Orwell that Ends Well

George Orwell is best known for his works Animal Farm and 1984, but he also wrote essays, opinion pieces, memoirs, and book reviews. In his 1946 essay "Politics and the English Language," Orwell lays down six rules for writing. Pretty good rules if you ask me. Here's what he wrote:

"One can often be in doubt about the effect of a word or a phrase, and one needs rules that one can rely on when instinct fails. I think the following rules will cover most cases:

1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous."

Clean. Straight to the point. Easy to remember. So often overlooked. Lately, I've been reading books on grammar and writing. After writing 30 books you'd think I'd have it all down pat. Well, I don't. Most days, I feel like I'm just starting. I know a great deal about writing and it doesn't seem enough. So, I've restarted my training and when I'm done, I plan to restart again.

Let's look at them again, this time with a comment or two from me.

1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print. Avoid cliches like the plague.
   
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do. Obfuscation is the anticipated resultant of calculated attempts to impress readers with polysyllabic terms and is antithetical to the goal of subject clarity and fails to espouse elucidation.
   
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. Pretend you have to pay for every word.
   
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active. Let the subject do the acting.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.The surest way to look stupid is to try and sound smart.
   
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous. In the end, make sure your writing matters.

Alton Gansky