On Writing Well Analysis

Writing, in today’s society, is seen more of a talent that everyone has. The problem is, many people don’t take the time to actually enhance that talent of writing. Multitudes of people have interests in writing but don’t know how to go about improving their methods and ways of writing. Fortunately two great writers named Annie Lamott and William Zinsser decided to write masterpieces on how to improve your writing. Annie Lamott is the author or “Bird by Bird” and William Zinsser is the author of “On Writing Well.” Annie Lamott’s Bird by Bird is an auto-biography that contains not only life lessons but writing lessons as well. For example, she teaches us that the first thing you do when you writing is not get caught up in the small stuff. Here, she mentions that you need to get all your ideas on paper and then go from there. This in turn, leads to what Annie Lamott calls a shitty first draft. I agree with her and need to start working on that because one of my problems when it comes to writing is actually letting the words flow. Unfortunately I always get stuck on phrases if they don’t sound right. Another tip that Lamott provided was that you have to have passion for what you’re writing about. This tip also helped me because I have certain
roadblocks when it comes to writing due to the disinterest I have on that topic. Finally, Lamott gives advice concerning the reviewing process. She explains that getting a trustworthy friend to look over your paper is something everybody should do. I can learn from this because I usually just put my paper through an online program and turn it in, but I can see why friends can do a better job. Annie Lamott isn’t the only one providing good tips to writing, William Zinsser is also a great resource to use when it comes to improving your writing. William Zinsser wrote the book “On Writing Well” which is a guide to nonfictional writing.
This book covers more of the technical aspects of writing. For example one of his tips is a quote should always start your sentence. Another tip is how rewriting is the best thing you can do for your paper. I specifically need to work on this because once I feel like I’ve finished a paper, I don’t want to touch it again, but thanks to Zinsser, I believe that it’ll be easier for me to rewrite my paper. The last tip I learned from Zinsser is that when ending your paper, trying and surprise your reader, but make it feel as if it was supposed to be there all along. Zinsser had some great ideas that really helped me grow as a
writer. In conclusion, People like you and I have a knack for writing and can do it with ease at times. Although this is true, everyone including you and I can always learn a thing or two from other people. In this case, those other people were veteran authors Annie Lamott and William Zinsser. They gave astounding tips and assistance for writing and have changed my outlook on writing and reading altogether.