I think this content is well-written, so I am praising it publicly! (See what I did there?)
Some thoughts/questions:
Do you recommend any books/guides on writing [besides Copyblogger]? (e.g., Sense of Style or On Writing)
I wonder if it would be useful to have a section that describes under what circumstances this advice is most likely to be helpful. In my view, this advice is most important for writing that is intended for wide audiences. (Examples: Rationality skills that nearly everyone could benefit from; blogs that offer thought-provoking insights). I agree that engaging writing would make all writing better, but given that there are costs, it might be useful to emphasize situations/contexts in which this advice would be especially valuable.
What do you think are the biggest reasons why (some) EA writing is dry?
What advice would you give to people who think that they’re bad writers? Or people who are worried that their writing not being “good enough” for the forum?
Some strategies that I’ve heard about or found helpful:
Omit needless words! Go back & delete all of the words you don’t truly, really, fully, actually need! (See what I did there?)
Find good writing, try to break it down into elements, and then copy those elements.
Ask people for feedback!
Read writing out loud. (I agree that many people, myself included, are generally more engaging speakers than writers).
Remove hedges (unless they are intentional).
Remove nominalizations (instances in which you use nouns when you could have used verbs) unless they are intentional.
What advice would you give to people who think that they’re bad writers? Or people who are worried that their writing not being “good enough” for the forum?
Good question! That is one worry I have about this post, that it discourages people. On the other hand, there have been a bunch of comments saying that they find it motivating, because it makes it so that writing can be fun instead of a scary serious thing you ought to do.
I think if you’re capable of being interesting in conversation (which the vast majority of people are!), then you can write engagingly. Robert Miles’s quote really resonates with me:
“A single datapoint, but I don’t think I really try to be engaging in my writing. Or like, it’s one of the things I’m aiming for but it’s not effort, it’s not work. It’s the default. I don’t think I “add jokes”, or “add flourishes” or “add emotions”, I just leave in the ones that come up naturally while explaining the idea. And I don’t think this is anything special about me; I think most people are pretty engaging when they talk about their ideas, and pretty boring when they write about them. So for most people I wouldn’t say ‘add jokes’, I would say ‘stop taking out the jokes’. My advice is more like ‘get out of your own way’, or ‘stop trying to be serious and respectable’.”
Also, growth mindset is definitely good in this situation. If your writing isn’t currently engaging, that doesn’t mean you’re a “boring writer”. That just means you probably haven’t put a lot of time into practicing getting better at it yet. And the only way to improve is to practice and get feedback.
Great recommendations for making it more interesting, btw.
Unfortunately don’t have the time to answer all the other questions, though they’re also good.
I think this content is well-written, so I am praising it publicly! (See what I did there?)
Some thoughts/questions:
Do you recommend any books/guides on writing [besides Copyblogger]? (e.g., Sense of Style or On Writing)
I wonder if it would be useful to have a section that describes under what circumstances this advice is most likely to be helpful. In my view, this advice is most important for writing that is intended for wide audiences. (Examples: Rationality skills that nearly everyone could benefit from; blogs that offer thought-provoking insights). I agree that engaging writing would make all writing better, but given that there are costs, it might be useful to emphasize situations/contexts in which this advice would be especially valuable.
What do you think are the biggest reasons why (some) EA writing is dry?
What advice would you give to people who think that they’re bad writers? Or people who are worried that their writing not being “good enough” for the forum?
Some strategies that I’ve heard about or found helpful:
Omit needless words! Go back & delete all of the words you don’t truly, really, fully, actually need! (See what I did there?)
Find good writing, try to break it down into elements, and then copy those elements.
Ask people for feedback!
Read writing out loud. (I agree that many people, myself included, are generally more engaging speakers than writers).
Remove hedges (unless they are intentional).
Remove nominalizations (instances in which you use nouns when you could have used verbs) unless they are intentional.
Just to jump in on “Do you recommend any books/guides on writing [besides Copyblogger]? (e.g., Sense of Style or On Writing)”: I made a collection of Readings and notes on how to write/communicate well that people might find helpful. (Though it’s not focused on engagingness.)
Good question! That is one worry I have about this post, that it discourages people. On the other hand, there have been a bunch of comments saying that they find it motivating, because it makes it so that writing can be fun instead of a scary serious thing you ought to do.
I think if you’re capable of being interesting in conversation (which the vast majority of people are!), then you can write engagingly. Robert Miles’s quote really resonates with me:
Also, growth mindset is definitely good in this situation. If your writing isn’t currently engaging, that doesn’t mean you’re a “boring writer”. That just means you probably haven’t put a lot of time into practicing getting better at it yet. And the only way to improve is to practice and get feedback.
Great recommendations for making it more interesting, btw.
Unfortunately don’t have the time to answer all the other questions, though they’re also good.