on writing well笔记怎样写出靠谱的英文

Simplicity& The Bits&Pieces㻙节才是㶖 i“Aloveandrespectforthelanguageisevidentoneverypage.”这个小老头恪守的标准和我写好的alstate-paper如果你以后是一个英文写作从业者，经常要写newsrelease&report.这本书就是你的幽默感让我随时流着子拿出各种颜色的笔圈懂的句子，少留下一些ClichéClutter以下的笔记摘选自本书第一章Principles和第二章Methods.这两章的篇幅只占全书的三分之一但信息量非常之大，看完你就知道了。Words措辞怎样的用词会的文章搞坏，Unity整体性如何写出牛 Chapter1Simplicity&ClutterZinsser这个名字成了文风简洁的代名词。有些老师会让学生Zinsser一下他们的文章，Zinsser成了一个清除文中clutter的动词。4度重视.”比如说胡版2011年新年贺词的全部。Weareasocietystranglinginunnecessarywords,cir-cularconstructions,pompousfrillsandmeaninglessandbynoontheyarepartofAmericanspeech.Con-siderwhatNixon'saideJohnDean plishedinjustonedayoftestimonyonevisiondur-ingtheWatergatehearings.ThenextdayeveryoneinAmericawassaying"atthispointintime"insteadofTaketheadjective“al,”asin“aalfriendofmine,“his feeling.Itshundredsofwordsthatcanbeeliminated.Theper-sonalfriendhascomeintothelanguagetodistinguishhimorherfromthebusinessfriend,therebyingbothlanguageandfriendship.Someones sthatsmeans.Friendsarefriends,therestisClutteristheponderouseuphemismthatturnsaslumintoadepressedsocioeconomicarea,garbagecollectorsintowastedisposal nelandthetowndumpintothevolumereductionunit.Clutteristheofficiallanguageusedbycorpo-rationstohidetheirmistakes.WhenGeneralMo-production-scheduleadjustment.”WhenanAirmissilecrashed,it“impactedwiththegroundprema-thatgobelly-uphave“anegativecash-flowpo-“Experiencing”isoneoftheworstclutters.In-raining,precipitatin.Eenyourdentistwillaskifyouareexperiencinganypain.sa,Doesithurt?”Thepointofraisingtheseexamplesistonoticethatclutteristheenemy.Beware,then,ofthelongwordthat'snobetterthantheshortword:"assistance"("numerous"(many),"facilitate"(ease),"individual"(manorwoman),"remainder"(rest),"initial"(first),"implementelement.(try),"referredtoas"(called)andhundredsmore.wareofalltheslipperynewfadwords:paradigmandparameter,prioritizeandpotentialize.Theyareallweedsthatwillsmotherwhatyouwrite.Howcantherestofusachievesuchenviable-domfromclutter?Theansweristoclearourheadsofclutter.Clearthinking esclearwriting;onethinkertowritegoodEnglish.Hemaygetawaywithitforaparagraphortwo,butsoonthereaderwillbelost,andthere'snosinsograve,forthereaderwillnoteasilybeluredback.作者的一个ti

IsthereanywaytorecognizeclutterataHere'sadevicemystudentsatYalefoundhelpful.Iwouldputbracketsaroundeverycomponentinapieceofwritingthatwasn'tngusefulwork.Oftenjustonewordgotbracketed:theunnecessaryprepo-sitionappendedtoaverb("orderup"),ortheadverbthatcarriesthesamemeaningastheverb("shap-pily"),ortheadjectivethatstatesaknownfact("tallskyscraper").Oftenmybracketssurroundedthelittlequalifiersthatweakenanysentencetheyinhabit("abit,""sortof),orphraseslike"inasense,"whichmeananything.Sometimesmybracketssurroundedanentiresentence—theonethatessentiallywhattheprevioussentencesaid,orthatsayssome-thingreadersdon'tneedtoknoworcanfigureoutforthemselves.Mostfirstdraftscanbecutby50percentwithoutlosinganyinformationorlosingtheauthorsMyreasonforbracketingthestudents'superflu-ouswords,insteadofcrossingthemout,wastoavoidviolatingtheirsacredprose.Iwantedtoleavethesentenceintactforthemtoyze.Iwassaying,"Imaybewrong,butIthinkthiscanbedeletedandthemeaningwon'tbeaffected.Butyoudecide.Readthesentencewithoutthebracketedmaterialandseeifitworks."IntheearlyweeksofthetermIhandedbackpapersthatwerefestoonedwithbrackets.Entirepara-graphswerebracketed.Butsoonthestudentslearnedtoputmentalbracketsaroundtheirownclutter,andbytheendofthetermtheirpaperswerealmostclean.TodaymanyofthosestudentsareprofessionalfollowingmethroughYoucandevelopthesameeye.Lookfortheclut-terinyourwritingandpruneitruthlessly.Begratefulforeverythingyoucanthrowaway.Reexamineeachsentenceyouputonpaper.Iseverywordngnewwork?Cananythoughtbeexpressedwithmoreeconomy?Isanythingpompousthinguselessjustbecauseyouthinkit'sbeautiful?Chapter2Fewpeoplerealizehowbadlytheywrite.No-bodyhasshownthemhowmuchexcessormurkinessaretryingtosay.IfyougivemeaneightarticleandIlyoutocutittofourpages,you'llhowlandsayitcan'tbedone.Thenyou'llgohomeanddoit,anditwillbemuchbetter.Afterthatcomesthehardpart:cuttingittoThepointisthatyouhavetostripyourwritingdownbeforeyoucanbuilditbackup.Youmustknowwhattheessentialtoolsareandwhatjobtheyweredesignedtodo.Extendingthemetaphorofcarpentry,it'sfirstnecessarytobeabletosawwoodneatlyandtodrivenails.Lateryoucanbeveltheedgesoraddelegantfinials,ifthat'syourtaste.Butyoucanneverforgetthatyouarepracticingacraftthat'sbasedoncertainprinciples.Ifthenailsareweak,yourhousewillcollapse.Ifyourverbsareweakandyoursyntaxisrickety,yoursentenceswillfallapart.WolfeandNormanMailer,havebuiltsomeremark-ablehouses.Butthesearewriterswhospentyearslearningtheircraft,andwhenatlasttheyraisedtheirfancifulturretsandhanginggardens,tothesurpriseofallofuswhoneverdreamedofsuchornamentation,theyknewwhattheywereng.Nobody First,then,learntohammerthenails,andifwhatyoubuildissturdyandserviceable,takesatisfactioninitsinstrength.Butyouwillbeimpatienttofinda"style"—toembellishtheinwordssothatreaderswillrecognizeyouassomeonespecial.Youwillforgaudysiandtinseledadjectives,asif"style"weresomethingyoucouldbuyatthestylestoreandoratorcolorsarethecolorsthatdecoratorscomein.)Thereisnostylestore;styleisorganictongthewriting,asmuchapartofhimashishair,or,ifheisbald,hislackofit.Tryingtoaddstyleislikeaddingatoupee.Atfirstglancetheformerlybaldmanlooksyoungandevenhandsome.Butatsecondglance—andwithatoupeethere'salwaysaglance—hedoesn'tlookquiteright.Theproblemnotthathedoesn'tlookwellgroomed;hedoes,andwecanonlyadmirethewigmaker'sskill.Thepointisthathedoesn'tlooklikehimself.Thisisthelemofwriterswhosetoutdeliberaytogarnishtheirprose.Youlosewhateveritisthatmakesyouunique.Thereaderwillnoticeifyouareputtingonairs.Readerswantthe whoistalkingtothemtosoundgenuine.Thereforeafundamentalruleis:beAssumethatyouarethewritersittingdowntooritwon'tseemimportant.Youthinkhowaugustitwilllookinprint.Youthinkofallthepeoplewhowillreadit.Youthinkthatitmusthavethesolidweightofauthority.Youthinkthatitsstylemustdazzle.Nowonderyoutighten;youaresobusythinkingofyourawesomeresponsibilitytothefinishedarticlethatyoucan'tevenstart.Yetyouvowtobeworthyofthetask,and,castingaboutforgrandphrasesthatwouldn'toc-curtoyouifyouweren'ttryingsohardtomakeanimpression,youplungein.Paragraph1isadisasteramachine. couldhavewrittenthem.graph2isn'tmuchbetter.ButParagraph3beginstohaveasomewhathumanquality,andbyParagraph4youbegintosoundlikeyourself.You'vestartedtore-lax.Itsamazinghowoftenaneditorcanthrowawaythefirstthreeorfourparagraphsofanarticle,oreventhefirstfewpages,andstartwiththeparagraphwherethewriterbeginstosoundlikehimselforherself.Notonlyarethosefirstparagraphs alandtheydon'tsayanything—theyareaself-conscioustemptatafancyintroduction.WhatI'malwayslook-ingforasaneditorisasentencethatsayssomethinglike"I'llneverforgetthedaywhenI..."Ithink,"Aha!A Chapter3Theaudience"WhoamIwritingItsafundamentalquestion,andithasafunda-mentalanswer:Youarewritingforyourself.Don'ttrytovisualizethegreatmassaudience.Thereisnotoguesswhatsortofthingeditorswanttopublishorwhatyouthinkthecountryisinamoodtoread.Ed-itorsandreadersdon'tknowwhattheywanttoreaduntiltheyreadit.Besides,they'realwayslookingforsomethingnew.Don'tworryaboutwhetherthereaderwill"getit"ifyouindulgeasuddenimpulseforhumor.Ifitamusesyouintheactofwriting,putitin.(Itcanal-waysbetakenout,butonlyyoucanputitin.)Youarewritingprimarilytopleaseyourself,andifyougoaboutitwithenjoymentyouwillalsoentertainthereaderswhoareworthwritingfor.Ifyoulosethedullardsbackinthedust,youdon'twantthemany-Whateveryourage,beyourselfwhenyouwrite.Manyoldmenstillwritewiththezesttheyhadintheirtwentiesorthirties;obviouslytheirideasarestillyoung.Otheroldwritersrambleandrepeatthemselves;theirstyleisthetip-offthattheyhaveturnedintogarrulousbores.Manycol-legestudentswriteasiftheyweredesiccatedalumni30yearsout.Neversayanythinginwritingthatyouwouldn'tcomfortablysayinconversation.Ifyou'renota callssomeoneanindividual("he'safineindividual"),pleasedon'twriteit.Chapter4Whatis"journalese"?It'saquiltofinstantwordspatchedtogetheroutofotherpartsofspeech.Adjec-tivesareusedasnouns("greats,""notables").Nounsareusedasverbs("tohost"),ortheyarechoppedofftoformverbs("beefup,""putteethinto").Thisisaworldwhereeminentpeopleare"famed"andtheirassociatesare"staffers,"wherethefutureisalways NobodyinAmericahassentanoteoramemooraegraminyears.FameddiplomatHenryKissinger,whohostedforeignnotablestobeefupthemoraleoftopStateDepartmentstaffers,satdownandfiredoffalotofnotes.Notesthatarefiredoffarealwayspositio.theweaponisI'veneverfoundout.

Whatishardtomatchforfatigue:LastFebruary,inclothesPatrolmanFrankSer-pusher.Whenthedooropenedacrack,Serpicoshoul-deredhiswayinonlytobemetbya.22-cal.pistolslugcrashingintohisface.Somehowhesurvived,al-thoughtherearestillbuzzingfragmentsinhishead,causingdizzinessandpermanentdeafnessinhisleftear.Almostaspainfulisthesuspicionthathemaywellhavebeensetupfortheshootingbyotherpo-licemen.ForSerpico,35,hasbeenwagingalonely,four-yearwaragainsttheroutineandendemiccorrup-tionthatheandothersclaimisrifeintheNewYorkCitydepartment.HiseffortsarenowsendingshockwavesthroughtheranksofNewYork'sfinest....Thoughtheimpactofthecommissions reporthasyettobefelt,Serpicohaslittlehopethat... ingreporthasyettobefeltbecauseit'sstill ing,andasforthepermanentdeafness,it'salittleearlytol.Andwhatmakesthosebuzzingfragmentsbuzz?BynowonlySerpico'sheadshouldbebuzzing.Butapartfromtheselazinessesoflogic,whatmakesthestorysotiredisthefailureofthewriterhisway,""onlytobemet,""crashingintohisface,""wagingalonelywar,""corruptionthatisrife,""sendingconstitutewritingatitsmostb.Weknowjustwhattoexpect.Nosurpriseawaitsusintheformofanunusualword,anobliquelook.Weareinthehandsofahack,andweknowitrightaway.WestopMakeahabitofreadingwhatisbeingwrittentodayandwhathasbeenwrittenbyearliermasters.Writingislearnedbyimitation.IfanyoneaskedmehowIlearnedtowrite,I'dsayIlearnedbyreadingthemenandwomenwhowerengthekindofwritingIwantedtodoandtryingtofigureouthowtheydidit.Butcultivatethebestmodels.Don'tassumethatbecauseanarticleisinanewspaperoramagazineitmustbegood.Sloppyeditingiscommoninnews-papers,oftenforlackoftime,andwriterswhouseclichésoftenworkforeditorswhohaveseensomanyclichésthattheynolongerevenrecognizethem.用字典,考过GRE的同学表示对以下Alsogetinthehabitofusingdictionaries.MyfavoriteforhandyuseisWebster'sNewWorldDictio-nary,SecondCollegeEdition,although,likeallwordfreaks,IownbiggerdictionariesthatwillrewardmewhenI'monsomemorespecializedsearch.Ifyouhaveanydoubtofwhatawordmeans,lookitup.Learnitsetymologyandnoticewhatcuriousbranchesitsoriginalroothasputforth.Seeifithasanymean-ingsyoudidn'tknowithad.Masterthesmallgrada-and"coax"?Getyourselfadictionaryofsynonyms.器Anddon'tscornthatbulginggrabbagThesaurus.It'seasytoregardthebookashilarious.Lookup"villain,"forinstance,andyou'llbeawashinsuchrascalityasonlyalexicographercouldconjurebackfromcenturiesofiniquity,obliquity,depravity, ity,corruption,wickedness,wrongng,backslidingandsin.You'llfindruffiansandriffraff,miscreantsandmalefactors,reprobatesandrapscallions,hooli-andscalawags,Jezebelsandjades.You'llfindadjec-tivestofitthemall(foulandfiendish,devilishanddiabolical),andadverbsandverbstodescribehowthewrongdoersdotheirwrong,andcross-referencesleadingtostillotherthicketsofvenalityandvice.Still,there'snobetterfriendtohavearoundtonudgethememorythanRoget.Itsavesyouthetimeofrum-maginginyourbrain—thatnetworkofoverloadedgrooves—tofindthewordthat'srightonthetipofyourtongue,whereitdoesn'tdoyouanygood.TheThesaurusistothewriterwhatarhymingdictionaryistothesongwriter—areminderofallthechoices—andyoushoulduseitwithgratitude.If,havingfoundthescalawagandthescapegrace,youwanttoknowhowtheydiffer,thengotothedictionary.theElementsofStyleE.B.WhitemakesthecasecogentlyinTheEle-mentsofStyle,abookeverywritershouldreadonceayear,whenhesuggeststryingtorearrangeanyphrasethathassurvivedforacenturyortwo,suchasThomasPaines"Thesearethetimesthattrymen'ssouls":Timeslikethesetrymen'ssouls.Howtryingitistoliveinthesetimes!Thesearetryingtimesformen'ssouls.Soulwise,thesearetryingtimes.Painesphraseislikepoetryandtheotherfourarelikeoatmeal—whichisthedivinemysteryofthecreativeprocess.Goodwritersofprosemustbepartpoet,alwayslisteningtowhattheywrite.E.B.WhiteisoneofmyfavoritestylistsbecauseI'mconsciousofbeingwithamanwhocaresaboutthecadencesandsonoritiesofthelanguage.Irelish(inmyear)thepat-surmisehowinrewritingthesentencehereassembledittoendwithaphrasethatwillmomentarilylinger,orhowhechoseonewordoveranotherbecausehewasafteracertainemotionalweight.It'sthedifferencebetween,say,"serene"and"tranquil"—onesosoft,theotherstrangelydisturbingbecauseofthenandSuchconsiderationsofsoundandrhythmshouldbewoventhrougheverythingyouwrite.Ifallyoursentencesmoveatthesameploddinggait,whichevenyourecognizeasdeadlybutdon'tknowhowtocure,readthemaloud.(Iwriteentirelybyearandreadev-erythingaloudbeforelettingitgooutintotheworld.)You'llbegintohearwherethetroublelies.Seeifyoucangainvarietybyreversingtheorderofasentence,orbysubstitutingawordthathasfreshnessorodd-ity,orbyalteringthelengthofyoursentencessotheydon'tallsoundasiftheycameoutofthesamemold.Anoccasionalshortsentencecancarryatremendouspunch.Itstaysinthereader'sear.Rememberthatwordsaretheonlytoolsyou'vegot.Learntousethemwithoriginalityandcare.Andalsoremember:somebodyoutthereisChapter5的文章一定要有自己非常清晰的point.一个牛哄哄的point足够亮瞎双眼.Nobodycanwriteabookoranarticle"about"something.Tolstoycouldn'twriteabookaboutwarandpeace,orMelvilleabookaboutwhaling.Theymadecertainreductivedecisionsabouttimeandceandaboutindividualcharactersinthattimeandce—onemanpursuingonewhale.Everywritingprojectmustbereducedbeforeyoustarttowrite.Thereforethinksmall.Decidewhatcornerofyoursubjectyou'regoingtobiteoff,andbecontenttocoveritwellandstop.Oftenyou'llfindthatalongthewayyou'vemanagedtosayalmosteverythingyouwantedtosayabouttheentiresubject.Thisisalsoamatterofenergyandmorale.Anunwieldywrit-ingtaskisadrainonyourenthusiasm.Enthusiasmisthethatkeepsyougoingandkeepsthereaderinyourgrip.Whenyourzestbeginstoebb,thereaderisthefirst toknowit.Asforwhatpointyouwanttomake,everysuc-oneprovocativethoughtthatheorshedidn'thavebe-fore.Nottwothoughts,orfive—justone.Sodecidewhatsinglepointyouwanttoleaveinthereadersmind.Itwillnotonlygiveyouabetterideaofwhattoreach;itwillaffectyourdecisionabouttoneandattitude.Somepointsarebestmadebyearnestness,somebydryunderstatement,somebyhumor.TheLeadandtheEnding开头和结尾Themostimportantsentenceinanyarticleisthefirstone.Ifitdoesn'tinducethereadertoproceedtothesecondsentence,yourarticleisdead.Andifthesecondsentencedoesn'tinducehimtocontinuetothethirdsentence,it'sequallydead.Ofsuchapro-untilheishooked,awriterconstructsthatfatefulunit,the"lead."Howlongshouldtheleadbe?Oneortwopara-graphs?Fourorfive?There'snopatanswer.Someleadshookthereaderwithjustafewwell-baitedsen-tences;othersambleonforseveralpages,exertingaslowbutsteadypull.Everyarticleposesadifferentproblem,andtheonlyvalidtestis:doesitwork?Yourleadmaynotbethebestofallpossibleleads,butifitdoesthejobit'ssupposedtodo,bethankfulandpro-ceed.Sometimesthelengthmaydependontheaudi-enceyou'rewritingfor.Readersofaliryreviewexpectitswriterstostartsomewhatdiscursively,andtheywillstickwiththosewritersforthepleasureofwonderingwheretheywillemergeastheymoveinleisurelycirclestowardtheeventualpoint.ButIurgeyounottocountonthereadertostickaround.wanttoknow—verysoon—what'sinitforThereforeyourleadmustcapturethereaderim-mediayandhimtokeepreading.Itmustca-jolehimwithfreshness,ornovelty,orparadox,orhu-mor,orsurprise,orwithanunusualidea,oraninter-estingfact,oraquestion.Anythingwilldo,aslongasitnudgeshiscuriosityandtugsathissleeve.Nexttheleadmustdosomerealwork.Itmustprovideharddetailsthatlthereaderwhythepiecewaswrittenandwhyheoughttoreadit.Butdon'tdwellonthereason.Coaxthereaderalittlemore;keephiminquisitive.Continuetobuild.Everyparagraphshouldplifytheonethatprecededit.Givemorethoughttoaddingsoliddetailandlesstoentertainingthereader.Buttakespecialcarewiththelastsentenceofparagraph—it'sthecrucialspringboardtotheparagraph.Trytogivethatsentenceanextratwistofhumororsurprise,liketheperiodic"snapper"intheroutineofastandupcomic.Makethereadersandyou'vegothimforatleastonemoreparagraph.categoriesI'dbegladnevertoseeagain.Oneisthefuturearchaeologist:"Whensomefuturearchaeolo-giststumblesontheremainsofourcivilization,whatwillhemakeofthejukebox?"I'mtiredofhimal-readyandhe'snotevenhere.I'malsotiredofthevisitorfromMars:"IfacreaturefromMarslandedonournethewouldbeamazedtoseehordesofscantilycladearthlingslyingonthesandbarbecuingtheirskins."I'mtiredofthecuteeventthatjusthap-penedtohappen"onedaynotlongago"oronaconve-nientlyrecentSaturdayafternoon:"Onedaynotlongagoasmallbutton-nosedboywaswalkingwithhisdog,Terry,inafieldoutsideParamus,N.J.,whenheingoutoftheground."AndI'mverytiredofthehave-in-commonlead:"WhatdidJosephStalin,DouglasMacArthur,LudwigWittgenstein,SherwoodAnder-son,JorgeLuisBorgesandAkiraKurosawahaveincommon?TheyalllovedWesterns."Let'sretirethefuturearchaeologistandthemanfromMarsandthebutton-nosedboy.Trytogiveyourleadafreshnessofperceptionordetail.materialthanyouwilluse.Everyarticleisstronginproportiontothesurplusofdetailsfromwhichyoucanchoosethefewthatwillserveyoubest—ifyoudon'tgoongatheringfactsforever.AtsomepointyoumuststopresearchingandstartAnothermoralistolookforyourmaterialerywhere,notjustbyreadingtheobvioussourcesandinterviewingtheobviouspeople.LookatsignsandatbillboardsandatallthejunkwrittenalongtheAmeri-canroadside.Readthelabelsonourpackagesandtheinstructionsonourtoys,theclaimsonourmedicinesandthegraffitionourwalls.Readthefillers,sorichinself-esteem,thatcomespillingoutofyourmonthlystatementfromtheelectric andthe andthebank.Read sandcataloguesandsecond-classmail.Noseaboutinobscurecran-niesofthenewspaper,liketheSundayrealestatesec-tion—youcanlthetemperofasocietybywhattioaccessoriesitwants.Ourdailylandscapeiswithabsurdmessagesandportents.Noticethem.Theynotonlyhavesocialsignificance;theyareoftenjustquirkyenoughtomakealeadthat'sdifferentfromev-erybodyelse's.结尾要有惊喜，这就像一根口水的大Thepositivereasonforendingwellisthatagoodlastsentence—orlastparagraph—isajoyinitself.Itgivesthereaderalift,anditlingerswhentheisover.Theperfectendingshouldtakeyourreadersslightlybysurpriseandyetseemexactlyright.Theydidn'texpectthearticletoendsosoon,orsoabruptly,ortosaywhatitsaid.Buttheyknowitwhentheyseeit.Likeagoodlead,itworks.It'slikethecur-tainlineinatheatricalcomedy.Weareinthemid-dleofascene(wethink),whensuddenlyoneoftheactorssayssomethingfunny,oroutrageous,orepi-grtic,andthelightsgoout.Wearestartledtofindthesceneover,andthendelightedbytheaptnessofhowitended.Whatdelightsusistheywrightsperfectcontrol.Forthenonfictionwriter,thesimplestwayofputtingthisintoaruleis:whenyou'rereadytostop,stop.Ifyouhavepresentedallthefactsandmadethepointyouwanttomake,lookforthenearestexit.SomethingIoftendoinmyownworkistothestoryfullcircle—tostrikeattheendanechoofanotethatwassoundedatthebeginning.Itmysenseofsymmetry,anditalsopleasesthereader,completingwithitsresonancethejourneywesetoutontogether.Butwhatusuallyworksbestisaquotation.Gobackthroughyournotestofindsomeremarkthathasasenseoffinality,orthat'sfunny,orthataddsanexpectedclosingdetail.Sometimesitwilljumpoutatyouduringtheinterview—I'veoftenthought,"That'smyending!"—orduringtheprocessofwriting.Inthemid-1960s,whenWoodyAllenwasjustingestablishedasAmericasresidentngnightclubmonologues,Iwrotethefirstlongmagazinepiecethattooknoteofhisarrival.Itendedlikethis:Allensays,"ratherthanjustenjoyingmyjokes;iftheymighttalkabout,thenI'msucceeding."Judgingbythereturns,heis.WoodyAllenisMr.Related-To,andheby,unrelatedto,therestofAmerica."I'mobsessed,"hesays,"bythefactthatmymothergenuinelyresem-blesGrouchoMarx."There'saremarkfromsofaroutinleftfieldthatnobodycouldseeitcoming.Thesurpriseitcarriesistremendous.Howcoulditnotbeaperfectending?Surpriseisoneofthemostrefreshingelementsinnon-fictionwriting.IfsomethingsurprisesyouitwillalsoespeciallyasyouconcludeyourstoryandsendthemontheirChapterBits&Pieces㻙节才是Thisisachapterofscrapsandmorsels—admonitionsonmanypointsthatIhavecollectedun-derone,astheysay,umbrella.Useactiveverbsunlessthereisnocomfortablewaytogetaroundusingapassiveverb.Thedifferencebetweenanactiveverbstyleandapassive-verb—inclarityandvigor—isthedifferencebetweenlifeanddeathforawriter."Joesawhim"isstrong."HewasseenbyJoe"isweak.Thefirstisshortandprecise;itleavesnodoubtaboutwhodidwhat.Thesecondisnecessarilylongerandithasaninsipidquality:somethingdonebysomebodytosomeoneelse.It’salsobiguous.HowoftenwasheseenbyJoe?Once?Ev-eryday?Onceaweek?Astylethatconsistsofpas-siveconstructionswillsapthereadersenergy.No-bodyeverquiteknowswhatisbeingperpetratedbywhomandonwhom.Verbsarethemostimportantofallyourtools.Theypushthesentenceforwardandgiveitmomen-tum.Activeverbspushhard;passiveverbstugfit-fully.Activeverbsalsoenableustovisualizeanac-tivitybecausetheyrequireapronoun("he"),oranoun("theboy"),ora ("Mrs.Scott")toputtheminmotion.Manyverbsalsocarryintheirimageryorintheirsoundasuggestionofwhattheymean:glitter,dazzle,twirl,beguile,scatter,swagger,poke,pamper,vex.Probablynootherlanguagehassuchavastsup-plyofverbssobrightwithcolor.Don'tchooseonethatisdullormerelyserviceable.Makeactiveverbsactivateyoursentences,andtrytoavoidthekindthatneedanappendedprepositiontocompletetheirwork.Don'tsetupabusinessthatyoucanstartorlaunch.Don'tsaythattheofthe down.Didheresign?Didheretire?Didhegetfired?Beprecise.Usepreciseverbs.Ifyouwanttoseehowactiveverbsgivevitalitytothewrittenword,don'tjustgobacktoHemingwayorThurberorThoreau.IcommendtheKingJamesBibleandWilliamShakespeare.Mostadverbsareunnecessary.Youwillclutteryoursentenceandannoythereaderifyouchooseaverbthathasaspecificmeaningandlusthattheradioblaredloudly;"blare"connotesloudness.Don'twritethatsomeoneclenchedhisteethtightly;there'snootherwaytoclenchteeth.Againandagainincarelesswriting,strongverbsareweak-enedbyredundantadverbs.Soareadjectivesandotherpartsofspeech:"effortlesslyeasy,""slightlyspartan,""totallyflabbergasted."Thebeautyof"flabbergasted"isthatitimpliesanastonishmentthatistotal;Ican'tpicturesomeonebeingpartlyflabbergasted.Ifanac-tionissoeasyastobeeffortless,use"effortless."Andwhatis"slightlyspartan"?Perhapsamonk'scellwithwall-to-wallcarpeting.Don'tuseadverbsunlesstheydonecessarywork.Spareusthenewsthatthewin-ningathletegrinnedwidely.Mostadjectivesarealsounnecessary.Likead-don'tstoptothinkthattheconceptisalreadyinthenoun.Thiskindofproseislitteredwithprecipitouscliffsandlacyspiderwebs,orwithadjectivesdenot-ingthecolorofanobjectwhosecoloriswellknown:yellowdaffodilsandbrownishdirt.Ifyouwanttomakeavaluejudgmentaboutdaffodils,chooseanad-jectivelike"garish."Ifyou'reinapartofthecountrywherethedirtisred,feeltomentionthereddirt.Thoseadjectiveswoulddoajobthatthenounalonewouldn'tbeothesoiloftheirprosetomakeitmorelushandpretty,andthesentences elongerandlongerastheyfillupwithstayeandfriskykittensandby-habit—ahabityoushouldgetridof.Noteveryoakhastobegnarled.“AworkofelementTheadjectivethewriterandaburdenfortheAgain,theruleissimple:makeyourdoworkthatneedstobedone."Helookedatthegrayskyandtheblackcloudsanddecidedtosailbacktotheharbor."Thedarknessoftheskyandthecloudsisthereasonforthedecision.Ifit'simportanttolthereaderthatahousewasdraboragirlwasbeautiful,byallmeansuse"drab"and"beautiful."Theywillhavetheirproperpowerbecauseyouhavelearnedtouseadjectivessparsely.LITTLEPruneoutthesmallwordsthatqualifyhowyoufeelandhowyouthinkandwhatyousaw:"abit,""alittle,""sortof,""kindof,""rather,""quite,""very,""too,""prettymuch,""inasense"anddozensmore.Theydiluteyourstyleandyourpersuasiveness.Don'tsayyouwereabitconfusedandsortoftiredandalittledepressedandsomewhatannoyed.Beconfused.Betired.Bedepressed.Beannoyed.Don'thedgeyourprosewithlittletimidi-ties.Goodwritingisleanandconfident.Don'tsayyouweren'ttoohappybecausetheho-wasprettyexpensive.Sayyouweren'thappybe-causethehowasexpensive.Don'tlusyouwerequitefortunate.Howfortunateisthat?Don'tdescribesurement."Very"isauseful