Two days ago I received a package of three books: On Writing Well, The Elements of Style, and 100 Ways to Improve Your Writing. Almost everyone online pointed to these three as the best guides around – respected classics about writing classics. I’ve finished The Elements of Style already, but I feel I’ll come back to it again and again. Its a tiny book, barely 85 pages, yet the author’s message is so forceful and so concise that even after three or four readings I’m sure I’ll have missed something. Now I’ve started the longer but more accessible On Writing Well.
In case you haven’t gathered this by now, I’m trying to improve my prose. I want to keep this blog going for a long while, maybe posting something new every now and then, and I want every post to be enjoyable. Originally I hoped this blog would provide a unique insight into missionary life. Deeper than a newsletter and more varied, it would bridge the gap between the sender and the sent. If I can reconcile that disconnect in some small way then this blog is a success.
The problem is I’m a perfectionist. In no way does that mean what I eventually produce is perfect – far from it. It means each sentence is an arduous struggle, a massive boulder I must shove up the mountain until, when I finally place the period, that boulder comes crashing down again and I start again on the next sentence. This is the biggest reason why there are so few posts.
But I will persevere. Even if I must die a little each week this blog will be updated.
I owe you that much.
I haven’t been commenting on your blog, and I apologize. You’re already a very good writer, Josh, but I admire your intention to keep improving. That’s great. You use some excellent analogies … “like a wounded soldier supported by his brothers.” There’s another book called “How to Read Literature Like a Professor” that, in helping you understand and evaluate literature, helps you improve your own writing at the same time. And it’s a good read.
You promised to write more. We want an update!