Steven Pinker’s new book, The Sense of Style, which Martha cites among her all-time favorite books about writing, has just the right message: don’t worry so much about the errors, because you’ll make them, and if writing isn’t fun, you’re doing it wrong. This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Steven Pinker’s Advice for Writers”
You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it. I’m Grant Barrett.
And I’m Martha Barnette. And we were talking earlier in the show about the new book by Steven Pinker called The Sense of Style, which I have to say is the best book on writing I think I’ve read ever in my life.
Really?
Yeah. And it’s a great example of exactly the kind of thing that he prescribes. I wanted to share a passage from it. He was talking about the fact that one way to learn to write is simply to develop the habit of lingering over good writing wherever you find it. And he goes on, savoring good prose is not just a more effective way to develop a writerly ear than obeying a set of commandments. It’s a more inviting one. Much advice on style is stern and censorious. A recent bestseller advocated zero tolerance for errors and brandished words like horror, satanic, ghastly, and plummeting standards on its first page.
The classic manuals, written by starchy Englishmen and rock-ribbed Yankees, try to take all the fun out of writing, grimly adjuring the writer to avoid offbeat words, figures of speech, and playful alliteration. And then he goes on, an aspiring writer could be forgiven for thinking that learning to write is like negotiating an obstacle course in boot camp with a sergeant barking at you for every errant footfall. Why not think of it instead as a form of pleasurable mastery, like cooking or photography? Perfecting the craft is a lifelong calling, and mistakes are part of the game.
Absolutely. I totally agree with pretty much everything he said there.
Yeah, I thought you’d like that.
Well, there’s a number of things that we say that he’s got in there. For one, if you want to write better, read better writers, right? The other one is don’t worry so much about the errors because we all make them. I mean, if you find them, fix them. And then the third thing is if it’s not fun, you’re doing it wrong.
Exactly. Right? It has to be enjoyable. I see my son go through this. I know I always bring him up, but he’s seven and he’s learning to write longer little essays. And for him, he’s already feeling the weight of all these rules. And my wife and I are trying to free him of that. I feel the weight too sometimes. It’s hard, right?
Yeah. And particularly when you know that you’re going to be listened to or read by millions.
Really difficult stuff.
But again, if it’s not fun, you’re doing it wrong.
Exactly.
And I would just say again, this book is so much fun, The Sense of Style. It’s subtitled The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century.
And that’s by Steven Pinker?
Yes.
And it’s out now.
Yes.
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And we just know there’s going to be a big conversation about this book on our Facebook group.
