Writing with style

Kurt Vonnegut offered the following tips on writing with style:

• Find a subject you care about
• Do not ramble, though
• Keep it simple
• Have guts to cut
• Sound like yourself
• Say what you mean
• Pity the readers

His entire article can be found here.



He recommended Elements of Style by Strunk and White.

My complete reading list for journalists and writers includes:

• Essential English: For Journalists, Editors and Writers (Pimlico) by Harold Evans
• The Elements of Style by William, Jr. StrunkWriter's Handbook (Penguin Pocket) by Stephen Curtis
• Bloomsbury Grammar Guide: Grammar Made Easy (Bloomsbury reference) by Gordon Jarvie
• Troublesome Words by Bill Bryson
• The "Times" Style and Usage Guide by Tim Austin
• The "Economist" Style Guide
• The Oxford Style Manual by Robert Ritter
• The Guardian Stylebook by David Marsh
• New Hart's Rules: The Handbook of Style for Writers and Editors (Reference) by R. M. Ritter
• Eats, Shites & Leaves: Crap English and How to Use It by Antal Parody
• Mother Tongue: The English Language by Bill Bryson
• The Adventure of English by Melvyn Bragg
• McNae's Essential Law for Journalists by Tom Welsh
• International Libel and Privacy Handbook: A Global Reference for Journalists, Publishers, Webmasters and Lawyers by Charles Glasser
• Oxford Dictionary of English by Catherine Soanes