Mitch Albom Quotes

Less really is more. It's a tendency of beginning writers to want to prove what they're talking about by going too far with description. I think you've got to keep it short, crisp and clean.

What I take from writers I like is their economy - the ability to use language to very effective ends.

Vigorous writing is concise.

Through an arbitrary problem, I had arrived at a tenet of good writing: brevity wins.

I think in most cases, unless you're writing about a character who is garrulous, you say what you've got to say and then get out. Those little conjunctions, those little turnaround words help you do it. That's the way I like to write: I get rid of things rather than add them.

It has often been said there’s so much to be read, you never can cram all those words in your head. So the writer who breeds more words than he needs is making a chore for the reader who reads. That's why my belief is the briefer the brief is, the greater the sigh of the reader's relief is. And that's why your books have such power and strength. You publish with shorth! (Shorth is better than length.)

To say more while saying less is the secret of being simple.

Good writing does not come from verbiage but from words.

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.

Brevity and conciseness are the parents of correction.

Anyone can make an article longer; the skill is keeping it tight and lean.

I've been accused of being a minimalist writer. I don't like a lot of verbiage in there.

One false word, one extra word, and somebody's thinking about how they have to buy paper towels at the store. Brevity is very important. If you're going to be longwinded, it should be for a purpose. Not just because you like your words.

I have made this letter longer than usual, only because I have not had the time to make it shorter.

One mistake with beginners in writing is, that they think it important to spin out something long. It is a great deal better not to write more than a page or two, unless you have something to say, and can write it correctly.

In general, shorter is better. If you can encapsulate your idea into a single captivating sentence, you're halfway home.

Say only a little but say it well.

Adverbs lead to overwriting. Try taking them out and reading your prose again to see how it sounds. Simple and less words are more powerful.

It is excellent discipline for an author to feel that he must say all he has to say in the fewest possible words, or his reader is sure to skip them; and in the plainest possible words, or his reader will certainly misunderstand them. Generally, also, a downright fact may be told in a plain way; and we want downright facts at present more than anything else.

I think precision in writing goes hand in hand with not trying to say everything. You try and say two-thirds, so the reader will involve himself or herself.

Say all you have to say in the fewest possible words, or your reader will be sure to skip them; and in the plainest possible words or he will certainly misunderstand them.

A writer should never be brief at the expense of being clear.

Let the reader find that he cannot afford to omit any line of your writing because you you have omitted every word that he can spare.

My stories are very compact. I want them to say the most complex things in the simplest way.

Being able to write an idea down succinctly doesn't make that idea any better than one which rambles on a bit. It just comes to the point sooner.