kelly_chambliss

I made an interesting observation during a writers' workshop at the Hay Festival a couple of years ago. There were about twenty of us in the group, and I soon realised I was out of my league when we each had to state our academic and writing qualifications. It was a 'women only' day, most of those present having already completed at least one novel, and about three-quarters of them graduates or in their final year at university. They described their books (from a wide variety of genres) quite well, but I was amazed by their inability to follow simple instructions for the writing exercises we were given. It seemed that the more highly-qualified they were, the more rambling and incoherent their contributions. We were told the precise length and subjects required for each paragraph, but the high-flyers consistently failed to stay within the word count and missed out vital information. The few unqualified amateurs made a far better job of the exercises, which involved pitching and writing to editors/publishers than any of the more educated and experienced writers, who all needed an injection of clarity and instruction in the value of the 'delete' key.

Surely, the purpose of writing is communication, and no matter how obscure the subject may be, the objective is to impart knowledge, whether factual or fictional? I'm with Seema here. Clarity every time. Not that I'm academically qualified to comment, of course *g*.