Writing with style

What Hacker News says

1. jseligerMay 2024
   You can do it! https://writeofpassage.com/

   In books about writing, I like:

   How Fiction Works

   Reading Like a Writer

   Writing With Style

   There are many others of course. Perhaps the most important part is finding an editor. (I wound up marrying one, which is not uncommon.) I've seen recs for Sasha Chapin: https://www.sashachapin.com/

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2. queuebertSep 2022
   That is a pretty low effort list.

   I have read dozens and dozens of books on writing, and for non-fiction nothing beats Writing with Style by Trimble.

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3. rementMay 2020
   "Writing with Style, Conversations on the Art of Writing", by John Trimble is another great writing book (The second edition is 161 pages if you don't include the appendices).

   The ability to communicate in writing is an important skill even for developers.

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4. kothariaFeb 2019
   What you are describing matches perfectly the book "Writing with Style" by John Trimble

   He says:

   > Books on writing tend to be windy, boring, and impractical. I intend this one to be different—short, fun, and genuinely useful.

   See a review: https://nargaque.com/2010/07/07/writing-with-style-john-r-tr...

   If you could read only one book on this topic, this is it.

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5. chasingJun 2016
   As an aside: I do not like the idea behind the Hemingway app. Editing prose is not the same as debugging code. Removing adverbs will not make you a good writer. And the whole idea of having some bot making automated comments on my text as I write it sounds distracting at best.

   If you want to write better, write more. And let people read your writing. Hear what they have to say. Style handbooks like "Writing with Style" or "The Elements of Style" are great, but you should attempt to understand the reasons they behind their recommendations, not just use them as a mindless checklist.

   Craft your own voice.

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6. jseligerOct 2014
   For specific writing advice, I recommend the new book The Sense of Style[1] by Steven Pinker, which is about not just fussy rules of English but also about THINKING in a way that helps improve writing. I will have to practice with the ideas in that book for a long time.

   I'd add Write Right! by Jan Venolia and Writing With Style by John Trimble.

   The Sense of Style is wonderful but I worry especially that it might be too advanced for relative beginners, and the chapter about sentence diagramming / sentence grouping may be confusing.

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