Analysis Paper: Zinsser’s Book on Writing Essay

How can I, as a author, balance create verbally for myself and for my contributors without sacrificing the other? That is the question I was struck with while reading Zinssers book On Writing Well, and one he presents.In his book, framers are encouraged to adopt a style that is fitting of themselves, yet capture and maintain the attention of readers. What if my style does not capture readers? What if what captures the attention of readers does not do the same for me as I write? Am I stuck wrestling amid this paradox of uncertainty or is there a way out? Note to self not writing is not an option.Luckily, Zinsser, who is a writer, editor and teacher, offers solutions in chapters four, five, and nine that I found very helpful and impart serve as a guidebook in future writing assignments. He advises that I eliminate any unnecessary words and keep my language simple. This wont take extraneous from my style, but enhance it by removing the excess or murkiness that has crept into my style and obstructs the message I am trying to convey to readers. Style is something that every writer possesses and makes him/her equally unique. So, the first step in capturing my audience while writing for myself is to relax and be myself. Zinsser states The reader willing notice if you are putting on airs. Readers want the person who is talking to them to sound genuine. Therefore a fundamental rule is be yourself (19). Before writing, I should relieve myself of any pressure to write in a way that feels unnatural, produce an awesome paper that will rock everyones socks off, or meet a certain page length. middling sit down, believe in my own identity and opinions, and writeAside from being myself, the second step is to determine the audience of my paper. A writers audience will first and foremost be him/herself. Zinsser continues to reiterate this point of authenticity by saying, Dont try to visualize the great mass audience. There is no such audience every reader is a differe nt personYou are writing primarily to please yourself, and if you go about it with enjoyment you will also entertain the readers who are worth writing for (24).Oftentimes, I forget about myself when writing in an effort to complete the assignment and give the teacher what I think he/she may be expecting from someone at my educational level. Those assignments have been the ones I least enjoyed writing and/or have been told was deficient my voice. By writing in this manner, I have been performing a huge disservice to my audience by not giving them what they need me. I apologize Along with expressing my personality, I should not neglect my craft. There is no excuse, as Zinsser states, for sloppy workmanship. I should respect my audience enough to pay turn up attention to technical details and ensure that their reading process is one of clarity then artistry.Third and final, I should start and end all of my writing assignments with freshness, or novelty, or paradox, or humor, or surpr ise, or with an unusual idea, or an interesting fact, or a question that will capture my readers (55). Zinsser says that the most historic sentence in any article is the first one. If the reader has not been attracted to my subject through that sentence then there are no chances the reader will want to read further. Along with creatively beginning and ending my writing assignment, the culture I present must give the reader a sense of purpose while reading. Readers need to know why I have chosen my topic, why they should read it, and be given enough information that leaves them feeling well-informed.As I continue to hone my writing skills and further develop them in other students, I want to carry Zinssers substitution message of authenticity with me. Writing at its best is unique, informative, and an intimate transaction between two people, conducted on paper, and it will go well to the extent that it retains its domain (20). I want to urge my students to never forget the most e ssential piece in their writings themselves. If that is forgotten, then the intimate transaction that is needed between them and their audience will be distant and ineffective.