At some point in your writing life, you may have been given well-meaning advice spelled out via the acronym KISS:
Keep It Simple, Stupid!
Personally, I refuse to dishonor intelligent, hardworking writers with such a mean-spirited harangue. Keep It Short and Simple – fair enough. By why throw in that gratuitous Stupid?
As an alternative, I've come up with the formulation KISS don't TELL:
Keep It Stylish, Sunshine!
don't
Turn Everything Long and Laborious
Earlier this week, as a writing warm-up at my weekly Virtual Writing Studio, I invited participants to spell out their own versions of KISS don't TELL – or, if they preferred, to propose creative variations. As usual, they came up with some wonderfully inventive and playful responses:
KISS don't TELL: Keep It Sharp and Simple; don't Take Enjoyment, Let the reader Live in the writing! (Jennifer, Australia)
KISS don't TELL: Kindle Inquiry, Suggest Satisfaction; don't Torture Everyone with Lengthy Lines (Anita, South Africa)
CRISP don't SPELL: Create, Return, Inspire, Shape, Play; don't be Serious, Prohibit, Evaluate, Lonely, Loathe (Nina, Australia)
KISS don't TELL: Keep It Short and Simple; don't use Tremendously Elegant Luxury Language (Hannah, UK)
KISS don't TELL:
Keep
In mind that you are
Smart with your genuine creativity
Start to write anytime anywhere
do not
Think too much but
Enjoy your writing with your own
Language and make your meaningful
Legacy on earth
(Grace, Texas, USA)
Excellent advice all round!
However, I'm well aware that Keeping It Short, Sharp, Smart, and Simple is not such a simple matter — especially when we feel pressured to impress our peers by Turning Everything Long and Laborious and Torturing Everyone with Lengthy Lines.
That's why I've devoted much of my adult life to writing books, developing online tools, and facilitating workshops, courses, and retreats for academic and professional writers who want to let the sunshine in but can't quite figure out how. If you're ready for another shot at that elusive KISS, this website offers an array of targeted resources for you to try.
Writing clear, elegant, engaging prose is a craft that anyone can learn — and I'm here to help you. You may wish to start by taking my “What’s Your Writing Roadblock?” quiz.
Keep It Stylish, Sunshine!
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