Nietzsche’s Advice For Becoming a Better Writer
God is dead babycakes
I’ve read a lot of writing advice in my day. Some of it has been helpful, some of it not so much. But there’s one piece of advice that has always stuck with me, and it comes from none other than the great German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
Nietzsche didn’t actually write much about writing itself. But in “Human, All Too Human: A Book for Free Spirits,” he did offer this gem of advice:
“Good writers have two things in common; they prefer to be understood rather than admired and they do not write for knowing and over-acute readers.”
‘Over-acute readers’ — what did he mean by that?
He meant that the worst readers were those who behave like “plundering troops:” they take away a few things they can use, dirty and confound the remainder, and revile the whole.
This man understood writing — and reading — better than just about anyone. And his advice is as relevant today as it was over a hundred years ago. Here are 4 more pieces of writing advice, based on Nietzsche’s philosophy, that will make you a better writer:
