Writing Well: The Essential Guide

by Mark Tredinnick

Writing Well is a guide to expressive creative writing and effective professional prose. The author, a poet, writer, editor and teacher, explains the techniques required for stylish and readable writing. Everyone who wants to improve their writing can benefit from this book, which describes how • identify topics that inspire you to write • get into the habit of writing regularly • develop ideas • construct effective arguments • choose words for maximum effect • use grammar correctly • structure sentences and paragraphs appropriately • write with integrity The book is enriched by examples from great modern writers, and includes a variety of exercises and suggestions for writing activities. Mark Tredinnick practises what he preaches, making his book highly enjoyable as well as technically instructive.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Language

256 pages, Paperback

First published August 18, 2008

About the author

Mark Tredinnick (born 1962) is a celebrated Australian poet, essayist and teacher. Winner of the Montreal International Poetry Prize in 2011 and the Cardiff International Poetry Competition in 2012. He is the author of thirteen books, including four volumes of poetry (Bluewren Cantos, Fire Diary, The Lyrebird, The Road South); The Blue Plateau; The Little Red Writing Book and "Writing Well: the Essential Guide." For twenty years he has taught poetry, grammar, creative nonfiction and business prose in Sydney and around the world.

Reviews

[Emma Sea · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the things I like best about browsing paper books in libraries is that sometimes you get what you weren't expecting, and it's wonderful.

I needed a book for a grad student whose writing is from the "why write one word, when six ill-used ones will make me sound more intelligent" school. Because this book opened with many examples of terrible academic and business writing, and exercises for rewriting them, I grabbed it without looking through it thoroughly.

I'm glad I always read books before I rec them. I fell unexpectedly in love with both Tredinnick's writing and his suggestions for improving my own.

The first sections are about business writing, with basic grammar rules and sentence structure, but soon the book turns to fiction and style, and somehow it just spoke to me. Well, mainly it was saying "never try to write literature" because gods know, I suck, which made the examples in here akin to watching food porn at midnight in a crummy motel with no mini-bar in a small town that lies in darkness. Luckily when you write non-fiction papers people tend to think if they can read it without nodding off then you've done a good job. But Tredinnick made me want to be better: he showed me a sky of words and made me feel that even though I can't fly, I can still have fun jumping off bridges with a parachute.

It took quite a while to read, because I had so much to think about after each chapter. I've ordered my own copy because this has to go back now :(

The book is all about the writing. There's nothing here about time management, or finding a place to write, or battling procrastination. It's about putting the words on the page, one after another, with care and forethought and consideration for the reader.

I highly recommend it.

[M.San · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. I would like to own a copy.

[Elise Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Will improve your writing but gets as beige we you think

[hoffnarr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed "Writing Tools" more but there was some good basic practical advice in the work. The strongest part of the work, I felt, was the chapter on "Sentencing," which explored some of the different sentence structures that work well and what their advantages and disadvantages are. The chapter on "Grace" and "Shapely Thoughts" also had some useful nuggets.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

amazing! great insights and advice