Elements of Style (Strunk & White)

There's a good chance you read The Elements of Style in high school.  In under 100 pages, Professor Strunk provides the essential principles of writing well, "his attempt to cut the vast tangle of English rhetoric down to size and write its rules and principles on the head of a pin."  He, along with E.B. White, covers eleven rules of usage, eleven principles of composition, "a few matters of form," misused words, and thoughts on style. 

An important point that stood out to me: Omit needless words.  "Brevity is a by-product of vigor."

Vigorous writing is concise.  A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.  This requires not that the writes make all sentences short, or avoid all detail and treat subjects only in outline, but that every word tell.

This is a great little manual.  Read it cover to cover, or refer to it as needed.  Good writing is an important life skill; prepare accordingly.

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