Shani Raja discusses three main ingredients for great writing in this free course on udemy.com.

• Simplicity focuses on using the simplest possible language in your writing.
• Clarity focuses on expressing your ideas unambiguously.
• Elegance focuses on writing beautifully, so readers experience your writing emotionally.

 

Simplicity

“If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.” – George Orwell

Less, but better. Simplicity does not mean dumbing your writing down. Simplicity means less complexity. Less jargon. Less “official sounding” words.

• Not this: “The meeting will commence in 30 minutes.”
• This: “The meeting will start in 30 minutes.”

Long, complex sentences filled with long, complex words may at first FEEL like they are sophisticated. Really they are just confusing your readers.

 

Clarity

“Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly. That’s why it’s so hard.” – David McCullough

Expressing ideas clearly and unambiguously allows readers to understand those ideas quickly.

Lazy writing is one source of clarity issues. Falling back on jargon, using too many words, or failing to revise an early draft. Lazy writing can also lead to ambiguity, the issue where a word or phrase is open to interpretation; multiple meanings.

• “I can see you with glasses.”

Punctuation issues can also affect meaning.

• “Did you eat, my friend?” Is not the same as
• “Did you eat my friend?”

 

Elegance

“Prose is architecture. It’s not interior design.” – Ernest Hemingway

Clear, simple writing, with ideas flowing gracefully through the writing’s structure, is elegant.

Writing has tempo. Pace the reader with varying short and long sentences.