Three misconceptions:
- "A simple style betrays a simple mind."
- "Quantity is quality."
- "Abstractions are more dignified than concrete terms."
Three things that derail a writer before he's started:
- A lack of time.
- A lack of purpose.
- A lack of familiarity with good writing.
Five problems of composition:
- Failure to define the audience.
- Failure to research the problem.
- Failure to choose a suitable structure.
- Failure to rely on a "personal editor."
- Failure to rewrite.
These bullet points should serve as a quick summary of the problems that confront everyone who sits down to write. I discuss almost all of these points in three articles about writing I wrote for the Illinois Bar Journal: Improve Your Legal Writing With Five Simple Rules; Five Steps Towards Persuasive Writing; and First Drafts Made Easy.
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