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William Zinsser

On Writing Well, 25th Anniversary: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction Paperback – September 1, 2001

by William K. Zinsser (Author)

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On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction
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On Writing Well has been praised for its sound advice, its clarity and the warmth of its style. It is a book for everybody who wants to learn how to write or who needs to do some writing to get through the day, as almost everybody does in the age of e-mail and the Internet. Whether you want to write about people or places, science and technology, business, sports, the arts or about yourself in the increasingly popular memoir genre, On Writing Well offers you fundamental priciples as well as the insights of a distinguished writer and teacher. With more than a million copies sole, this volume has stood the test of time and remains a valuable resource for writers and would-be writers.

Print length

320 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Collins
Publication date

September 1, 2001
Dimensions

5.31 x 0.72 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

0060006641
ISBN-13

978-0060006648
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

William Zinsser is a writer, editor and teacher. He began his career with the New York Herald Tribune and has been a longtime contributor to leading magazines. His 17 books include Writing to Learn; Mitchell & Ruff; Spring Training; American Places; Easy to Remember: The Great American Songwriters and Their Songs; and most recently Writing About Your Life. During the 1970s he taught writing at Yale, where he was master of Branford College. He now teaches at the New School, in New York, his hometown, and at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Collins; 25th anniversary ed., 1st HarperResource Quill ed edition (September 1, 2001)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060006641
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060006648
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.31 x 0.72 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #314,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #217 in Medical Research (Books)
- #1,207 in Writing Skill Reference (Books)
- #2,173 in Fiction Writing Reference (Books)

Customer Reviews:
140 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		70%
4 star		17%
3 star		8%
2 star		1%
1 star		3%

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Michael J Coffino

Wonderful Book

Reviewed in the United States on September 16, 2019

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I have read more books on writing than I care to admit or could even quantify if I did care. This is one of the best written, whether you write non-fiction or fiction. Better still, you can pick and choose chapters that are most germane to you. Sometimes (the late) Mr. Zinsser tends toward the arrogant--he has strongly held views--and you might not agree with everything he says. But the writing is seamless and you will learn a ton.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Bad, bad deal.

Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2020

Verified Purchase

Item described as gently used with some wear and lightly marked. The book I received today is disgusting. Published in 2001, the book is 19 y.o. with lots of stains on the cover and throughout the book, brown “aged” pages, awful smell, and lots of notes by numerous users. And after waiting for a week, I feel grossed out to touch it. Absolutely doesn’t worth it!
Just purchased a brand new book for $11.02 with the same day delivery.

One person found this helpful

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Jeffery Cotton

Excellent advice, without talking down

Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2002

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I agree with the other reviewers here who advise you to get a copy of Strunk & White and the other "rule books". But in "On Writing Well", William Zinsser goes beyond do's and dont's to discuss *effective* communication, a subtler and more difficult skill to develop. He also preaches patience: like any skill, you hone it over time and have to keep practicing.
As you'd expect, the writing is clear and logical throughout and the book is also well organized. The chapters in the first half focus on general issues -- "Simplicity", "Clutter", "The Lead and The Ending". The second half focusses on writing within specific fields -- Science and Technology, Business (a *wonderful* chapter everyone should read), The Arts, and so on.
What I most appreciated about Zinsser's approach is that he does not aim for the lowest common denominator in his target audience, and assumes the reader knows how to write correct English. I know people have been critical of Zinsser's approach and his apparent political bent (keep in mind this was first written on the heels of the Watergate scandal -- this 25th anniversary edition is more up to date). But any of these critics, regardless of their views, would be doing well to express themselves as clearly as Zinsser does, and that is exactly the point of this book.

8 people found this helpful

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Kenny R Boecker

Used for Master of Environmental Law Degree

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2014

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My writing wasn't concise enough and often lacked flow. My writing was filled with fluff, and lacked a voice. So, at about 4 out of 7 weeks through the course, my professor recommended that I check this book out. I was able to get through about 9 Chapters by the end of the class. Within a few chapters and application of the material, I felt like I was finally writing well. For once, I could look at any written work and critique it for better clarity. My professor was very impressed with how quickly my writing turned around. Granted, I was already receiving high B's on my work. I was able to consistently earn a 95-100 percent scores the rest of the course. I should note that 95% of my graded coursework is written as opposed to testing or presenting.

I can't comment on the entire book as I haven't finished it. I prefer to read it as I'm writing, and I'm currently on break from school. However, if you have the motivation, read this book while you're in school. I found it to be very entertaining, effective, and easy to understand. You will greatly appreciate it. Writing well matters!

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Diego Banducci

Useful for Both Readers and Writers

Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2005

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I first came across "On Writing Well" fifteen years ago, when I read the second edition. I thought it useful enough that I read it again twice at five year intervals.

Since my copy was literally coming apart at the seams, I purchased this sixth edition, which contains most of the content of the second, but adds chapters about specific forms of writing (The Interview, The Memoir, Science and Technology, Business Writing, Sports, Humor, etc). Additionally, it includes many more examples of what Mr. Zinsser considers to be good writing, some from his own writings and many more from those of other writers.

His selection of writers is so good that I recently purchased a copy of the book as a gift for a foreign student who asked me for list of recent quality American non-fiction.

I like his writing enough that I have read several more of his books ("Writing About Your Life: A journey Into the Past," "Writing to Learn," and "Willie and Dwike"). I find him to be best in writing about memoirs, but like the rest of us he has a limited reservoir of experience, and tends to repeat himself across books. He likes "Willie and Dwike" best of all his books; so do I.

He obviously has had a successful and happy life, which causes him to be a bit of a Pollyanna and critical of writers who write about the dark side of human nature. On the other hand, he does cite Mencken, Joseph Heller, Gary Trudeau and others of that persuasion, so not all is lost.

It's a fine book that will make you both a better writer and a better reader.

11 people found this helpful

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sabrina

Great Product! Fast shipping ***

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 28, 2017

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Great Product ! Fast shipping ***

Andy Covey

great

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 15, 2018

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educational book

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Nick Rodrigues

Book was not in good shape at all

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 25, 2019

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Very yellow pages and smudgy pages and dirty cover.

Co

I enjoyed this book tremendously

Reviewed in Canada on June 11, 2018

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I enjoyed this book tremendously. I am not a good writer but have been working at learning how to express myself more clearly for the past few years. I have taken courses, read books and practiced but this book helped more than anything else. It gave me confidence to do the best I can while embracing my personal style. I also feel more confident to edit and re-edit. I will highly recommend this book.

Robert Lee

Clear Writing

Reviewed in Canada on January 13, 2017

Verified Purchase

Zinsser's advice "Writing is thinking on paper" sums up his approach to helping people write well. If you can think well and clearly, you can write well and clearly. Add to that some instruction on certain types of writing and some good examples, what he calls in three of his chapter titles Principles, Methods and Forms, and you have a fine guide, both to give instruction and to build confidence. Zinsser's style is not as scholarly as, for example, Pinker, but intensely practical, meant for those of us whose primary writing aim is communication.

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On Writing Well, 25th Anniversary: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction Paperback – September 1, 2001

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