On writing -

Editor Sir Harry Evans on how vocabulary can impact clarity of meaning:

''You cannot make yourself clear with a vocabulary steeped in vagueness''.

Source: Do I Make Myself Clear? Why Writing Well Matters, p.96.

On how vocabulary impacts clarity

Evans (2017) says to ''chase out most abstract words in favor of specific words'' and that ''sentences should be full of brick, beds, houses, cars, cows, men, and women''.

The Rule of Three can be valuable here. The Rule of Three ''is a writing principle based on the idea that humans process information through pattern recognition. As the smallest number that allows us to recognize a pattern in a set, three can help us craft memorable phrases'' (Masterclass 2021).

For example as opposed to saying 'the trains aren't working', you can refer to the specific parts of the train system not working using the Rule of Three: 'the ticketing, frequency and cleanliness aren't working' The Rule of Three can also add density to concepts and allow you to refer to knowledge beyond the direct topic area with minimum words.

Something to practice

In the next piece of writing you write, can you use the 'rule of three' to increase the density and readability of what you are writing?

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