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How to Not Write Bad: The Most Common Writing Problems and the Best Ways to Avoid Them
Ben Yagoda's How to Not Write Bad illustrates how we can all write better, more clearly, and for a wider readership.
He offers advice on what he calls "not-writing-badly," which consists of the ability, first, to craft sentences that are correct in terms of spelling, diction (word choice), punctuation, and grammar, and that also display clarity, precision, and grace. Then he focuses on crafting whole paragraphs—with attention to cadence, consistency of tone, sentence transitions, and paragraph length.
In a fun, comprehensive guide, Yagoda lays out the simple steps we can all take to make our writing more effective, more interesting—and just plain better.
He offers advice on what he calls "not-writing-badly," which consists of the ability, first, to craft sentences that are correct in terms of spelling, diction (word choice), punctuation, and grammar, and that also display clarity, precision, and grace. Then he focuses on crafting whole paragraphs—with attention to cadence, consistency of tone, sentence transitions, and paragraph length.
In a fun, comprehensive guide, Yagoda lays out the simple steps we can all take to make our writing more effective, more interesting—and just plain better.
193 pages, Paperback
First published February 5, 2013
86 people are currently reading
1405 people want to read
About the author
Ben Yagoda
22 books30 followersBen Yagoda is a retired professor of journalism and English. He's published a number of books and was a freelance journalist for publications such as The New Leader, The New York Times, Newsweek, and Rolling Stone. Yagoda currently lives in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania with his wife and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
April 18, 2023
Bod
Dab
Bd
Bab
Ba
Ad
8ad
B&d
Baol
That's all the ways I can think of.
What’s that? You want an actual review? Fine. This is a terrific guide to writing not just better, but "not-bad," which is more important for most people. If you write in any capacity, even just the occasional email, this book will help you write less lousy. Lousily. Whatever. Even a professional writer, which I clearly am not, could use a touch-up every so often. The author primarily teaches writing in the context of journalism, but the lessons apply equally well to any writing, fiction or non-.
The best thing about the book is its brevity. Like the sentences Yagoda praises, it says what it needs to say and no more. It’s a smart little book that sits well in the hand and will prove invaluable for a lifetime.
The most basic advice on offer is to read a lot, and when writing, cut out distractions and be mindful. A guide to the most frequent errors seen in Yagoda’s twenty years of teaching comes next, and this demonstrates the book’s usefulness: it addresses only the most common errors and leaves the more obscure problems for weightier guides. It ends with a short section on writing well (W-E-L-L), but the main focus on writing “not-bad” will take most people 90% of the way to their destination.
Now we shall see how well I apply the book’s lessons in future reviews.
Dab
Bd
Bab
Ba
Ad
8ad
B&d
Baol
That's all the ways I can think of.
What’s that? You want an actual review? Fine. This is a terrific guide to writing not just better, but "not-bad," which is more important for most people. If you write in any capacity, even just the occasional email, this book will help you write less lousy. Lousily. Whatever. Even a professional writer, which I clearly am not, could use a touch-up every so often. The author primarily teaches writing in the context of journalism, but the lessons apply equally well to any writing, fiction or non-.
The best thing about the book is its brevity. Like the sentences Yagoda praises, it says what it needs to say and no more. It’s a smart little book that sits well in the hand and will prove invaluable for a lifetime.
The most basic advice on offer is to read a lot, and when writing, cut out distractions and be mindful. A guide to the most frequent errors seen in Yagoda’s twenty years of teaching comes next, and this demonstrates the book’s usefulness: it addresses only the most common errors and leaves the more obscure problems for weightier guides. It ends with a short section on writing well (W-E-L-L), but the main focus on writing “not-bad” will take most people 90% of the way to their destination.
Now we shall see how well I apply the book’s lessons in future reviews.
August 14, 2016
While perhaps more focused on journalism than fiction, Yagoda still provides a useful technical guide to writing. Personally I struggled with the examples (I find it hard to read a 'bad' sentence, I suspect I just take anything written as correct as long as I can make sense of it) but I enjoyed all the lessons.
The third section in my opinion is the strongest, Yagoda provides the most compelling argument for the use and avoidance of cliches I've read.
The third section in my opinion is the strongest, Yagoda provides the most compelling argument for the use and avoidance of cliches I've read.
November 8, 2013
An easy to read refresher on the basic rules - with examples that both entertain and educate. As a former student of the author, I was relieved to not find any of my own work used as "how not to" illustrations.
August 8, 2018
SIX WORD REVIEW: We could always use a brush-up.
January 5, 2016
Good engineering is about preventing failure as much as achieving success, so this book's title attracted me irresistibly. In addition, my writing skills are quite good for an engineer, so I wanted to see what Ben Yagoda had to say about writing. I did not expect what I found.
Yagoda has two sections to his book, one about grammar rules and one about word choice and style. In both, he presents common mistakes and describes how to avoid and fix them. I was surprised by the range of my reactions to his advice--some issues were quite familiar (the Oxford comma) and some completely new to me (rhetorical questions). Of the rules I knew, sometimes I agreed with Yagoda's opinion (single quotes) and sometimes I strongly disagreed (double quotes: not only do most punctuation marks already go outside of them, but many people now put commas and periods outside of them). The disagreements often seem to stem from a generational gap between us. There are many rules he insists haven't changed yet even though he admits they will soon (logical punctuation); I feel the time has already arrived for change.
Three problems prevent this from being four stars: although Yagoda includes examples of mistakes in all his sections, he often doesn't explain why they are mistakes. His book is full of examples of things he says not to do, which became too obvious to ignore when I happened to read his Author's Note immediately after his rant about not using cliches. Strunk and White were also guilty of this; I think it must be a requirement, like how every book review I write contains a mistake if I complain about the book's editing. And at the end of the book, Yagoda includes neither a discussion of how to avoid bad conclusions nor an actual conclusion (the last two sentences barely hint at one). Need it be said that a missing conclusion is a common element of bad writing?
Yagoda has two sections to his book, one about grammar rules and one about word choice and style. In both, he presents common mistakes and describes how to avoid and fix them. I was surprised by the range of my reactions to his advice--some issues were quite familiar (the Oxford comma) and some completely new to me (rhetorical questions). Of the rules I knew, sometimes I agreed with Yagoda's opinion (single quotes) and sometimes I strongly disagreed (double quotes: not only do most punctuation marks already go outside of them, but many people now put commas and periods outside of them). The disagreements often seem to stem from a generational gap between us. There are many rules he insists haven't changed yet even though he admits they will soon (logical punctuation); I feel the time has already arrived for change.
Three problems prevent this from being four stars: although Yagoda includes examples of mistakes in all his sections, he often doesn't explain why they are mistakes. His book is full of examples of things he says not to do, which became too obvious to ignore when I happened to read his Author's Note immediately after his rant about not using cliches. Strunk and White were also guilty of this; I think it must be a requirement, like how every book review I write contains a mistake if I complain about the book's editing. And at the end of the book, Yagoda includes neither a discussion of how to avoid bad conclusions nor an actual conclusion (the last two sentences barely hint at one). Need it be said that a missing conclusion is a common element of bad writing?
April 26, 2013
Journalism professor Ben Yagoda attempts here what so many others have already tried: to present a short, enjoyable, and informative book on grammar and basic writing. The idea is not necessarily to make readers fantastic or even good writers but to make them not-bad, to allow them to rise above the current bulk of needlessly excessive writing and guard themselves against grammar they may not know or understand. And to a large extent, he succeeds.
There are more conservative writers who would have everyone adhere to the current rules without exception or the expectation of change. William Strunk and E.B. White would fall into this category. There are also those who believe the rules should be followed but realize the futility of maintaining them all forever. Rules, words, and phrases all change over time. If a rule is misunderstood often enough, that common misunderstanding will likely become the next rule. And it is into this category that Yagoda falls as he anticipates and accepts the coming changes.
While Strunk and White's guidebook may have been helpful decades ago (I believe it was first published in 1918 and updated in the 1950s), it has become outdated. Yagoda not only updates his book for more contemporary problems and references, he takes out the stuffiness that Strunk and White often pushed and replaces it with humor. He tersely remarks about committing errors by saying, "If you [make careless mistakes], it looks very bad and you will be mocked."
For a beginner, this book should be a solid starting place. For more advanced writers, it will likely cover many rules they already know. Regardless, there were a few rules that surprised even me. Apparently, in most cases, it's not okay to use a comma after a sentence-opening conjunction (something I do frequently). You'll notice above that I've stopped doing this.
Really, though, it was just nice to hear someone of such a high literary awareness speak so clearly, concisely, and realistically about writing.
There are more conservative writers who would have everyone adhere to the current rules without exception or the expectation of change. William Strunk and E.B. White would fall into this category. There are also those who believe the rules should be followed but realize the futility of maintaining them all forever. Rules, words, and phrases all change over time. If a rule is misunderstood often enough, that common misunderstanding will likely become the next rule. And it is into this category that Yagoda falls as he anticipates and accepts the coming changes.
While Strunk and White's guidebook may have been helpful decades ago (I believe it was first published in 1918 and updated in the 1950s), it has become outdated. Yagoda not only updates his book for more contemporary problems and references, he takes out the stuffiness that Strunk and White often pushed and replaces it with humor. He tersely remarks about committing errors by saying, "If you [make careless mistakes], it looks very bad and you will be mocked."
For a beginner, this book should be a solid starting place. For more advanced writers, it will likely cover many rules they already know. Regardless, there were a few rules that surprised even me. Apparently, in most cases, it's not okay to use a comma after a sentence-opening conjunction (something I do frequently). You'll notice above that I've stopped doing this.
Really, though, it was just nice to hear someone of such a high literary awareness speak so clearly, concisely, and realistically about writing.
April 30, 2022
Yagoda is a professor in journalism and English. As such, he has had to give feedback, grade, and edit hundreds or thousands of students' essays, and I guess at some point you get sick of it. Students keep on remaking the same mistakes so it's not too hard to pull out a list of the worst repeat offenders. Like he says, fixing those won't turn you into a great writer, but you'll be a good enough writer, and that's what counts.
As a scientist I have a similar, shorter list of recurring writing problems, here's an excerpt of the thing I give to students:
Yagoda's book is very similar, as he comes from journalism it's all about non-fiction writing. I still make many of the mistakes Yagoda points out, I'm especially good at comma splicing, but it's great to have all these problems listed in one place. This will be a useful book to lend to students.
You know what, I'll spoil it a little bit. Here's one of Yagoda's tip that improved my own at-work-writing significantly:
As a scientist I have a similar, shorter list of recurring writing problems, here's an excerpt of the thing I give to students:
- Never begin a document with ‘This shows’. The ‘This’ refers to the facts of the previous sentence, and if you have several facts readers need to backtrack and figure out what you are referring to.
- Make it easier for the reader by being specific, for example, ‘The elevated CO levels show that…’
Never use ‘create’ when something was developed, drawn, mapped, or assembled. Be specific, be precise. Another undesirable word: ‘mined’ (for data)
- Do not start sentences with filler like ‘Moreover,’, ‘Additionally’, ‘In addition’, ‘Also’ unless they’re absolutely necessary. Ask yourself whether you need these words, they rarely add to the sentence.
Yagoda's book is very similar, as he comes from journalism it's all about non-fiction writing. I still make many of the mistakes Yagoda points out, I'm especially good at comma splicing, but it's great to have all these problems listed in one place. This will be a useful book to lend to students.
You know what, I'll spoil it a little bit. Here's one of Yagoda's tip that improved my own at-work-writing significantly:
The most effective short-term way to improve your writing is to read it aloud, sentence by sentence and word by word.
They'll get used to your reading in the office, I promise.
April 1, 2015
After abandoning a dry textbook on writing style, it was refreshing to find a book that's concise, pragmatic, and approachable. Culled from actual student submissions, "bad" examples are rewritten to be "not-bad". This problem-solving approach makes the content easily applicable to everyday situations.
June 15, 2017
I was not impressed. Yagoda's prose is annoying-he tries too hard to be "cool" (Not using quotes around a cliche is the first of many of his ridiculous rules I will gleefully continue to break in my writing) and constantly self-aggrandizes through fake self-deprecation. He presents the simplest grammar rules and then seems to think that us plebes are incapable of becoming "not bad" writers without his rare and priceless bits of grammar knowledge, most of which literally any 8th grader should know. Also, by the end I was thoroughly sick of his habit of cruelly mocking samples of student work every few paragraphs under the guise of "analysis" and "correction." We get it; writing teachers suffer through some linguistic atrocities - but can we maybe rise above the prescriptivist nazis judging a person's entire character based on their ability to distinguish between homonyms? Okay I am ranting-basically this book was an unhelpful and quite irritating sermon detailing one man's HUMBLE opinions on writing English. This book was is not worth the time when there are so many other style manuals that truly inform and entertain. Like Ursula LeGuin's. She kicks Yagoda's trash.
March 15, 2019
3 stars and a not-sure-I'd-recommend if you're planning to read HtNWB for pleasure.
4 stars and recommended as a reference book.
HtNWB may have diminished my already mediocre writing ability. I find myself overthinking each word and sentence and proceeding with excessive caution. Now it's taking me longer to generate the same insipid content.
Yagoda's book has lots of practical tips and a healthy supply of good humor, but the rules of grammar and the technical grammatical terms I forgot long ago can make for a plodding reading experience, along with the uncomfortable feeling that I should have been memorizing the material for a test later. All I can think about is that I'm mangling the rules and cannot recall why.
The first piece of guidance is probably embraced already by most goodreads members - read a lot and read widely. If you decide to read HtNWB for pleasure, follow the read-widely advice and keep another book handy and switch off every now and then.
4 stars and recommended as a reference book.
HtNWB may have diminished my already mediocre writing ability. I find myself overthinking each word and sentence and proceeding with excessive caution. Now it's taking me longer to generate the same insipid content.
Yagoda's book has lots of practical tips and a healthy supply of good humor, but the rules of grammar and the technical grammatical terms I forgot long ago can make for a plodding reading experience, along with the uncomfortable feeling that I should have been memorizing the material for a test later. All I can think about is that I'm mangling the rules and cannot recall why.
The first piece of guidance is probably embraced already by most goodreads members - read a lot and read widely. If you decide to read HtNWB for pleasure, follow the read-widely advice and keep another book handy and switch off every now and then.
December 17, 2013
A useful sort-of-handbook. (Sort-of, in a good sense, because it is written not as a series of rules so much as a book of advice on writing.) The specific advice that Yagoda offers is solid, and timely, but more than thos bits of advice what I value most is his urging that writers become more "mindful" in the ways they revise and edit their prose.
August 18, 2018
This is an excellent book, which I intend to read again in the near future. I did often find myself wanting to rewrite many of the corrected sentences, as the author tends to solve the problem by changing the person of the sentence or paragraph. But I would highly recommend this thought-provoking book, and look forward to reading his other work.
April 16, 2023
The book, “How to Not Write Bad,” is a fun read.
The author, Ben Yagoda, teaches writing at the University of Delaware. His book was inspired by his students, and it is filled with examples of their writing.
Unfortunately for the students, if their writing chanced to make it into the pages of this book, it is there only to be used as an example of how not to write.
Yagoda’s point, really, is that students write badly. But so do a lot of people, and that’s all right.
Basically, it is Yagoda’s experience that most people are not ready to aspire to great writing, and so should start off trying not to write too. . . well. . . bad. . .
I found the book to be witty and entertaining but since English is definitely not my strong suit there were sections that were a bit too flippant to be of any real value to me.
I genuinely believe that I need remedial help with punctuation and with grammar.
When I read words in the book like, “preposition,” or when I attempted to grasp a complicated concept such as a, “dangling modifier,” it made me feel some type of way. Namely, it made me feel uncomfortable.
Uncomfortable and confused.
I think what I actually need is to take a class somewhere, just to get the basics cemented in my mind of how this damn English language works, and how I can better write it down. It’s really embarrassing when the only language you know is English and you’re really not that good at it.
Reading, “How to Not Write Bad,” may have been a slight help in my goal to improve my English, but I feel it was written less for people like me, and more for other teachers of writing. Yagoda gets snarky while explaining some topics. He’s seen some sh*t and he wants you to know it. He has writing instructor PTSD. He’s sharing funny stuff with other people who are also supposed to be laughing.
But you can’t get the jokes if you don’t understand the concepts.
While Yagoda may be entertaining, he also touches very briefly and superficially on some writing topics and he doesn’t offer enough examples for me to feel that I have fully understood the concepts.
For example, I read about the semi colon, and then while in the shower for the briefest moment I truly thought I understood it. For a fraction of a single second (while in the midst of shampooing my hair) I was ready to write a sentence using the most sophisticated piece of punctuation that I know if: the semi colon.
I held Yagoda’s explanation for how to use the semi colon in my mind, and I was ready to use the damn thing too, until I got out of the shower and my understanding vanished. I never had an opportunity to write a sentence using a semi colon because how those thing work was never fully committed to my long-term memory. My understanding vanished into the ether.
Yagoda doesn’t employ enough examples or explanations to really anchor these topics that he writes about into his reader’s mind and there are no practice exercises.
The information in this book should be read with the intention of pure entertainment. Writing teachers will love this book, and so will editors and other people who are already well versed in the subject.
Undereducated people like me will (possibly) pick up a few pointers that may remain in the working memory of the old noggin. I doubt that I retained much of the information though, and so my real hope is that some of the rules of punctuation and grammar (and such like) will remain in the depths of my subconscious mind, ready to bubble forth into consciousness whenever I need help writing.
In short, this book was fun to read and I like Yagoda, but “How to Not Write Bad,” is not a substitute for an actual English class.
The author, Ben Yagoda, teaches writing at the University of Delaware. His book was inspired by his students, and it is filled with examples of their writing.
Unfortunately for the students, if their writing chanced to make it into the pages of this book, it is there only to be used as an example of how not to write.
Yagoda’s point, really, is that students write badly. But so do a lot of people, and that’s all right.
Basically, it is Yagoda’s experience that most people are not ready to aspire to great writing, and so should start off trying not to write too. . . well. . . bad. . .
I found the book to be witty and entertaining but since English is definitely not my strong suit there were sections that were a bit too flippant to be of any real value to me.
I genuinely believe that I need remedial help with punctuation and with grammar.
When I read words in the book like, “preposition,” or when I attempted to grasp a complicated concept such as a, “dangling modifier,” it made me feel some type of way. Namely, it made me feel uncomfortable.
Uncomfortable and confused.
I think what I actually need is to take a class somewhere, just to get the basics cemented in my mind of how this damn English language works, and how I can better write it down. It’s really embarrassing when the only language you know is English and you’re really not that good at it.
Reading, “How to Not Write Bad,” may have been a slight help in my goal to improve my English, but I feel it was written less for people like me, and more for other teachers of writing. Yagoda gets snarky while explaining some topics. He’s seen some sh*t and he wants you to know it. He has writing instructor PTSD. He’s sharing funny stuff with other people who are also supposed to be laughing.
But you can’t get the jokes if you don’t understand the concepts.
While Yagoda may be entertaining, he also touches very briefly and superficially on some writing topics and he doesn’t offer enough examples for me to feel that I have fully understood the concepts.
For example, I read about the semi colon, and then while in the shower for the briefest moment I truly thought I understood it. For a fraction of a single second (while in the midst of shampooing my hair) I was ready to write a sentence using the most sophisticated piece of punctuation that I know if: the semi colon.
I held Yagoda’s explanation for how to use the semi colon in my mind, and I was ready to use the damn thing too, until I got out of the shower and my understanding vanished. I never had an opportunity to write a sentence using a semi colon because how those thing work was never fully committed to my long-term memory. My understanding vanished into the ether.
Yagoda doesn’t employ enough examples or explanations to really anchor these topics that he writes about into his reader’s mind and there are no practice exercises.
The information in this book should be read with the intention of pure entertainment. Writing teachers will love this book, and so will editors and other people who are already well versed in the subject.
Undereducated people like me will (possibly) pick up a few pointers that may remain in the working memory of the old noggin. I doubt that I retained much of the information though, and so my real hope is that some of the rules of punctuation and grammar (and such like) will remain in the depths of my subconscious mind, ready to bubble forth into consciousness whenever I need help writing.
In short, this book was fun to read and I like Yagoda, but “How to Not Write Bad,” is not a substitute for an actual English class.
August 17, 2013
Since I was an English major on my first trip through college, I consider myself a fairly accomplished writer. I see so many writing errors in blogs, articles, and reviews on-line, and I was looking forward to determining whether Yagoda's slim volume could be a good resource. It is definitely full of solid advice on how to recognize and avoid typical writing errors.
The first section dedicates ~10 pages to the advice that reading, lots of reading, is the best training for writing well, and I couldn't agree more.
The second section includes a review of proper style for numbers, abbreviations, capitalization, italics and punctuation. I laughed at the advice regarding semicolons: "If you feel like using a semicolon, lie down until the urge goes away." He then goes on to discuss word choice and the trap of similar words (threw and through, past and passed, etc.) Section 2 concludes with a fairly lengthy section on grammar.
The third section relates to style - being concise and precise, avoiding cliches, resisting the overuse of jargon and euphemisms, and structuring sentences.
Other reviewers have criticized the book for its brevity and lack of detail, however the author specifically states in the intro that "the book is mainly about the things that writing badly entails." It is NOT a comprehensive guide on all the rules of writing. Those books already exist on the desks of professional writers and editors. It simply focuses on the most frequently occurring errors in common usage these days. You will recognize some of these errors in your writing (as I did ).
While the advice and examples in the book are certainly useful, and I enjoyed the breezy style and humor of the author, the format doesn't work well as a reference book. The Table of Contents refers to section titles that aren't always useful, and there is no index. So, if you wanted to look up proper use of semi-colons, you would have to scan through the TOC to try and spot that topic.
Nevertheless, if you are looking for a quick review of typical writing errors to avoid, this 172 page book may be just the thing to help you move your writing to the next level.
The first section dedicates ~10 pages to the advice that reading, lots of reading, is the best training for writing well, and I couldn't agree more.
The second section includes a review of proper style for numbers, abbreviations, capitalization, italics and punctuation. I laughed at the advice regarding semicolons: "If you feel like using a semicolon, lie down until the urge goes away." He then goes on to discuss word choice and the trap of similar words (threw and through, past and passed, etc.) Section 2 concludes with a fairly lengthy section on grammar.
The third section relates to style - being concise and precise, avoiding cliches, resisting the overuse of jargon and euphemisms, and structuring sentences.
Other reviewers have criticized the book for its brevity and lack of detail, however the author specifically states in the intro that "the book is mainly about the things that writing badly entails." It is NOT a comprehensive guide on all the rules of writing. Those books already exist on the desks of professional writers and editors. It simply focuses on the most frequently occurring errors in common usage these days. You will recognize some of these errors in your writing (as I did ).
While the advice and examples in the book are certainly useful, and I enjoyed the breezy style and humor of the author, the format doesn't work well as a reference book. The Table of Contents refers to section titles that aren't always useful, and there is no index. So, if you wanted to look up proper use of semi-colons, you would have to scan through the TOC to try and spot that topic.
Nevertheless, if you are looking for a quick review of typical writing errors to avoid, this 172 page book may be just the thing to help you move your writing to the next level.
April 27, 2019
I can't say this is fun book exactly. It's more like eating a big plate of vegetables that you know are good for you even if they don't taste great. I had to make myself do it.
I like the premise that most writers should not set a goal of being a good writer, but instead strive to avoid being a bad writer. It's tough love. I also enjoyed the frequent "see what I did in that last sentence?" checks. These helped to illustrate just how easy it is to overlook important details in sentence construction. I learned a few things that I should already know, but Yagoda's clear explanations made them finally stick. It also helped me to identify writing habits that I enjoy (from other authors) but could never quite put my finger on.
What's the bad news? Maybe it is unavoidable in what is essentially book on sentence construction, but the material is presented as a laundry list of things not to do. This makes for a tough read if you are a casual or semi-pro writer. It also focuses exclusively on individual sentences. That's probably also necessary in this context, but you can't help but wonder what to do next after learning so many low level details.
Finally, thinking about the tips in this book can easily double the time it takes for you to write anything. I didn't anticipate this drawback. My own writing is mostly adequate for what I do; I was hoping to just improve it a little, not make it take twice as long to complete!
One detail that I forgot in my review. The author doesn't suggest this in the text, but I think this sort of material can be very helpful for editors. It contains many suggestions for how to turn an awkward (but technically correct) sentence into a strong sentence.
I like the premise that most writers should not set a goal of being a good writer, but instead strive to avoid being a bad writer. It's tough love. I also enjoyed the frequent "see what I did in that last sentence?" checks. These helped to illustrate just how easy it is to overlook important details in sentence construction. I learned a few things that I should already know, but Yagoda's clear explanations made them finally stick. It also helped me to identify writing habits that I enjoy (from other authors) but could never quite put my finger on.
What's the bad news? Maybe it is unavoidable in what is essentially book on sentence construction, but the material is presented as a laundry list of things not to do. This makes for a tough read if you are a casual or semi-pro writer. It also focuses exclusively on individual sentences. That's probably also necessary in this context, but you can't help but wonder what to do next after learning so many low level details.
Finally, thinking about the tips in this book can easily double the time it takes for you to write anything. I didn't anticipate this drawback. My own writing is mostly adequate for what I do; I was hoping to just improve it a little, not make it take twice as long to complete!
One detail that I forgot in my review. The author doesn't suggest this in the text, but I think this sort of material can be very helpful for editors. It contains many suggestions for how to turn an awkward (but technically correct) sentence into a strong sentence.
August 14, 2017
A very useful overview
I really enjoyed the first two parts of the book. Being a non-native English speaker, I've found the brevity of most grammar / punctuation rules very practical; to the point of having some of them pinned at my desk. For the most part there were no lengthy explanations why one should or should not write this way or another, a simple "Don't do that" really does the trick. I also agree with Yagoda, that the best way to improve your writing is by reading a lot. Therefore short advice, as the ones given in this book, help best to point one's attention to the problem-areas; whereas, in the end, one should learn to rely on one's own aquired sense of style.
This is not a five-star-rating, however, for I've found the style section to be rather subjective. Yagoda's advise on style / word choice can be boiled down to "keep it short and simple". On the other hand, as he expressively states in the introduction, it is a book on not writing bad; therefore "the sky is blue", while bland, is not bad writing, whereas "the azure hue of the heavenly dome" is. [Btw, I get the feeling that I violated all of the punctuation rules of the book in that last sentence... So, if anything, it at least makes you aware of your problems.]
Facit: I do wholeheartedly recommend it to aspiring writers (native and non-native alike), though I feel like his stylistic advice is rather subjective and more useful for journalism / non-fiction than fiction writers.
I really enjoyed the first two parts of the book. Being a non-native English speaker, I've found the brevity of most grammar / punctuation rules very practical; to the point of having some of them pinned at my desk. For the most part there were no lengthy explanations why one should or should not write this way or another, a simple "Don't do that" really does the trick. I also agree with Yagoda, that the best way to improve your writing is by reading a lot. Therefore short advice, as the ones given in this book, help best to point one's attention to the problem-areas; whereas, in the end, one should learn to rely on one's own aquired sense of style.
This is not a five-star-rating, however, for I've found the style section to be rather subjective. Yagoda's advise on style / word choice can be boiled down to "keep it short and simple". On the other hand, as he expressively states in the introduction, it is a book on not writing bad; therefore "the sky is blue", while bland, is not bad writing, whereas "the azure hue of the heavenly dome" is. [Btw, I get the feeling that I violated all of the punctuation rules of the book in that last sentence... So, if anything, it at least makes you aware of your problems.]
Facit: I do wholeheartedly recommend it to aspiring writers (native and non-native alike), though I feel like his stylistic advice is rather subjective and more useful for journalism / non-fiction than fiction writers.
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August 31, 2015Twenty years ago my archeology professor informed me to always keep my subject with my verb. This book gave me flashbacks. I read this book as a refresher because I had a feeling my writing style had become lazy. I needed to go back to basics. "How to Not Write Bad" is an excellent overview of general errors with good examples and easily understood fixes. This book provides a firm base upon which a writer can build their own style and hopefully hold attention. Anyone who writes for a living, whether it's a report for your boss or an article for the local newspaper should read this book, or even if you just want to improve your written word.
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April 14, 2017Finally, a book that makes grammar and English fun! Examples of bad writing are mocked and then edited, transforming misleading or awkward sentences into "not-bad writing." Clear explanations and concise rules are easy to follow, and the book's three-part structure allows it to be a quick reference guide for writers.
June 12, 2018
This is an excellent book on what not to do in writing. His lessons cover all different kinds of writing and make this a terrific manual to have on your desk as you work. Better yet, use it to search out obvious errors between drafts.
For everyone who has to write, whether for school, work, pleasure, or profession.
For everyone who has to write, whether for school, work, pleasure, or profession.
February 25, 2018
الكتاب جيد ويعطي نصائح جيدة. إلا أني وجدته غيرعملي ويحوي الكثير من الحشو.
The book is good and gives some advice but I didn't find it practical. This is only me in the end. It contains a lot of repetition or can be removed text.
The book is good and gives some advice but I didn't find it practical. This is only me in the end. It contains a lot of repetition or can be removed text.
June 12, 2013
Solid and accessible; nothing groundbreaking, but better than most traditional guides. Yagoda comes across as being a fun professor to take a class with.
July 18, 2015
Ben Yagoda's books on writing are terrific. If you want to improve your writing or your read and comprehend good writing, digging through BY's books are a terrific start.
May 2, 2016
A good basic book that's decent, but not exciting. Does include a good section on clear writing, I recommend it for overly pedantic tech writers.
September 3, 2016
Mostly not bad.
December 22, 2016
A witty, slim volume on how to improve your writing. It's filled with practical tips and reminders to make any writer more proficient.
July 27, 2017
Extremely informative for those who are familiar with basic grammar but need help in avoiding common mistakes. Bonus: it's also very funny.
November 13, 2017
It is entertaining to read straight through, and structured like a good reference book. I'll be keeping this book by my desk.
March 5, 2018
I need to buy a copy as a reference for my editing phase. Quick and concise for the modern writer with a bit of humor thrown in.
September 11, 2023
This is a solid book about writing, though I’d recommend several others before it. Yagoda is a bit *too* curmudgeony for me, tends to resort to prescriptivism more often than not, and doesn’t seem to appreciate how fluid grammar and usage are. Still, the format of the book and the examples therein are really helpful. I’m sure he’s a nice guy.
October 13, 2024
While I'm sure it's fine for journalists, there was little in this for me. The tone of it was like I was being lectured by someone who had very much given up the hope that their knowledge would be passed on.
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