The heart of the matter

In class we used the book Style: The Basic of Clarity and Grace by Joseph M. Williams and Gregory G. Colomb as one our textbooks. I really struggled with this little guide but there are a few hidden gems. One of the most influential nuggets he includes (and to be fair, I am sure there are many) is from the introduction. Unfortunately Williams and Colomb speak in the first person so it is not clear who is actually speaking when ‘he’ says “I know that many do see clearly, feel deeply, and think carefully but still cannot write sentences that make those thoughts, feelings, and visions clear to others.” When I read this I had an ‘aha’ moment; I feel like this all of the time. In my head my prose sounds gorgeous and cohesive and absolutely fantastic. Then I start to try and type and it all just goes to shit. If you’ve read “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott in her book (really you should all know this by now) Bird by Bird. Shitty first drafts happen to (almost) everyone, and it is OK. The best way to create a superb second draft, which according to Williams and Colomb is most important Rule of Style, is; put your readers first.

But how in the name of all that is holy does a writer truly accomplish this?

Williams and Colomb answer this question with a quote from Arthur Quiller-Couch, the late great (I am bringing that phrase back) Cornish author known as ‘Q’ [not the Star Trek ‘Q’, at least probably not] who says “Essentially style resembles good manners. It comes of endeavoring to understand others, of thinking for them rather [than] yourself- or thinking, that is, with the heart as well as the head.” Isn’t that marvelous, go ahead, read it again. Lovely, beautiful, Q and I would have been great friends. Like sharing-strawberries-and-cream-while-sitting-in-the–Royal-Box-at-Wimbledon friends. On a practical level the easiest way to achieve this rule is to let others actually, you know, read what you write. Share those shitty drafts with friends, professors (yes that’s right, they too deserve a good laugh), a peer tutor at the Writing Center, or even on a blog like this one. So if you want to write with Style; think with your heart and your head, and let the world (or maybe just a good friend) read about it!