As a writer, I spend a lot of time editing other people’s work. As a college instructor, that means commenting on student papers with the goal of eliciting stronger, clearer, better supported and thus more effective writing. But I also review and edit the work of adults writing in professional settings. Regardless of the writer’s age or place in life, I see many of the same mistakes and weaknesses.
I’ve been asked a few times recently if I would articulate some basic advice for the benefit of those who’d like to strengthen their writing (especially those who will face my own red pen at some point in the process). So here we go. I’ll aim this toward prose writers (academic and non-academic), although some of the principles will apply for fiction and perhaps even poetry. And I’ll try to keep it succinct, in the interests of proactively following my own advice:
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