--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In composing, as a general rule, run your…" description: "\"In composing, as a general rule, run your pen through every other word you have written; you have no idea what vigor it will give your style.\" — Sydney..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg" --- # In composing, as a general rule, run your pen through… ![“In composing, as a general rule, run your pen through every other word you have written; you have no idea what vigor it will give your style.” quote by Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg) > “In composing, as a general rule, run your pen through every other word you have written; you have no idea what vigor it will give your style.” [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Editing by removing every other word can inject unexpected vigor into your writing style. **In simple terms:** Cutting words can energize prose. Key Takeaway Edit for impact, not length. Themes writing editing creativity Mood reflective instructive Type advice literary When to use this quote - draft revisions - creative writing workshops - blog posts Key Concepts conciseness rhythm surprise Questions to Reflect On - Which words are essential for clarity? - How does rhythm affect reader engagement? A Different Perspective Over‑editing may strip essential meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Composing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composing/) [Composing General](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composing-general-5945931/) [Pen Word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pen-word-3654702/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) [Vigor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vigor/) [Word Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/word-written-256974/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Written Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written-idea-408358/) ## Related quotes > [The more you read, the less apt you are to make a fool of yourself with your pen or word processor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-more-you-read-the-less-apt-you-are-to-make-a-fool-of-yourself/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“What I am really writing about, what I have always written about, is the idea of human freedom, human community, the real world which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/what-i-am-really-writing-about-what-i-have-always-written-about-is/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“Doctor Parcival began to plead with George Willard. 'You must pay attention to me,' he urged. 'If something happens you will be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwood-anderson/doctor-parcival-began-to-plead-with-george-willard-you-must-pay/) [Sherwood Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwood-anderson/) > [Poetry isn't written from the idea down. It's written from the phrase, line and stanza up, which is different from what your teacher taught…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/poetry-isn-t-written-from-the-idea-down-it-s-written-from-the-phrase/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Writing has been sewn into my soul and I'm afraid my thoughts have no choice but to be the truth to the story and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-m-royse/writing-has-been-sewn-into-my-soul-and-i-m-afraid-my-thoughts-have-no/) [Amber M. Royse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-m-royse/) > [Never trust any word written to you by a pencil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-trust-any-word-written-to-you-by-a-pencil/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Before one is successful that is before any one is ready to pay money for anything you do then you are certain that every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/before-one-is-successful-that-is-before-any-one-is-ready-to-pay-money/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [Don't close a book you are reading until you read every word that was not written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-close-a-book-you-are-reading-until-you-read-every-word-that-was/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A word written that is not read, is lonely and sad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rk-cary/a-word-written-that-is-not-read-is-lonely-and-sad/) [RK Cary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rk-cary/) > [I don't read a word that's written about me. I don't read my own interviews. I don't read reviews. I think it would drive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/i-don-t-read-a-word-that-s-written-about-me-i-don-t-read-my-own/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [Every word written is a victory against death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-butor/every-word-written-is-a-victory-against-death/) [Michel Butor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-butor/) > [“The spoken word and the written - there is an astonishing gulf between them. There is a way of turning sentences that completely reverses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/the-spoken-word-and-the-written-there-is-an-astonishing-gulf-between/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [“Can't is the worst word that's written or spoken.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-a-guest/can-t-is-the-worst-word-that-s-written-or-spoken/) [Edgar A. Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-a-guest/) > [Its focus wasn't on the written word but how the word was written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neville-brody/its-focus-wasn-t-on-the-written-word-but-how-the-word-was-written/) [Neville Brody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neville-brody/) > [“There is no fiercer enemy than a word. A word that can be written down in pages and punctuated by quotation marks and commas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/there-is-no-fiercer-enemy-than-a-word-a-word-that-can-be-written-down/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) ## More by Sydney Smith > [Live always in the best company when you read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/live-always-in-the-best-company-when-you-read/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Scotland: That garret of the earth - that knuckle-end of England - that land of Calvin, oatcakes, and sulfur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/scotland-that-garret-of-the-earth-that-knuckle-end-of-england-that/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [My living in Yorkshire was so far out of the way, that it was eleven miles away from a lemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/my-living-in-yorkshire-was-so-far-out-of-the-way-that-it-was-eleven/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Poverty is no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/poverty-is-no-disgrace-to-a-man-but-it-is-confoundedly-inconvenient/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A comfortable house is a great source of happiness. It ranks immediately after health and a good conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-comfortable-house-is-a-great-source-of-happiness-it-ranks/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [How can a bishop marry? How can he flirt? The most he can say is "I will see you in the vestry after service."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/how-can-a-bishop-marry-how-can-he-flirt-the-most-he-can-say-is-i-will/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little - do what you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/it-is-the-greatest-of-all-mistakes-to-do-nothing-because-you-can-only/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Silence is a girl's loudest shout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/silence-is-a-girl-s-loudest-shout/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A great deal of talent is lost to the world for want of a little courage. Every day sends to their graves obscure men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-great-deal-of-talent-is-lost-to-the-world-for-want-of-a-little/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A man who wishes to make his way in life could do no better than go through the world with a boiling tea-kettle in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-man-who-wishes-to-make-his-way-in-life-could-do-no-better-than-go/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [ \[T\]he 47th proposition in Euclid might now be voted down with as much ease as any proposition in politics; and therefore if Lord Hawkesbury… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/t-he-47th-proposition-in-euclid-might-now-be-voted-down-with-as-much/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Be what nature intended you for, and you will succeed; be anything else and you will be ten thousand times worse than nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/be-what-nature-intended-you-for-and-you-will-succeed-be-anything-else/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [To business that we love we rise bedtime, and go to't with delight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/to-business-that-we-love-we-rise-bedtime-and-go-to-t-with-delight/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [The schoolboy whips his taxed top; the beardless youth manages his taxed horse with a taxed bridle on a taxed road; and the dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/the-schoolboy-whips-his-taxed-top-the-beardless-youth-manages-his/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [I always fear that creation will expire before teatime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/i-always-fear-that-creation-will-expire-before-teatime/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) [Explore all 98 Sydney Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) ## More Composing quotes > [Playing is much, much harder than composing in my opinion, becoming a player. If you want to be a player for all your life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-powell/playing-is-much-much-harder-than-composing-in-my-opinion-becoming-a/) [John Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-powell/) > [As human beings, we are the only organisms that create for the sheer stupid pleasure of doing so. Whether it's laying out a garden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-hamel/as-human-beings-we-are-the-only-organisms-that-create-for-the-sheer/) [Gary Hamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-hamel/) > [Composing a piece of music is very feminine. It is sensitive, emotional, contemplative. By comparison, doing housework is positively masculine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kolb/composing-a-piece-of-music-is-very-feminine-it-is-sensitive-emotional/) [Barbara Kolb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kolb/) > [I'm the only actor who has done everything, right from anchoring shows to composing and singing songs to theatre to movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javed-jaffrey/i-m-the-only-actor-who-has-done-everything-right-from-anchoring-shows/) [Javed Jaffrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javed-jaffrey/) > [Even though, theoretically, being a composer and being a songwriter are the same thing, in my brain, they are completely different. When I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bacon/even-though-theoretically-being-a-composer-and-being-a-songwriter-are/) [Michael Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bacon/) > [I was really into the music of Cream after I finished composing the music for 'BTTB.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryuichi-sakamoto/i-was-really-into-the-music-of-cream-after-i-finished-composing-the/) [Ryuichi Sakamoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryuichi-sakamoto/) > [I don't meditate before I play or compose, but I see playing and composing as meditative acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-swallow/i-don-t-meditate-before-i-play-or-compose-but-i-see-playing-and/) [Steve Swallow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-swallow/) > [Every day I lugged my backpack through the halls, waiting for the final bell. Then I'd race home and hole up in my room,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-groban/every-day-i-lugged-my-backpack-through-the-halls-waiting-for-the/) [Josh Groban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-groban/) > [I'd always loved poetry and I'd always loved writing music and composing music, but I hadn't thought of putting the two together until around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/i-d-always-loved-poetry-and-i-d-always-loved-writing-music-and/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > [It is hard work composing a song for a film and showing it to makers: 50% of the tune remains the same, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohit-chauhan/it-is-hard-work-composing-a-song-for-a-film-and-showing-it-to-makers/) [Mohit Chauhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohit-chauhan/) > [Every orchestra I know, every opera house I know, is desperately looking around trying to find new talent, new composing talent, supporting young composers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esa-pekka-salonen/every-orchestra-i-know-every-opera-house-i-know-is-desperately/) [Esa-Pekka Salonen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esa-pekka-salonen/) > [The material of music is sound and silence. Integrating these is composing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cage/the-material-of-music-is-sound-and-silence-integrating-these-is/) [John Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cage/) > [“To be in the middle of composing a book is almost always to feel oneself in a state of confusion, doubt and mental imprisonment…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-epstein/to-be-in-the-middle-of-composing-a-book-is-almost-always-to-feel/) [Joseph Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-epstein/) > [For musical compositions to reach a high level and to derive from spontaneity, of course, one has to do the necessary steps to learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilaiyaraaja/for-musical-compositions-to-reach-a-high-level-and-to-derive-from/) [Ilaiyaraaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilaiyaraaja/) > [The process of preparing programs for a digital computer is especially attractive, not only because it can economically and scientifically rewarding, but also because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-knuth/the-process-of-preparing-programs-for-a-digital-computer-is/) [Donald Knuth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-knuth/) [Browse all 334 Composing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In composing, as a general rule, run your pen through every other word you have written; you have no idea what vigor it will give your style.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sydney Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your-pen-through-every-other-word/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Composing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your-pen-through-every-other-word/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/sydney-smith-6523_composing_in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your_1576487.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In composing, as a general rule, run your pen through every other word you have written; you have no idea…” — Sydney Smith", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sydney Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In composing, as a general rule,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your-pen-through-every-other-word/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/in-composing-as-a-general-rule-run-your-pen-through-every-other-word/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```