You learn to write by writing. William Zinsser More Quotes by William Zinsser More Quotes From William Zinsser My commodity as a writer, whatever I'm writing about, is me. And your commodity is you. Don't alter your voice to fit the subject. Develop one voice that readers will recognize when they hear it on the page, a voice that's enjoyable not only in its musical line but in its avoidance of sounds that would cheapen its tone: breeziness and condescension and clichés. William Zinsser musicalvoicewriting I think a sentence is a fine thing to put a preposition at the end of. William Zinsser fine-thingsendsthinking As a writer I try to operate within a framework of Christian principles, and the words that are important to me are religious words: witness, pilgrimage, intention. William Zinsser importantreligiouschristian Avoid the ecstatic adjectives that occupy such disproportionate space in every critic's quiver - words like "enthralling" and "luminous." William Zinsser quiveradjectivesspace Don’t say you were a bit confused and sort of tired and a little depressed and somewhat annoyed. Be tired. Be confused. Be depressed. Be annoyed. Don’t hedge your prose with little timidities. Good writing is lean and confident. William Zinsser confusedtiredwriting A writer will do anything to avoid the act of writing. William Zinsser writing Writing is learned by imitation. If anyone asked me how I learned to write, I'd say I learned by reading the men and women who were doing the kind of writing I wanted to do and trying to figure out how they did it. William Zinsser readingwritingmen All writers should strive to deliver something fresh-something editors or readers won't know they want until they see it. William Zinsser striveeditorswant Writing is thinking on paper. Anyone who thinks clearly should be able to write clearly-about any subject at all. William Zinsser paperwritingthinking My four articles of faith: clarity, simplicity, brevity and humanity. William Zinsser simplicityhumanitywriting There are all kinds of writers and all kinds of methods, and any method that helps you to say what you want to say is the right method for you. William Zinsser wantwritinghelping Never say anything in writing that you wouldn't comfortably say in conversation. Be yourself when you write. If you're not a person who says 'indeed' or 'moreover,' or who calls someone an individual ('he's a fine individual'), please don't write it. William Zinsser being-yourselfsay-anythingwriting I almost always urge people to write in the first person. ... Writing is an act of ego and you might as well admit it. William Zinsser egowritingpeople A clear sentence is no accident. William Zinsser sentencesclearwriting Ultimately the product that any writer has to sell is not the subject being written about, but who he or she is. William Zinsser writing-wellsubjectsproducts Don't try to guess what sort of thing editors want to publish or what you think the country is in a mood to read. Editors and readers don't know what they want to read until they read it. Besides, they're always looking for something new. William Zinsser writingcountrythinking Good writers are visible just behind their words. William Zinsser visiblebehindswriting Never hesitate to imitate another writer - every person learning a craft or an art needs models. Eventually you'll find your own voice and will shed the skin of the writer you imitated. William Zinsser voiceskinsart Writing improves in direct ratio to the things we can keep out of it that shouldn't be there. William Zinsser ratiosdirectwriting Even a poor translator couldn't kill a style that moves with such narrative clarity. William Zinsser stylenarrativemoving
