All William Zinsser Quotes
- A simple [writing] style is the result of very hard work. Design
- What I want to do is to make people laugh so that they'll see things seriously. Laugh
- You can solve most of your writing problems if you stop after every sentence and ask: what does the reader need to know next? Ask
- Writing is linear and sequential; Sentence B must follow Sentence A, and Sentence C must follow Sentence B, and eventually you get to Sentence Z.… Ask
- Clear thinking becomes clear writing; one can't exist without the other. Becomes
- A writer will do anything to avoid the act of writing. Act
- A writer is always working. Always Working
- Writers who think THEY are being criticized when only that writing is being criticized are beyond a teacher's reach. Writing can only be learned when… All
- Writing is not a special language that belongs to a few sensitive souls who have a 'gift for words'. Writing is the logical arrangement of… Able
- There's no sentence that's too short in the eyes of God. Eye
- Writing is a craft not an art. Art
- 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
- There's not much to be said about the period except that most writers don't reach it soon enough. Except
- The secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components, Cleanest
- Fighting clutter is like fighting weeds-the writer is always slightly behind, Always Slightly
- Write about small, self-contained incidents that are still vivid in your memory. If you remember them, it's because they contain a larger truth that your… Big
- Believe in your own identity and your own opinions. Proceed with confidence, generating it, if necessary, by pure willpower. Writing is an act of ego… Act
- Rewriting is the essence of writing well - where the game is won or lost. Essence
- Rewriting is the essence of writing well: it's where the game is won or lost. The idea is hard to accept. We all have emotional… Accept
- A clear sentence is no accident. Accident