On Writing Well, 30th Anniversary Edition - William Zinsser

On Writing Well, 30th Anniversary Edition

By William Zinsser

  • Release Date: 2012-09-11
  • Genre: Business & Personal Finance
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 83 Ratings

Description

"On Writing Well is a bible for a generation of writers looking for clues to clean, compelling prose." —New York Times

A beloved classic and the definitive volume on the art of writing nonfiction

On Writing Well, which grew out of a course that William Zinsser taught at Yale, has been praised for its sound advice, its clarity, and for the warmth of its style. It is a book for anybody who wants to learn how to write or who needs to do some writing to get through the day, as almost everybody does. Whether you want to write about people or places, science and technology, business, sports, the arts, or about yourself in the increasingly popular memoir genre, On Writing Well offers you both fundamental principles as well as the insights of a distinguished practitioner. With over a million copies in print, this volume has stood the test of time and remains a valued resource for writers and would-be writers.

Reviews

  • On Writing Well

    4
    By Matthew Harvey
    The book starts strong, ends a bit mediocre. But the writing itself is absolutely delightful.
  • Gem of a book; too bad idiots can't see past the typo

    5
    By Argh pirates
    I find it hilarious that Necro1775 is bashing On Writing Well because of single typo (which the author wasn't even responsible for) when I spotted a major misspelling in his comment. If you don't know the difference between "then" and "than," or if you don't bother to revise your writing, you have no business writing reviews.
  • Great, great book

    5
    By BigFanDM
    I can’t believe the stupidity of those people for criticizing an entire book for a single typo in the marketing blurb. I’m a professional writer, and “On Writing Well” is the book that put me on that path. It’s filled with great advice and examples, and anyone who’s serious about writing—whether you do it for a living or you just have to write email for work—will benefit from this. Buy it, read it, and follow its advice.
  • IGNORE THE TYPO, PINHEADS.

    5
    By MrRi
    For people who should hopefully be familiar with the publishing business (scouring the iBook Store for a resource to hone their writing skills) it is simply foolish to blame William Zinsser for that typo. Firstly, authors don't usually write the marketing "pitch lines" that get tacked onto the covers of their work. And secondly, even if they did...that is the task of a Proof Reader. So for those educated enough not to regard this as an indictment on the author's ability to write, or teach writing, I can highly recommend this book. I own it in print and now - motivated by the unjust, imbecilic 1 Star reviews - I am probably going to purchase an electronic version as well. Zinsser's advice is superb and succinct. This is a true classyc.
  • AMAZING

    5
    By Frankishtine
    I love this book