Weather is a literary specialty, and no untrained hand can turn out a good article on it
Mark TwainRead
As to the adjective: when in doubt, strike it out.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that unnecessary adjectives can dilute clarity and impact in writing.
Mark Twain's quote emphasizes the importance of clarity and conciseness in communication. By advising to eliminate adjectives when in doubt, he highlights that simplicity often leads to stronger and more effective expression. This approach encourages writers to focus on the essence of their message rather than embellishing it with superfluous language.
Themes
WritingClarityConcisenessCommunicationAdjectives
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a writing workshop to emphasize the importance of clear expression.
More from Mark Twain
All quotes βThe easy part of being an artist is figuring out the message that everyone else is ready to hear. The hard part is waiting for the proper lull to make the announcement.
Mark TwainRead
You can't reason with your heart; it has its own laws, and thumps about things which the intellect scorns.
Mark TwainRead
To be good is noble; but to show others how to be good is nobler and no trouble.
Mark TwainRead
Name the greatest of all inventors. Accident.
Mark TwainRead
In Paris they just simply opened their eyes and stared when we spoke to them in French! We never did succeed in making those idiots understand their own language.
Mark TwainRead
Similar quotes
It's so easy, as a writer, to get stuck in your own head, to live in the little worlds you create. To forget that there are people out there reading your work, people who may be deeply affected by what you do, that you are writing not just for yourself, but for them.
Celeste NgRead
When I finish a first draft, it's always just as much of a mess as it's always been. I still make the same mistakes every time.
Michael ChabonRead
The most important thing in writing is to have written. I can always fix a bad page. I can't fix a blank one.
Nora RobertsRead
And there was that poor sucker Flaubert rolling around on his floor for three days looking for the right word.
Dorothy ParkerRead
All I ask is that you do as well as you can, and remember that, while to write adverbs is human, to write he said or she said is divine.
Stephen KingRead
Above all, have a good time. If you arenβt enjoying writing it, you can hardly expect someone else to enjoy reading it.
Tom RobbinsRead