For your enlightenment and pleasure, George Orwell's Six Rules of Effective Writing:*
1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than saying anything outright barbarous.
Oh, my. Shall we all grab copies of my books and count the millions of times I have broken these over the years?
*Okay, his name really wasn't George Orwell. It was Eric Blair. And most people ignore the last rule and refer to "George Orwell's Five Rules of Effective Writing."
Comments (4)
Jeanne --
I just stumbled across your blog -- you know how it is to wander in the vast wilderness of the internet.
I have to say, anyone who puts Judith hacking off the head of Holofernes on her masthead AND can diss George Orwell on the same page has earned a bookmark from me. :)
Susan Scott
Posted by Susan Holloway Scott | July 26, 2007 7:17 AM
Posted on July 26, 2007 07:17
Hey, Susan, thanks for visiting! Your website is lovely (http://susanhollowayscott.com).
Everybody, Susan is the author of DUCHESS, a historical novel about Sarah Churchill. I read the book and loved it -- so y'all go out and read it, too!
Posted by Jeanne Kalogridis | July 26, 2007 10:39 AM
Posted on July 26, 2007 10:39
I just finished I, Mona Lisa and loved it! Today I visited a favorite Denver bookstore and was surprised to find copies of Painting Mona Lisa, same story but different publisher and earlier date. What happened?
Thanks, Mary Hathorn
Posted by Mary Hathorn | August 20, 2007 6:31 PM
Posted on August 20, 2007 18:31
Hi, Mary, I'm so glad you enjoyed the book!
PAINTING MONA LISA is the British edition of I, MONA LISA. It was published some months earlier than the US edition. I originally chose the first title for the book, but the US editor convinced me I, MONA LISA was a more properly descriptive title, so that's the title we went with in the US.
Posted by Jeanne Kalogridis | August 21, 2007 6:42 AM
Posted on August 21, 2007 06:42