Clarity (was re: overused phrases/words)

[Geoff Brown <geoffbrown -at- EROLS -dot- COM>]

I appreciated Jane Bergen's comments regarding clarity, particularly her advice to cut unnecessary words and shorten long words and phrases. "Clarity, clarity, clarity" (Strunk and White) is the simplest rule in writing and the easiest to forget when you're at the keyboard. And without clarity, technical writing is pointless.

That's the end of my "me, too." I did have a couple of comments on her questions, though:

"To keep this discussion from turning into a dump for pet peeves, what
are some of the best methods you (techwhirlers) use to keep your
writing tight and concise?"

Read everything you write over and over and revise it. Try each time to make it shorter, clearer, and more active. Avoid passive voice like the plague (nothing  just happens, despite what my 4-year-old says.).

 "Do you ever read it aloud?"

Only if it's poetry. I'm sorry, but to me most tech writing sounds terrible out loud, unless it's a bad translation from Japanese. 

"And does anyone find that technical writing makes his/her other
writing better? worse? more difficult?"

Technical writing has improved my general writing skills, without a doubt. More than any other type of writing I have done for pay or pleasure, tech writing demands planning, structure and (sorry to be so repetitive) clarity.

-- Geoff Brown, general hack
geoffbrown -at- erols -dot- com
Middletown, MD


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