Editor’s Choice — Top 10: Writing To Learn Is the Best Way To Write More According to William Zinsser

Let’s have a look at our top 10 stories today

William Zinsser wrote a book about it. He firmly believed that to write is to learn.

He regretted revisiting Gustavus Adolphus College, Minnesota, in January. He survived driving across the frozen tundra of Minnesota. The college faculty, however, quickly warmed him up. On his first visit, he had told them to use writing as a technique to learn.

The college had implemented his advice — as the ‘W’ course, the writing program — and they were happy with the results. Students had no idea how writing could drive them to learn more about a topic.

Your writing instantly tells you how clearly you understand something. Barbara Simpson, a professor of psychology, told William Zinsser: “I wanted to teach a ‘W’ course because I write very badly myself — in high school, I was terrorized by writing. One thing I did last term was to ask students to write a paper in the last five minutes of class, summarizing what I had said in my lecture.”

When you are a new writer, your writing quickly becomes fuzzy. “Students don’t know how to be precise,” Norman Walbek, an associate professor of political science, complained. When you write generalized statements, you are much more likely to make a mistake. Be specific.

If you can think, you can analyze. If you can reason, you can write. “Back when some of us were concerned about why Johnny can’t write,” Professor McRostie told Zinsser, “a psychologist put it to us that Johnny can’t reason, and I’ve been preoccupied with that thought ever since. The first two books I assigned last term were The Art of Thinking, by Vincent Ruggiero, and Reasoning, by Michael Scriven.”

I had merely learned by experience that thinking is the foundation of writing. ~William Zinsser

Your head may be filled with beautiful ideas. But you can’t do anything with them if you can’t write well. “Reading, writing, and thinking are all integrated,” Kevin Byrne, an associate professor of history, told him. “An idea can have value in itself, but its usefulness diminishes to the extent that you can’t articulate it to someone else.”

Writing takes you inside your mind. It tells you how your thinking works. If you can understand how you approach an issue, you can improve it.

The core principles William Zinsser taught to his students were: simplicity, clarity, and brevity. Active verbs, short words, and short sentences are hallmarks of his writing style. But he felt only 10% of his students remembered and applied his insights.

William Zinsser believed writing about science — that made sense to the layperson — was necessary in our times. People need to think about many issues, from toxic wastes and “Star Wars” and nuclear energy to acid rain and gene splicing and surrogate motherhood. If you are a scientist who cannot understandably present your work, who would resolve the moral dilemmas?

But if you fail to write in a way that makes a lot of sense to your readers, it is nothing to worry about. It can be a starting point. Zinsser wrote, “I’ve always believed that failure is one of the great teachers, every bit as instructive as success.”

Writing and not making sense is better than not writing at all.

Here is our list of top 10 stories today that can make us a bit wiser:

10. What Michelangelo Teaches Us About Art and Business

Damon Ferrara is a traveling poet discussing culture, usually seriously. He is a screenwriter, marketer, and author.

He is a superb writer. His writing style is intriguing, informative, and very engaging. Do check his other work.

The Sistine Chapel was yet another installment in one of the two franchises that dominated Renaissance art: Greek Mythology and the Bible.

Like many of the era’s most popular works, it originated with a corporate mandate: The wealthy Catholic Church had launched a new flagship chapel, a reboot of the old Cappella Maggiore. It was already built, but the paintings were sparse inside.

9. Corona-Virus, Volcanic Eruptions, and Shark Attacks

Luke Beling is a husband and father, adventurer, and a writer who finds joy in every day stories. He lives on the Big Island of Hawaii.

He is an exceptional writer. His writing style is honest, emotional, and very engaging. Do check his other work as well.

2020 gave us anything but dull screens to pass the time. Each new day held powerful reminders about the fragility of life and repeated warnings to heed the present. And while sterility is what none of us want from our limited time under the sun, our expectancies turn to disappointments if our moments become interrupted by glimpses of death or contradictions to placidity.

Yet we are always faced with the obvious: our world is wild, the natural and man-made. Our efforts to control or tame the globe are scratchings at a sore until blood. Our nails to the skin is a hammer without a head.

8. Situationism: How Your Environment Affects Your Life Satisfaction

Nick Keehler is a sustainability advocate, theology enthusiast, aspiring minimalist, and recent world traveler.

He is a fine writer. His writing style is deep, personal, and connects on an emotional level. If you like reading this story, do check his other work.

I remember times during my childhood when I would play outside with my friends (crazy I know). We would pretend we were secret agents and hideout near the electrical boxes between our houses, or ride skateboards along the curbs of our driveways as if they were entire skate parks. Looking back on those times, I remember myself as being immensely happy.

Now that I’m older, I see the electrical box as an electrical box. I see the street curb as a curb. The sidewalk is a sidewalk, and I treat it as a sidewalk. Same with driveways, streets, and just about everything else.

7. Nobody Will Apologise to You and Properly Acknowledge Your Pain

Kate Feathers is a student of Languages and Literature. She writes about relationships, self-growth, feminism, and writing.

She is an excellent writer. Her writing style is honest, direct, and very engaging. She connects on an emotional level. Do check her work.

“I forgive myself,” I said and breathed out. It felt nice.

It might sound like a cringy voodoo schmoodo ritual, but I’ve recently begun to use the power of words of affirmation to forgive every single person who has hurt me in the past, including myself.

I say it out loud, going through the list until I reach the bottom. “I forgive that girl who bullied me in 7th grade.” I don’t much care about that girl anymore, but in moments of pettiness, I still vividly recall her calling me a hippo and laughing with her besties.

6. How To Nail A Zoom Job Interview

Cameron Eittreim is a developer, yoga instructor, author, and cyclist.

He is a skilled writer. His writing style is frank, direct, and engaging. Don’t forget to check his other work.

Now that being socially distant is the new norm for the foreseeable future, job interviews are a lot different.

While the prospect of being able to interview in your pajamas is appealing, there is a certain etiquette that you need to nail down.

Just because we are not in a physical office anymore, doesn’t mean that you should let the sense of pride slip away. Because competition is going to be more fierce than ever in the digital future.

5. The 4 Types Of Procrastinators

Amberbree is a writer and entrepreneur. She is living her best life. She hopes to provide content you’ll enjoy.

She is a fine writer. Her writing style is direct, to the point, and informative. She is new to Medium and needs your love.

We all procrastinate, most of us, without really considering the reasons why we are doing it. We tend to assume that we procrastinate because we are weak or because we would rather be doing something more enjoyable. There are four types of procrastinators: the anxious, the fun, the “plenty of time”, and the perfectionist. We’re going to look further into these four types of procrastinators and offer some advice on overcoming this behavior.

4. Biden’s Bold Climate Strokes

Barnhill is a husband and wife team exploring the topics they are passionate about, both individually and together.

They are superb writers. Their style is informative, frank, and thought-provoking. Do check their other work.

Scientists and climate journalists alike announced 2020 was the beginning of the climate decade. Essentially, the last 10 years in which we could take substantive action to curb our runaway greenhouse problem. Long gone was the notion of reversing it. Now dire action was needed simply so things didn’t get much worse. But, at first, it seemed business as usual here in the States.

3. 5 Ways To Power Up Your Morning and Maximize Your Day

John Teehan is a writer specializing in tech, business, parenting, pop culture, and gaming.

He is an exceptional writer. His writing style is frank, simple, and easy to read. You can learn from him a lot. Do check his other work.

I’m a guy who likes his sleep but also tends to have many responsibilities in the morning. I don’t have the luxury — as much as I would like otherwise — to hit the old snooze button a few dozen times or three. I need to be up and productive at a fairly obscene hour of the morning.

My biggest freelance clients are located on other continents with their exotic and mysterious time zones and all. That means it’s not unusual for me to have emails I need to respond to at criminally early hours and sometimes some rush work.

2. 5 Ways You Can Be More Like Elon Musk

At number two, it is Jessica A. Pedraza, Esq. A mother, wife, traveler, writer, and lawyer — in that order.

She is an excellent writer. Her writing style is frank, informative, direct, and very engaging. Please do check her other work.

There’s one name that seems to have captured the attention of the world in 2020 — Elon Musk. From his success with Tesla’s electric cars — or his quest to revolutionize Space technology with Space X — Elon Musk has become a household name.

Tesla’s unpredictable stock market variations and his grandiose ideas on space have made others question Elon’s sanity. His sanity notwithstanding, there’s no doubt Elon Musk is a success and one of the greatest pioneers of our time.

1. 5 Ways to Tell if Someone Hates You and Why You Should Let Them

At number one, it is Ella Pearson. She is a thinker of thoughts, a dreamer of dreams, and a writer of words. Passionate about personal development and kindness. She is doing what she can to help and inspire others.

She is an outstanding writer. Her writing style is informative, logical, and very engaging. Don’t miss this one.

“You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression,” says psychology professor James Uleman, PhD. “In spite of the congeniality of many professional gatherings, judgments are being made, and impressions formed all the time.”

We have no control over what opinion first impressions create, and maybe that’s a reason why we think someone dislikes us without cause — perhaps they just got the wrong impression. Their body language, facial expression, greetings and looks can make us feel unwelcome and sometimes even despised.

This post is part of the Top 10 Series — you can meet almost 400 top writers with these links:

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Final Thoughts

If your story was selected in the Top 10, please share another one of your stories with a brief introduction and a short convincing review. (Please write the review in the third person and start it with your name.)

I must have missed something today. I cannot read every story on Illumination and Illumination-Curated. Dr Mehmet Yildiz, the Chief Editor and Founder of Illumination and Illumination-Curated, read, highlighted, and applauded every good story when he started his publications. He still reads almost all of the good ones. I try — and fail daily — to read all of the masterpieces.

Dr Mehmet Yildiz has kindly allotted the top 10 series a full shelf on the front page of Illumination-Curated:

If you find any mistake, typo, or other error, please leave a private note for correction. Thanks.

Happy New Year!

To be included as a top 10 writer, read these curation guidelines carefully.

You can read my curated stories here.