to write well, forget everything your high-school english teacher taught you
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TRANSCRIPT
Myths
Rules
Exercises
LET’S RECAP THE MYTHS
LET’S RECAP THE MYTHS
RULE 1
Break up noun clusters
RULE 2
Make every verb count
RULE 3
Embrace analogies
RULE 4
Bury hidden verbs
RULE 5
Trim the fat
INSTEAD OF THIS TRY THIS
INSTEAD OF THIS TRY THIS
INSTEAD OF THIS TRY THIS
RULE 6
Write the way you speak
RULE 7
Favor contractions
RULE 8
Use visuals
RULE 9
Avoid walls of text
RULE 10
Use subheadings
RULE 10b
Lists and tables, too
AND NOW, THE RULES
AND NOW, THE RULES
RULE 11
Favor abbreviations
RULE 12
Jettison the jargon
RULE 13
Use adverbs sparingly
RULE 14
Favor the active voice
RULE 15
Surprise your readers
RULE 16
Avoid the “this” blob
RULE 17
Think, don’t feel
RULE 18
Employ an editor
RULE 19
Humanize big numbers