It is by all odds the loftiest of cities. It even managed to reach the highest point in the sky at the lowest moment of the depression.
E. B. WhiteRead
The best writing is rewriting.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Revising and editing are essential parts of the writing process.
E. B. White's quote underscores the importance of rewriting in the craft of writing. It suggests that the initial draft is rarely perfect and that great writing often emerges through careful revision, where ideas are refined and improved upon, ultimately leading to clearer and more impactful communication.
Themes
WritingRewritingRevisionEditingImprovement
In practice
Example use cases
A writing workshop where participants are encouraged to share their drafts and focus on rewriting.
More from E. B. White
All quotes βIt isn't silence you can cut with a knife any more, it's interchange of ideas. Intelligent discussion of practically everything is what is breaking up modern marriage.
E. B. WhiteRead
The main thing I try to do is write as clearly as I can. Because I have the greatest respect for the reader, and if he's going to the trouble of reading what I've written -- I'm a slow reader myself and I guess most people are -- why, the least I can do is make it as easy as possible for him to find out what I'm trying to say, trying to get at. I rewrite a good deal to make it clear.
E. B. WhiteRead
A good farmer is nothing more nor less than a handy man with a sense of humus.
E. B. WhiteRead
A despot doesn't fear eloquent writers preaching freedom- he fears a drunken poet who may crack a joke that will take hold.
E. B. WhiteRead
All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation-it is the Self-escaping into the open.
E. B. WhiteRead
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