Bits and Pieces

Use active verbs unless there is no comfortable way to get around using a passive verb

Make active verbs activate your sentences, and avoid the kind that need an appended preposition to complete their work

Most adverbs and adjectives are unnecessary. Don’t use them unless they do necessary work

Prune out the small words that qualify how you feel and how you think and what you saw: “a bit,” “a little,” “sort of,” “kind of,” “rather,” “quite,” “very,” “too,” “pretty much,” “in a sense” and dozens more. Every little qualifier whittles away some fraction of the reader’s trust. Be bold

There’s not much to be said about the period except that most writers don’t reach it soon enough

Break long sentences into two short sentences, or even three

Don’t use the exclamation point unless you must to achieve a certain effect. Instead, construct your sentence so that the order of the words will put the emphasis where you want it

Learn to alert the reader as soon as possible to any change in mood from the previous sentence

Many of us were taught that no sentence should begin with “but.” If that’s what you learned, unlearn it — there’s no stronger word at the start. It announces total contrast with what has gone before, and the reader is thereby primed for the change

Your style will be warmer and truer to your personality if you use contractions like “I’ll” and “won’t” and “can’t” when they fit comfortably into what you’re writing

Always use “that” unless it makes your meaning ambiguous. If your sentence needs a comma to achieve its precise meaning, it probably needs “which”

Don’t string two or three nouns together where one noun-or, better yet, one verb-will do

Surprisingly often a difficult problem in a sentence can be solved by simply getting rid of it

Keep your paragraphs short. Writing is visual-it catches the eye before it has a chance to catch the brain. Short paragraphs put air around what you write and make it look inviting, whereas a long chunk of type can discourage a reader from even starting to read

Rewriting is the essence of writing well: it’s where the game is won or lost

Don’t annoy your readers by over-explaining-by telling them something they already know or can figure out. Trust your material