A. K. M. Adam
23 Seabury Hall
Office 328-9300 ext 39

Writing (Even) Better

Most people think that they already write well enough. Many think that they write well. Experience teaches me that a high proportion of these people are over-optimistic, but for our purposes in this class I'll accept their own estimates. Therefore, I will not call this facet of the course "Learning to Write Well," as though students didn't already know; I'll call it "Writing (Even) Better," which could apply even to Jane Austen.

In order to keep life simple, we'll concentrate on five features of better writing.

There's more to be said about each of these--and trust me, I'll say it--but I want you to remember just these five facets, so that you may more easily check yourself and others against the standard that these imply.

I don't suppose that my suggestions constitute the last word in writing well; people disagree about what makes for good writing, and some teachers expect different qualities in student writing. Don't let this irritate you. We all should be able to write differently for different circumstances, so consider my (purely hypothetical) idiosyncrasies just one more different circumstance.

You may also, however, find that my notions about good writing help you write more clearly and persuasively, in which case we'll both be pleased and impressed.

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Last updated: July 8, 2000
A K M Adam
E-Mail: akm-adam@nwu.edu