The Elements Of Style

"It is an old observation that the best writers sometimes disregard the rules of rhetoric. When they do so, however, the reader will usually find in the sentence some compensating merit, attained at the cost of the violation. Unless he is certain of doing as well, he will probably do best to follow the rules. After he has learned, by their guidance, to write plain English adequate for everyday uses, let him look, for the secrets of style, to the study of the masters of literature."

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately, many of them penned by people who consider themselves writers. Now, I'm not the greatest writer in the world, and there are plenty of unpublished folk out there doing it better than I, but some of the elementary mistakes I've seen have been scary. For various problems of grammar and composition, this blog heartily endorses and recommends The Elements Of Style by William Strunk, Jr. Not only does this concise tome cover the basics of writing the English language, it does so in a fashion that is easy to understand and, frankly, hilarious.

It isn't that Strunk intends to be funny, more that the book was published in 1918, and reflects the language and standards of the time. Thus, while Strunk is a magnificent teacher, he also strikes me as being the kind of fellow who would slap one about the face with a glove and demand a duel. His retorts towards those that would descend into bad grammar are wonderfully amusing. They alone make this text a must-read.

Think you can write? Think again. The Elements Of Style will show you the bright and shining path to basic English. And if you still disagree, I daresay Mr. Strunk and a choice of pistols will be waiting for you in the woods behind the manor house tomorrow morning.