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It is worse to be irresolute than to be wrong.

William Strunk, Jr.

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William Strunk, Jr.
Age: 77 †
Born: 1869
Born: July 1
Died: 1946
Died: September 26
Professor
Writer
Cincinnati
Ohio
Irresolute
Worse
Wrong

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To air one's views gratuitously, is to imply that the demand for them is brisk.
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The approach to style is by way of plainness, simplicity, orderliness, sincerity.
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In exposition and in argument, the writer must likewise never lose his hold upon the concrete and even when he is dealing with general principles, he must furnish particular instances of their application.
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The surest way to arouse and hold the attention of the reader is by being specific, definitive, and concrete. The greatest writers - Homer, Dante, Shakespeare - are effective largely because they deal in particulars and report the details that matter. Their words call up pictures.
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A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.
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Avoid fancy words....If you admire fancy words, if every sky is beauteous, every blonde curvaceous, every intelligent child prodigious, if you are tickled by discombobulate, you will have bad time Reminder 14.
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Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, non-committal language.
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To acquire style, begin by affecting none.
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A dash is a mark of separation stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses.
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...when a sentence is made stronger, it usually becomes shorter. Thus, brevity is a by-product of vigor.
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None are so fallible as those who are sure they're right.
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If you don't know how to pronounce a word, say it loud!
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Opinions scattered indiscriminately about leave the mark of egotism.
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The adjective hasn't been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place.
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The situation is perilous, but there is still one chance of escape.
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Rewrite and revise. Do not be afraid to seize what you have and cut it to ribbons ... Good writing means good revising.
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Every writer, by the way he uses the language, reveals something of his spirit, his habits, his capacities, his bias....Avoid the elaborate, the pretentious, the coy, and the cute. Do not be tempted by a twenty-dollar word when there is a ten-center handy, ready and able.
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Rich, ornate prose is hard to digest, generally unwholesome, and sometimes nauseating.
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Remember, it is no sign of weakness or defeat that your manuscript ends up in need of major surgery. This is a common occurrence in all writing, and among the best writers.
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Instead of announcing what you are about to tell is interesting, make it so.
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