--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You must find some way to elevate your…" description: "\"You must find some way to elevate your act of writing into an entertainment. Usually this means giving the reader an enjoyable surprise. Any number of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9df/william-zinsser-2796_amusement_you-must-find-some-way-to-elevate-your-a_2399068.jpg" --- # You must find some way to elevate your act of writing into… ![“You must find some way to elevate your act of writing into an entertainment. Usually this means giving the reader an enjoyable surprise. Any number of devices will do the job… These seeming amusements in fact become your 'style.' When we say we like the style of certain writers, what we mean is…” quote by William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9df/william-zinsser-2796_amusement_you-must-find-some-way-to-elevate-your-a_2399068.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9df/william-zinsser-2796_amusement_you-must-find-some-way-to-elevate-your-a_2399068.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9df/william-zinsser-2796_amusement_you-must-find-some-way-to-elevate-your-a_2399068.jpg) > “You must find some way to elevate your act of writing into an entertainment. Usually this means giving the reader an enjoyable surprise. Any number of devices will do the job… These seeming amusements in fact become your 'style.' When we say we like the style of certain writers, what we mean is that we like their personality as they express it on paper.” [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writers should make their work entertaining, using devices that surprise readers and reveal the writer’s personality as style. **In simple terms:** Make writing entertaining and personal. Key Takeaway Use surprise to develop a personal style. Themes creativity craft personality Mood creative educational Type instructional inspirational When to use this quote - novel writing - blogging - teaching - marketing copy Key Concepts narrative techniques voice engagement Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance surprise with clarity? - What devices reflect your authentic voice? A Different Perspective Over‑emphasis on surprise can distract from substance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amusement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amusement/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Entertainment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entertainment/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) [Surprise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surprise/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Writers mean more than they say and say more than they mean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/writers-mean-more-than-they-say-and-say-more-than-they-mean/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [It has been my experience that the greatest performers in the genre of sports-entertainment are usually natural extensions of their own, true personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-ross/it-has-been-my-experience-that-the-greatest-performers-in-the-genre/) [Jim Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-ross/) > [I used to do miserably in English literature, which I thought was a sign of moral turpitude. As I look back on it, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-wentworth/i-used-to-do-miserably-in-english-literature-which-i-thought-was-a/) [Patricia Wentworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-wentworth/) > [I'm writing for entertainment. I like people to reach the end and feel they got their money's worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-cussler/i-m-writing-for-entertainment-i-like-people-to-reach-the-end-and-feel/) [Clive Cussler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-cussler/) > [You ask me why I spend my life writing? Do I find entertainment? Is it worthwhile? Above all, does it pay? If not, then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/you-ask-me-why-i-spend-my-life-writing-do-i-find-entertainment-is-it/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [Anything that needs to be labelled 'The Entertainment' usually isn't - especially when it is provided by the endlessly enthusiastic Joel or Nadia wearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-hopkins/anything-that-needs-to-be-labelled-the-entertainment-usually-isn-t/) [Katie Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-hopkins/) > [“You know when sometimes you meet someone so beautiful, and then you actually talk to them, and five minutes later they're dull as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-know-when-sometimes-you-meet-someone-so-beautiful-and-then-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I like to have personality in my way of dressing. I think being normal is a bit boring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-alves/i-like-to-have-personality-in-my-way-of-dressing-i-think-being-normal/) [Dani Alves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-alves/) > [I like to show my personality - any way I can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-henry/i-like-to-show-my-personality-any-way-i-can/) [Ed Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-henry/) > [You know like it has its own personality, its own character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-newson/you-know-like-it-has-its-own-personality-its-own-character/) [Marc Newson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-newson/) > [Contrary to what you may have heard from Henry Rollins or/and Ian MacKaye and/or anyone else who joined a band after working in an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/contrary-to-what-you-may-have-heard-from-henry-rollins-or-and-ian/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [People like me because of my personality,beauty and brain.everyone wants advice from me because I keep it real and be myself,i dont keep company…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittannia/people-like-me-because-of-my-personality-beauty-and-brain-everyone/) Brittannia > [Cute is when your personality shines through your looks. Like, when you see someone's personality in the way they walk and you just feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-portman/cute-is-when-your-personality-shines-through-your-looks-like-when-you/) [Natalie Portman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-portman/) > [I feel like her personality lives through me. How she was and how she acted lives through me. I smile when people say, 'Your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-wagner/i-feel-like-her-personality-lives-through-me-how-she-was-and-how-she/) [Bobby Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-wagner/) > [“LOVE THIS QUOTE 131 You know when sometimes you meet someone so beautiful and then you actually talk to them and five minutes later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doctor-who/love-this-quote-131-you-know-when-sometimes-you-meet-someone-so/) [Doctor Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doctor-who/) ## More by William Zinsser > [“But the secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components. Every words that serves no function, every long word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/but-the-secret-of-good-writing-is-to-strip-every-sentence-to-its/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [No one has something original or important to say will willing we run the risk of being misunderstood; people who write obscurely are either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/no-one-has-something-original-or-important-to-say-will-willing-we-run/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Avoid the ecstatic adjectives that occupy such disproportionate space in every critic's quiver - words like "enthralling" and "luminous."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/avoid-the-ecstatic-adjectives-that-occupy-such-disproportionate-space/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Scholarship hath no fury like that of a language purist faced with sludge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/scholarship-hath-no-fury-like-that-of-a-language-purist-faced-with/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Clutter is the official language used by corporations to hide their mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/clutter-is-the-official-language-used-by-corporations-to-hide-their/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Keep your paragraphs short. Writing is visual - it catches the eye before it has a chance to catch the brain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/keep-your-paragraphs-short-writing-is-visual-it-catches-the-eye/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Never hesitate to imitate another writer - every person learning a craft or an art needs models. Eventually you'll find your own voice and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/never-hesitate-to-imitate-another-writer-every-person-learning-a/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Clutter is the disease of American writing,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/clutter-is-the-disease-of-american-writing/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill rode to glory on the back of the strong declarative sentence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/abraham-lincoln-and-winston-churchill-rode-to-glory-on-the-back-of/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Writing organizes and clarifies our thoughts. Writing is how we think our way into a subject and make it our own. Writing enables us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/writing-organizes-and-clarifies-our-thoughts-writing-is-how-we-think/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Rewriting is the essence of writing well - where the game is won or lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/rewriting-is-the-essence-of-writing-well-where-the-game-is-won-or-lost/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Clear thinking becomes clear writing; one can't exist without the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/clear-thinking-becomes-clear-writing-one-can-t-exist-without-the-other/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [I almost always urge people to write in the first person. ... Writing is an act of ego and you might as well admit it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/i-almost-always-urge-people-to-write-in-the-first-person-writing-is/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Don't be kind of bold. Be bold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/don-t-be-kind-of-bold-be-bold/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Journalism is writing that first appears in any periodic journal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/journalism-is-writing-that-first-appears-in-any-periodic-journal/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) [Explore all 150 William Zinsser quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) ## More Amusement quotes > [Cultivate the habit of thinking ahead, and of anticipating the necessary and immediate consequences of all your actions… Likewise in your pleasures, ask yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/cultivate-the-habit-of-thinking-ahead-and-of-anticipating-the/) [Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [Every producer in Hollywood had set me down as a type. I was both amused and disappointed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bela-lugosi/every-producer-in-hollywood-had-set-me-down-as-a-type-i-was-both/) [Bela Lugosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bela-lugosi/) > [By amusing myself with all these games, all this nonsense, all these picture puzzles, I became famous... I am only a public entertainer who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/by-amusing-myself-with-all-these-games-all-this-nonsense-all-these/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [I just started writing for my own amusement and occasionally singing in little clubs around Los Angeles. Then I wrote 'The Rose,' and through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-mcbroom/i-just-started-writing-for-my-own-amusement-and-occasionally-singing/) [Amanda McBroom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-mcbroom/) > [Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/happiness-does-not-consist-in-pastimes-and-amusements-but-in-virtuous/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-mass-of-men-lead-lives-of-quiet-desperation-what-is-called/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Ordinary people simply don't know what books mean to us, shut up here. Reading, learning, and the radio are our amusements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-frank/ordinary-people-simply-don-t-know-what-books-mean-to-us-shut-up-here/) [Anne Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-frank/) > [My first job was at an amusement park in Virginia. It was the worst. I loved the park but once I'd worked there all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-mcbride/my-first-job-was-at-an-amusement-park-in-virginia-it-was-the-worst-i/) [Danny McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-mcbride/) > [The Stoics say, "Retire within yourselves; it is there you will find your rest." And that is not true. Others say, "Go out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-stoics-say-retire-within-yourselves-it-is-there-you-will-find/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [I realized, "Gee, you're making the same film over and over here." I just kept making them for my own amusement, but also with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-jarmusch/i-realized-gee-you-re-making-the-same-film-over-and-over-here-i-just/) [Jim Jarmusch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-jarmusch/) > [I like these boots," I told Vayl. "Do you think they'd sell them to me cheap? I keep ruining mine." "Since when do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rardin/i-like-these-boots-i-told-vayl-do-you-think-they-d-sell-them-to-me/) [Jennifer Rardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rardin/) > [It has to be now,” he insisted, a flick of amusement in his voice. He nudged his burgeoning loins against her. “After all, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/it-has-to-be-now-he-insisted-a-flick-of-amusement-in-his-voice-he/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [Act as if the universe is a prodigious miracle created for your amusement and illumination. Assume that secret helpers are working behind the scenes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-brezsny/act-as-if-the-universe-is-a-prodigious-miracle-created-for-your/) [Rob Brezsny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-brezsny/) > [Amusement that is excessive and followed only for its own sake, allures and deceives us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/amusement-that-is-excessive-and-followed-only-for-its-own-sake/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) [Browse all 567 Amusement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amusement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You must find some way to elevate your act of writing into an entertainment. Usually this means giving the reader an enjoyable surprise. Any number of devices will do the job… These seeming amusements in fact become your 'style.' 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