William Zinsser Quotes

Top 100 wise famous quotes and sayings by William Zinsser

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William Zinsser Famous Quotes & Sayings

Discover top inspirational quotes from William Zinsser on Wise Famous Quotes.

William Zinsser quotes: People read with their ears, whether they know it or not, People read with their ears, whether they know it or not,
William Zinsser quotes: Eloquence invites us to bring some part of ourselves to the transaction. Eloquence invites us to bring some part of ourselves to the transaction.
William Zinsser quotes: If a good word already exists, there is no need to invent something painful. If a good word already exists, there is no need to invent something painful.
William Zinsser quotes: A clear sentence is no accident. A clear sentence is no accident.
William Zinsser quotes: I don't like to write, but I take great pleasure in having written - in having finally made an arrangement that has a certain inevitability, like I don't like to write, but I take great pleasure in having written - in having finally made an arrangement that has a certain inevitability, like
William Zinsser quotes: Four basic premises of writing: clarity, brevity, simplicity, and humanity. Four basic premises of writing: clarity, brevity, simplicity, and humanity.
William Zinsser quotes: Rewriting is the essence of writing well - where the game is won or lost. Rewriting is the essence of writing well - where the game is won or lost.
William Zinsser quotes: There are all kinds of writers and all kinds of methods, and any method that helps you to say what you want to say is the right method for you. There are all kinds of writers and all kinds of methods, and any method that helps you to say what you want to say is the right method for you.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing is thinking on paper Writing is thinking on paper
William Zinsser quotes: Mind in language are inseparable. If we violate our language we violate ourselves. Mind in language are inseparable. If we violate our language we violate ourselves.
William Zinsser quotes: And so, at last, I come to the one firm conviction that I mentioned at the beginning: it is that the subject is too new for final judgments. And so, at last, I come to the one firm conviction that I mentioned at the beginning: it is that the subject is too new for final judgments.
William Zinsser quotes: The sound of the bat is the music of spring training. The sound of the bat is the music of spring training.
William Zinsser quotes: Vulnerability has a strength of its own. Vulnerability has a strength of its own.
William Zinsser quotes: Writers can write to affirm and to celebrate, or they can write to debunk and destroy; the choice is ours. Writers can write to affirm and to celebrate, or they can write to debunk and destroy; the choice is ours.
William Zinsser quotes: Make a habit of reading what is being written today and what has been written before. Writing is learned by imitation. Make a habit of reading what is being written today and what has been written before. Writing is learned by imitation.
William Zinsser quotes: Editors are licensed to be curious. Editors are licensed to be curious.
William Zinsser quotes: Writers must constantly ask: what I am trying to say? Surprisingly often, they don't know. Writers must constantly ask: what I am trying to say? Surprisingly often, they don't know.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing and learning and thinking are the same process. Writing and learning and thinking are the same process.
William Zinsser quotes: Probably every subject is interesting if an avenue into it can be found that has humanity and that an ordinary person can follow. Probably every subject is interesting if an avenue into it can be found that has humanity and that an ordinary person can follow.
William Zinsser quotes: There is no minimum length for a sentence that's acceptable in the eyes of God. There is no minimum length for a sentence that's acceptable in the eyes of God.
William Zinsser quotes: Not every oak has to be gnarled. Not every oak has to be gnarled.
William Zinsser quotes: Every writing project must be reduced before you start to write. Every writing project must be reduced before you start to write.
William Zinsser quotes: It's no fun to think about infinity and no cinche to write about it. Again, it helps to look for some human link. It's no fun to think about infinity and no cinche to write about it. Again, it helps to look for some human link.
William Zinsser quotes: There's not much to be said about the period except that most writers don't reach it soon enough. There's not much to be said about the period except that most writers don't reach it soon enough.
William Zinsser quotes: Be yourself and your readers will follow you anywhere. Try to commit an act of writing and they will jump overboard to get away. Be yourself and your readers will follow you anywhere. Try to commit an act of writing and they will jump overboard to get away.
William Zinsser quotes: Be true to yourself and to the culture you were born into. Tell your story as only you can. Be true to yourself and to the culture you were born into. Tell your story as only you can.
William Zinsser quotes: Today the outlandish becomes routine overnight. The humorist is trying to say that it's still outlandish. Today the outlandish becomes routine overnight. The humorist is trying to say that it's still outlandish.
William Zinsser quotes: The writer, his eye on the finish line, never gave enough thought to how to run the race. The writer, his eye on the finish line, never gave enough thought to how to run the race.
William Zinsser quotes: A writer will do anything to avoid the act of writing. A writer will do anything to avoid the act of writing.
William Zinsser quotes: When you're ready to stop, stop. If you have presented all the facts and made the point you want to make, look for the nearest exit. When you're ready to stop, stop. If you have presented all the facts and made the point you want to make, look for the nearest exit.
William Zinsser quotes: I don't want to give somebody my input and get his feedback, though I'd be glad to offer my ideas and hear what he thinks of them. I don't want to give somebody my input and get his feedback, though I'd be glad to offer my ideas and hear what he thinks of them.
William Zinsser quotes: Never let anything go out into the world that you don't understand. Never let anything go out into the world that you don't understand.
William Zinsser quotes: But nothing has replaced the writer. He or she is still stuck with the same old job of saying something that other people will want to read. But nothing has replaced the writer. He or she is still stuck with the same old job of saying something that other people will want to read.
William Zinsser quotes: To defend what you've written is a sign that you are alive. To defend what you've written is a sign that you are alive.
William Zinsser quotes: Nobody ever stopped reading E. B. White or V. S. Pritchett because the writing was too good. Nobody ever stopped reading E. B. White or V. S. Pritchett because the writing was too good.
William Zinsser quotes: I think a sentence is a fine thing to put a preposition at the end of. I think a sentence is a fine thing to put a preposition at the end of.
William Zinsser quotes: If the nails are weak, your house will collapse. If your verbs are weak and your syntax is rickety, your sentences will fall apart. If the nails are weak, your house will collapse. If your verbs are weak and your syntax is rickety, your sentences will fall apart.
William Zinsser quotes: Telling a writer to relax is like telling a man to relax while being prodded for a possible hernia. Telling a writer to relax is like telling a man to relax while being prodded for a possible hernia.
William Zinsser quotes: Even a poor translator couldn't kill a style that moves with such narrative clarity. Even a poor translator couldn't kill a style that moves with such narrative clarity.
William Zinsser quotes: Good writing is lean and confident. Good writing is lean and confident.
William Zinsser quotes: Dare to tell the smallest of stories if you want to generate large emotions. Dare to tell the smallest of stories if you want to generate large emotions.
William Zinsser quotes: My work has been the education I avoided. My work has been the education I avoided.
William Zinsser quotes: The only way to learn to write is to force yourself to produce a certain number of words on a regular basis. The only way to learn to write is to force yourself to produce a certain number of words on a regular basis.
William Zinsser quotes: We write to find out what we know and what we want to say. We write to find out what we know and what we want to say.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing wasn't easy and wasn't fun. It was hard and lonely, and the words seldom just flowed. Writing wasn't easy and wasn't fun. It was hard and lonely, and the words seldom just flowed.
William Zinsser quotes: If you lose the dullards back in the dust, that's where they belong. You don't want them anyway. If you lose the dullards back in the dust, that's where they belong. You don't want them anyway.
William Zinsser quotes: Journalism is writing that first appears in any periodic journal. Journalism is writing that first appears in any periodic journal.
William Zinsser quotes: Decide what you want to do. Then decide to do it. Then do it. Decide what you want to do. Then decide to do it. Then do it.
William Zinsser quotes: ...being "rather unique" is no more possible than being rather pregnant. ...being "rather unique" is no more possible than being rather pregnant.
William Zinsser quotes: All writing is ultimately a question of solving a problem. All writing is ultimately a question of solving a problem.
William Zinsser quotes: Simplify, simplify. Simplify, simplify.
William Zinsser quotes: Examine every word you put on paper. You'll find a surprising number that don't serve any purpose. Examine every word you put on paper. You'll find a surprising number that don't serve any purpose.
William Zinsser quotes: Don't try to visualize the great mass audience. There is no such audience - every reader is a different person. Don't try to visualize the great mass audience. There is no such audience - every reader is a different person.
William Zinsser quotes: There's no sentence that's too short in the eyes of God. There's no sentence that's too short in the eyes of God.
William Zinsser quotes: Avoid the ecstatic adjectives that occupy such disproportionate space in every critic's quiver - words like "enthralling" and "luminous." Avoid the ecstatic adjectives that occupy such disproportionate space in every critic's quiver - words like "enthralling" and "luminous."
William Zinsser quotes: But on the question of who you're writing for, don't be eager to please. But on the question of who you're writing for, don't be eager to please.
William Zinsser quotes: Good writers are visible just behind their words. Good writers are visible just behind their words.
William Zinsser quotes: Memoir is the art of inventing the truth. Memoir is the art of inventing the truth.
William Zinsser quotes: Good writing is good writing, whatever form it takes and whatever we call it. Good writing is good writing, whatever form it takes and whatever we call it.
William Zinsser quotes: Motivation clears the head faster than a nasal spray. Motivation clears the head faster than a nasal spray.
William Zinsser quotes: It is possible that the artists are sane and the world they are painting is crazy. It is possible that the artists are sane and the world they are painting is crazy.
William Zinsser quotes: I never think of him as a scholar assaulting me with how much he knows, but as a teacher eager to share a lifelong passion for the subject. I never think of him as a scholar assaulting me with how much he knows, but as a teacher eager to share a lifelong passion for the subject.
William Zinsser quotes: The writers job is like solving a puzzle, and finally arriving at a solution is a tremendous satisfaction. The writers job is like solving a puzzle, and finally arriving at a solution is a tremendous satisfaction.
William Zinsser quotes: Fighting clutter is like fighting weeds-the writer is always slightly behind, Fighting clutter is like fighting weeds-the writer is always slightly behind,
William Zinsser quotes: Writing is the handmaiden of leadership. Writing is the handmaiden of leadership.
William Zinsser quotes: The reader is someone with an attention span of about 30 seconds. The reader is someone with an attention span of about 30 seconds.
William Zinsser quotes: Never forget that you are practicing a craft with certain principles. Never forget that you are practicing a craft with certain principles.
William Zinsser quotes: What I want to do is to make people laugh so that they'll see things seriously. What I want to do is to make people laugh so that they'll see things seriously.
William Zinsser quotes: Probably no subject is too hard if people take the trouble to think and write and read clearly. Probably no subject is too hard if people take the trouble to think and write and read clearly.
William Zinsser quotes: writing is a craft, not an art, and that the man who runs away from his craft because he lacks inspiration is fooling himself. writing is a craft, not an art, and that the man who runs away from his craft because he lacks inspiration is fooling himself.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing is hard work. Writing is hard work.
William Zinsser quotes: If writing seems hard, it's because it is hard. It's one of the hardest things people do. If writing seems hard, it's because it is hard. It's one of the hardest things people do.
William Zinsser quotes: Don't be kind of bold. Be bold. Don't be kind of bold. Be bold.
William Zinsser quotes: I almost always urge people to write in the first person ... Writing is an act of ego and you might as well admit it. I almost always urge people to write in the first person ... Writing is an act of ego and you might as well admit it.
William Zinsser quotes: You learn to write by writing. You learn to write by writing.
William Zinsser quotes: Thinking clearly is a conscious act that writers must force on themselves, Thinking clearly is a conscious act that writers must force on themselves,
William Zinsser quotes: Writers and learners will write better and learn more if they understand the "why" of what they are studying. Writers and learners will write better and learn more if they understand the "why" of what they are studying.
William Zinsser quotes: It requires writers to do two things that by their metabolism are impossible. They must relax, and they must have confidence. It requires writers to do two things that by their metabolism are impossible. They must relax, and they must have confidence.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing is thinking on paper. Anyone who thinks clearly can write clearly, about anything at all. Writing is thinking on paper. Anyone who thinks clearly can write clearly, about anything at all.
William Zinsser quotes: If you write for yourself, you'll reach all the people you want to write for. If you write for yourself, you'll reach all the people you want to write for.
William Zinsser quotes: Scholarship hath no fury like that of a language purist faced with sludge. Scholarship hath no fury like that of a language purist faced with sludge.
William Zinsser quotes: Clutter is the official language used by corporations to hide their mistakes. Clutter is the official language used by corporations to hide their mistakes.
William Zinsser quotes: Be wary of security as a goal. It may often look like life's best prize. Usually it's not. Be wary of security as a goal. It may often look like life's best prize. Usually it's not.
William Zinsser quotes: A writer is always working. A writer is always working.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing is a craft not an art. Writing is a craft not an art.
William Zinsser quotes: writing is a sanity-saving companion for people in times of grief, loss, illness, and other accidents of fate. writing is a sanity-saving companion for people in times of grief, loss, illness, and other accidents of fate.
William Zinsser quotes: Keep your paragraphs short. Writing is visual - it catches the eye before it has a chance to catch the brain. Keep your paragraphs short. Writing is visual - it catches the eye before it has a chance to catch the brain.
William Zinsser quotes: Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill rode to glory on the back of the strong declarative sentence. Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill rode to glory on the back of the strong declarative sentence.
William Zinsser quotes: A simple [writing] style is the result of very hard work. A simple [writing] style is the result of very hard work.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing is such a lonely work that I try to keep myself cheered up. Writing is such a lonely work that I try to keep myself cheered up.
William Zinsser quotes: Thought is action in rehearsal. Thought is action in rehearsal.
William Zinsser quotes: Clear thinking becomes clear writing; one can't exist without the other. Clear thinking becomes clear writing; one can't exist without the other.
William Zinsser quotes: Hard writing makes easy reading. Easy writing makes hard reading. Hard writing makes easy reading. Easy writing makes hard reading.
William Zinsser quotes: Few people realize how badly they write. Nobody has shown them how much excess or murkiness has crept into their style. Few people realize how badly they write. Nobody has shown them how much excess or murkiness has crept into their style.
William Zinsser quotes: You can solve most of your writing problems if you stop after every sentence and ask: what does the reader need to know next? You can solve most of your writing problems if you stop after every sentence and ask: what does the reader need to know next?
William Zinsser quotes: Truth needs no adornment. Truth needs no adornment.
William Zinsser quotes: It is a fitting irony that under Richard Nixon, "launder" became a dirty word. It is a fitting irony that under Richard Nixon, "launder" became a dirty word.
William Zinsser quotes: All writers should strive to deliver something fresh-something editors or readers won't know they want until they see it. All writers should strive to deliver something fresh-something editors or readers won't know they want until they see it.
William Zinsser quotes: Writing improves in direct ratio to the things we can keep out of it that shouldn't be there. Writing improves in direct ratio to the things we can keep out of it that shouldn't be there.
William Zinsser quotes: Nobody becomes Tom Wolfe overnight, not even Tom Wolfe. Nobody becomes Tom Wolfe overnight, not even Tom Wolfe.

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