Use simplicity in your writing

Dorin Stefan
Jul 20, 2017 · 2 min read

We often see people who write all kind of articles about subjects they know really well use long and complex words to describe some terms that could easily be descried using common phrases.

The main reason people do that it’s because we were taught in school that using really long and complex words means we’re intelligent and better writers. However, that’s not how it works.

In real life, not everyone knows the meaning of those complex words, and not a lot of people are willing to check a dictionary in order to find out, unless they really need to read your article.

We need to realize that most of the people who read our articles are not experts in the subjects we approach, just like we are not experts in all the subjects in the world. That’s why you need to use a common vocabulary when talking about almost anything.

I always believed that an intelligent person is not one who uses complex words to talk about something simple, but one who is capable of explaining the most complex subjects to even the most stupid person alive, and make him or her understand the subject.

Writing is not a competition to find out who has the most complex vocabulary out of all the writers. Writing is just a way to share your ideas with people, without directly speaking to them. You can’t share something with people if you make sure they don’t understand anything.

Simplicity is the quality of a great writer, many people told me that, and many great writers use simplicity in their works. If you forget about it, and you use technical terms not everyone understands, you’ll drive your audience away, and you’ll be left with nothing.

So next time you try to write an article, no matter what subjects you’re approaching, make an extra effort and try to use simple words. Make sure everyone who reads the article understands your ideas, and that nobody needs a dictionary to translate what you’re trying to say.

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Dorin Stefan
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