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21 comments on Charlie Hall's New Book, Udall and Bartlett on the NPC Report, and a New FAQ

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ThatsItImout on July 29, 2007 - 3:49am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

bart,

Those aren't bad, but what about some of us guys who have a tendency to write more in the mode of the humanities types, sociologists or philosophers
(ever try to read Pitirim Sorokin, Arnold Toynbee, or Marshall McCluhan?), that is to say long, circular, but thoughtful (often to a fault?) :-)

Anyway, I live by the rule of James Joyce...
"I demand nothing of my readers but they devote their life to the study of my work." :-)

Roger Conner Jr.
Remember, we are only one cubic mile from freedom

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bart on July 29, 2007 - 1:41pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Well, you're right, Roger. You can't legislate poets.

However, if you are writing to communicate, there is a standard set of guidelines. One won't get very far in journalism, PR or technical writing without them.

Even in the fields of humanities and the social sciences, they should be the norm unless one has an overwhelming reason to write otherwise. The Joyces are rare in literature; the Hemingways are the majority.

Some of the best models are the scientists and philosophers of the past, who prided themselves on a clear, elegant style.

If we want to get the message out, we should follow their lead.

Bart
Energy Bulletin

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