Walter Kirn Quotes

Brevity and conciseness are the parents of correction.

Speak properly, and in as few words as you can, but always plainly; for the end of speech is not ostentation, but to be understood.

Minimalism has a connotation of being reductive, and not in the best way. 'Brevetist' is a better term. I'm trying to be as concise as possible and still getting across to the reader. When information is delivered in that way, it is very satisfying to me.

Why need I volumes, if one word suffice?

Simple and to the point is always the best way to get your point across.

To say more, is to say less.

Words easy to be understood do often hit the mark; when high and learned ones do only pierce the air.

Say what you have to say in the fewest possible words.

If you really understand something, you can say it in the fewest words, instead of thrashing about.

The chief virtue that language can have is clearness, and nothing detracts from it so much as the use of unfamiliar words.

True eloquence consists in saying all that is necessary, and nothing but what is necessary.

Say only a little but say it well.

Less is almost always better than more. Short words, short sentences, short speeches.

Never say more than is necessary.

I don't use a lot of words unnecessarily.

The shorter and the plainer the better.

Genuine good taste consists in saying much in few words, in choosing among our thoughts, in having order and arrangement in what we say, and in speaking with composure.

Writing for me is cutting out the fat and getting to the meaning.

To be brief is almost a condition of being inspired.

Good writing does not come from verbiage but from words.

I'm fighting against the bad poet who is prone to using too many words.

In a newspaper, you only have so much room. It teaches you the value of getting to the point, of not pampering yourself with your glorious writing. I've always been much more interested in one powerful sentence that stays with you. That's my style.

You know that I write slowly. This is chiefly because I am never satisfied until I have said as much as possible in a few words, and writing briefly takes far more time than writing at length.

I've simplified much more in my writing. I say what I've got to say, not in metaphor.

But the shortest works are always the best.