On Writing Well Collection

Zinsser's book, first published in the 70s, is part how-to, part autobiography and part travelogue. I say travelogue because he writes by telling us about the landmarks in 'good writing', the individuals who populate it and the methods that we should adopt to understand and better relate to good writing. His book verges on ethnography.

Echoing messages from Strunk & White; Booth, Colomb & Williams; McCloskey; Cook and several others, Zinsser endorses a writing style derived from accurate verbs and precise nouns. I believe this is the best advice he could give and he provides many motivations for his claims about style.

One Amazon reviewer felt let-down by Zinsser's continuous referral to his own writing processes, the reviewer wanted something even more 'how-to'. I found this criticism odd. Zinsser describes a method to write, contextualised in his work. He repeats that a writer needs to write and edit, write and edit. He describes several ways to do this. He instructs the reader on methods for given subject matter and applies his methods by conjuring examples from his extensive knowledge of good writing, as well as his acquaintance with poor writing. Additionally, I have not read any writing guide that was 'independent' of its author, in fact if such a guide were written it would probably be hollow and vapid. For example, Strunk & White's The Elements of Style, my preferred editing and style guide, is definitely not independent of White's preferences. So I say read the book and enjoy Zinsser's insight into writing well. I treasure this book already, both for its content and for the list of references to high quality writing. I shall probably refer to it many times in the future.

I approached Zinsser's book "On Writing Well" for its good reviews, and thus spent money and time on it. My opinion is that Zinsser went off topic; he exercised self-indulgence, lost sight of the topic, and delivered an auto-biography. I learned more about the author's life than his art of writing. The book is also a marketing operation; the main-matter includes extensive references to other works by the same author and his present business, so much that I felt an invitation to read those works and enroll in a class at the author's "New School" in New York, to learn what the book was supposed to deliver on paper! This is not supposed to happen, and I resent it. --- I read the book twice. The first time, to understand that much of it is needless. The second time, to spot the words of wisdom that are scattered in its 300 pages, take notes, and put the book away in my personal library. My reference book on the subject remains Strunk's "Elements of Style". By comparison, Strunk's work stays on my desk. I share Zinsser's own opinion that anyone serious about writing should read Strunk every year. I would say, read it so often to memorize it. I wish Zinsser's work were along the lines of Strunk's own, to complement it.

I have bought a dozen copies of this over the years and distributed them to friends and colleagues. This is the most sensible and sound advice on writing well I have seen. It helps you clarify what you wish to say, and dispels the myths of inpenetrable "business"-speak and the "bank-teller mentality" superbly. It has clear examples and is an enjoyable read. After you have read this you will realise finally that you can delete up to 50% of the words you use in a first draft and make it 200% better!

Whether you write for fun or work, this book delivers what is promised by the title. The article which had the biggest impact on me was the example of a draft essay and the way in which the writer pares away the driftwood (unlike this review) until the article is succinct and unambiguous; making it a pleasure to read. Enjoy and learn at the same time.