How to Become a More Clear and Concise Writer by Reading Road Signs
June 25, 2008 · Print This Article
“Omit needless words.”–William Strunk, Jr.
Whether you’re writing a magazine article, marketing copy, or especially, a blog post or email, conciseness is key.
Presumably you have a purpose in writing, a point to make, a message to send–you can get that message across more powerfully and effectively if you only use the words absolutely necessary for your readers to understand what you’re saying.
Here’s a simple exercise you can use to begin developing the mental perspective necessary to write more clearly and concisely: hop in your car, drive around town, and read every road sign you see.
Do it once as a crash course and then, let it become second nature as you’re driving around on your daily travels.
Here’s why this exercise can be so helpful:
People who write road signs have very little space within which to get their message across; they don’t have the luxury (I would call it a hindrance) to jazz up their writing with fancy prose or unnecessary words.
They have a very short space to write on and the fewer and larger the words on a road sign, the more likely drivers are to see the words and process the message it’s conveying.
Look at the copy from three road signs I found on Google Images:
Immediately, you know exactly what each sign’s message is.
Speed Limit 50
Next 416 Miles: for the next 416 miles of this stretch of road, you’ll be going 50 miles per hour. Unless you want to risk a speeding ticket.
Do Not Enter: you’re in for trouble if you try to come this way, so don’t do it. Period.
Sandy Creek 5
Watertown 29: from your current location, you’re five miles from Sandy Creek and 29 miles from Watertown.
Only words which are absolutely necessary to get a message across are chosen–road sign authors must choose the few words they can put on a sign with extreme precision.
Do the same in your own writing. Choose the right words, the most exactly descriptive words, and keep your words to a minimum. Say exactly what you have to say and be done with it.
Now, go read some road signs to begin developing the skill of writing more clearly and concisely. Maybe I’ll see you out there–I’ll be doing the same thing.
Nothing has helped my writing more than this, ““Omit needless words.”–William Strunk, Jr.”
That being said, I do make exceptions with my prose. Sometimes I do use extra words, because I believe it brings something to the table. But, more often than not, it just makes your writing look less impressive. And, as writers, we want to leave the greatest impact we possibly can on our readers.
Bamboo Forest’s last blog post..Being Happy for Others Makes You Happy
Bamboo,
That is a great quote. The key is to eliminate NEEDLESS words. “Extra” words, such as adjectives can often really help.
But, the point is to make sure every word tells, that every word has a reason for being there.
I struggle with this and waffle. Writing/reading classified ads is another excellent technique for practice.
David,
Great suggestion about reading classified ads for sharpening our ability to write clearly and concisely. I hadn’t thought of that, but it is an excellent method.
Very interesting idea. Thanks!
(I’ve been thinking for about two minutes on how to narrow down “very interesting idea” into two words. The closest I’ve come is “intriguing idea”.) (…On second thought, I can drop the “idea” as well.)
Intriguing. Thanks!
Vlad Dolezal’s last blog post..Uberman’s sleep schedule - (Six Incredibly Awesome Mind States You Can Experience)
Vlad,
Intriguing writing exercise–turning your initial three word sentence into a one word sentence that says basically the same thing.
You exactly captured and implemented the spirit of this post.
I love it.
This is a great exercise in brevity! I always get rid of superfluous words during the editing process and you’re right — there’s a lot that we can cut in terms of unnecessary words. The street signs are about as simple as it gets!
Melissa Donovan’s last blog post..Link Love Mad Libs Writing Exercise for Bloggers
Melissa,
I thought this exercise up when I was–of course–driving around town. Street signs do equal simplicity in word choice. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Best I ever saw in the sign brevity department was a trail sign in the mountains of the Acadia National Park near Bar Harbor, Maine. It said, simply: “Up.”
Elizabeth Westmark (Beth)’s last blog post..Listening To Minton Sparks
Elizabeth,
Can’t get shorter than one word. That’s truly concise.
[...] Let’s begin by visiting the Robust Writing blog, where Jesse has written a great post about developing stronger, more concise prose by reading road signs. [...]