Kurt Vonnegut was a great writer. He was an author with a unique voice, and he once published some of his insight with a short piece that I now want to share, titled How to write with style.
He published fourteen novels, three short story collections, five plays, and five non-fiction books throughout his career. After he died in 2007, a book of his unpublished pieces, Armageddon in Retrospect, was also published, by his son.
Keep reading the post for Vonnegut’s full advice, but here it is in short:
- 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
Vonnegut had a distinct style of his own, and you can tell that his advice aims to assist writers in finding their voice. Put style and personality on the page and learn how to communicate better! It may take years to discover your style and learn how to express that in writing, but it’s a journey with which every good writer will be familiar, and Vonnegut’s advice, like all good writing advice, will help you get closer to your goal.
Take a look at Vonnegut’s How to write with style yourself:
