Member-only story
One Extremely Common Mistake Most Writers Make
Keep it as simple as possible
“They muddy the water, to make it seem deep.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche
Most writers, myself included, have been guilty of overcomplicating things at some point. This usually happens for one of two reasons.
- We are trying to make our writing seem deep, like Nietzsche said.
- We need more practice writing simply.
The first option is an easy fix. Stop making things more complicated than they need to be. Most of the time, it backfires and makes your writing seem dumber, not smarter.
The second option takes more work. Simple writing takes practice. It’s especially tough when the topic you are writing about is complex.
Even though it’s difficult, practicing simple writing is worth the effort. Most topics have been written about before. Writing about the same topic differently won’t make you stand out. However, simplifying a concept so that everyone can understand will definitely help you stand out from the crowd.
