Word to Your Mother

It's a busy time of year. Time is at a premium. Let's get right to it:

Amy Mac's Wonderful World of Writing Well Rule # 2:

Don't use big, fancy words when simple, plain words will do.

When writing, aim for a sixth grade reading level. Even if you are writing for a well-educated audience, stick with small, plain words. Why?

Readers trip over long words, even when they know the definition. Bigger isn’t always better, and using a protracted word often breaks up the flow of writing.

See, didn’t you think “Protracted? Seriously?”

The sentence works just as well with “lengthy.” Don’t give your reader an excuse to stop reading by using a hefty word in a (transparent) display of your vocabulary chops.

William Strunk Jr. & E.B White, in their famous writing style manual Elements of Style, say it best:

“Avoid the elaborate, the pretentious, the coy, and the cute. Do not be tempted by a twenty-dollar word when there is a ten-center handy, ready and able.”

And that, my friends, is the last declaration, utterance, remark.

Or word.

PS - Ten points to anyone who can identify where "Word to Your Mother" comes from.