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Zinsser Project

Andrew Phillips reflects on how a book on writing called On Writing Well by William Zinsser has improved his writing skills and perspective. He discusses five key lessons from the book. The first is to use active verbs to eliminate unnecessary words and add clarity. The second is to avoid cliches and words that could undermine his credibility. The third is to tailor writing to the intended audience. The fourth is that people often overestimate the quality of their own writing. The fifth is to carefully examine every word used to eliminate unnecessary words. Phillips believes these lessons will help him communicate effectively throughout his career.

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25 views

Zinsser Project

Andrew Phillips reflects on how a book on writing called On Writing Well by William Zinsser has improved his writing skills and perspective. He discusses five key lessons from the book. The first is to use active verbs to eliminate unnecessary words and add clarity. The second is to avoid cliches and words that could undermine his credibility. The third is to tailor writing to the intended audience. The fourth is that people often overestimate the quality of their own writing. The fifth is to carefully examine every word used to eliminate unnecessary words. Phillips believes these lessons will help him communicate effectively throughout his career.

Uploaded by

api-272625771
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Andrew Phillips

Date: 11/24/2014
Zinsser Book Reflection
When I first had to think about writing, I never really gave it much thought. My
thought was Im going to school to become a Heavy Equipment Tech, so when is this
ever going to apply to me. After going through the program and my internships I got
a different outlook on this subject, yeah it will be very unlikely my profession will
require me to write reports, but writing emails to Co-workers, CEO, and most
importantly customers. As well as make-work orders, and possibly create
improvement plans to correct flaws with the company.
My first example that I can take away from Zinsser was in his Bits & Pieces
chapter, He said use active verbs, the difference between an active verb style in
clarity and vigor is the difference between life and death for a writer. If you can find
those action words it will help you cut out the B.S. words that you throw in to help
get your point across, if you can eliminate those words it will cut down on any
confusion that your reader might have.
The second example is found in chapter 6 Zinsser says, That it is hard not to
use the common currency of made up words and clichs found in writing today.
The reason behind this is you have heard them so often that it becomes second
nature to you, the fact of the matter is that when you are writing in the professional
world you want to be careful that you dont put anything in your writing you might
regret later and could possibly make your bosses or piers think less of you.
Third example goes along with what I have been saying before, it can be
found in chapter 5. Think about your audience; who are you writing for. You cant
write for different audiences in the same way. For example you dont want to be
writing to your boss the same way you write to a family member or close friend,
because that is a good way to get your pitch looked over or get someone really upset
with you when you make them feel like you are on the same level as they are when
in reality your not.
Fourth example can be found in chapter 4. Few people realize how badly
they write. That is so true, the best explanation that I can give for that is as a person
writes they are saying their thoughts in their head as they are writing them down.
To them it sounds flawless the way the words are flowing but then when you begin
to reread what you wrote and realize just how different it may sound compared to
what you thought you were saying. Then you have to throw in punctuations even
though to you it sounds really good. But thats because you already know your
standing on the topic but its trying to get your readers to feel the same way that is
the real challenge.

Fifth example can be found in chapter 3; examine every word you put on
paper, youll find a surprising number of words that dont serve a purpose. That is
so true it goes back my second example is finding those action verbs to help
eliminate the little words. I know for a fact that I didnt realize how bad I was with
clutter till I was reading this book and really started dissecting what I was writing as
well as others, it gave me a whole different perspective with writing. Which I will
cherish throughout my entire professional career.

Sources:
1. On Writing Well by William Zinsser

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