should mean something. We should also remember that revision is very effective and necessary.
Style does not come with the deliberate attempt to garnish our words. Instead, such actions strip us of our uniqueness, and readers will notice right away. Surprisingly, the use of I in writing is not a taboo. A touch of subjectivity actually helps in revealing who we are. As for the audience, it’s true that we should attend to their reading experience and polish our craft, but the attitude of writing should be more relaxed. We are writing first to please ourselves rather than anyone else. Only in this way can our style thrive naturally.
Lastly, it’s his attitude towards lexical and syntactic intruders. New words will be coined inevitably with the development of society and technology, but they are no better choice than the old and simple ones unless they convey more information or emotion. New words come and go. We should be wise enough to tell which ones are here to stay. On the other hand, grammar rules are relatively more stable. What’s wrong will never be right.
The second part moves on to how to compose. Think small and decide on how much we’d like to cover and what one point we’d like to make. Based on such decisions, we choose a unity of pronoun, tense, and mood. Unity is the anchor of good writing and a demonstration of good control. It’s so important that we can even work backwardly to achieve it when we are led else where by the materials in the latter part of writing.
The leading and the ending are the crucial parts of writing. Try to collect as many materials as possible and write in a personal and relevant way. We must capture the reader with a good leading and develop connections while building up. A good ending should come promptly when all the information has been covered. It should give readers a lift and linger when the article is over.
Reflections
在总结中，我有意识地尝试运用一些老爷子的理念和建议。克制it should be pointed out that这种论文官腔，减少衔接词套路的使用和hedging的使用，放飞自己的句内主语不一致。不过也用了几个老爷子谴责的jargon，都是因为我乐意。这是一种尝试，基于写作首先应该是为了表达自我、语言首先应该让自己舒服的原则。的确，写得挺开心，不过不知效果如何。有一点感受很深刻，当减少了字面上的衔接词和固定的结构套路，文字内在也就是意识的连贯就更显得重要，决定了文章是否紧凑、读者是否能跟上。（关于jargon的使用，我的看法与作者不同。）
对于读书会的参与体验，我是感恩的又是困惑的。有了群里的兄弟姐妹们的鞭策和陪伴，坚持每天读书、写读书笔记，即使不擅长词汇学习也慢慢开始查词。这是一种全新的体验，看着自己的足迹，心里充满成就感。困惑的是，读书会活动好像给我的生活带来了一些困扰。过去的一周里，我推掉了所有的应酬和娱乐，每天下班除了做饭吃饭散步，就是窝在沙发读书写读书笔记。密友甚至讨厌起Eric，说他抢走了我。可能是工作刚好比较忙，每天赶十二点前交笔记也有一定的压力，所以对别人的陪伴缺少了一些耐心。
我仍然认为读书会很有意义，这次这本书也很值得一看，只是不知道还能坚持多久。不过我会尽力而为，毕竟一鼓作气，再而衰，三而竭。如果中间断开了很可能就懈怠下来，不仅辜负了之前的努力，也错过了一本好书。
Words review
emulate
the reigning champ of the arena
strangling in
muddy the waters
at the helm
wet behind the ears
In proportion to
Nose about
Pound into
Make of
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