At this point in your writing journey, you’ve probably read hundreds of writing tips by famous authors.
If you’re like me, you might file away your favorites and take them out whenever you need a dose of inspiration and motivation. Kurt Vonnegut’s 1985 essay “How to Write With Style” is a definite gem to add to your collection.
The author of the best-selling novel Slaughterhouse-Five outlines eight steps you can follow to improve your writing.
Want to learn how to write like Kurt Vonnegut? I’ve taken my favorite quotes from Vonnegut’s essay and presented them in a helpful infographic. Check it out below.
8 Rules From Kurt Vonnegut for Writing With Style
If you would like to read Vonnegut’s essay in its entirety, you can find it online here.
Here is the text of the infographic:
1. Find a subject you care about
“Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. It is this genuine caring, and not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style.”
2. Do not ramble, though
“I won’t ramble on about that.”
3. Keep it simple
“As for your use of language: Remember that two great masters of language, William Shakespeare and James Joyce, wrote sentences which were almost childlike when their subjects were most profound. ‘To be or not to be?’ asks Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The longest word is three letters long…Simplicity of language is not only reputable, but perhaps even sacred. The Bible opens with a sentence well within the writing skills of a lively fourteen-year-old: ‘In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.’”
4. Have the guts to cut
“Your rule might be this: If a sentence, no matter how excellent, does not illuminate your subject in some new and useful way, scratch it out.”
5. Sound like yourself
“The writing style which is most natural for you is bound to echo the speech you heard when a child…I myself find that I trust my own writing most, and others seem to trust it most, too, when I sound most like a person from Indianapolis, which is what I am.”
6. Say what you mean to say
“If I broke all the rules of punctuation, had words mean whatever I wanted them to mean, and strung them together higgledy-piggledy, I would simply not be understood. So you, too, had better avoid Picasso-style or jazz-style writing, if you have something worth saying and wish to be understood. Readers want our pages to look very much like pages they have seen before. Why? This is because they themselves have a tough job to do, and they need all the help they can get from us.”
7. Pity the reader
“They have to identify thousands of little marks on paper,
and make sense of them immediately…So this discussion must finally acknowledge that our stylistic options as writers are neither numerous nor glamorous, since our readers are bound to be such imperfect artists. Our audience requires us to be sympathetic and patient teachers, ever willing to simplify and clarify — whereas we would rather soar high above the crowd, singing like nightingales.”
8. For really detailed advice
“For a discussion of literary style in a narrower sense, in a more technical sense, I commend to your attention The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White (Macmillan, 1979). E.B. White is, of course, one of the most admirable literary stylists this country has so far produced…”
The Takeaway
Kurt Vonnegut certainly practiced what he preached. Although his fiction is not always to my taste, I do have to admit that he was a master of the craft.
Take the opening paragraph of Slaughterhouse-Five for example (Vonnegut, an American POW during WWII, based the book on his own experience of surviving the firebombing of Dresden):
All this happened, more or less. The war parts, anyway, are pretty much true. One guy I knew really was shot in Dresden for taking a teapot that wasn’t his. Another guy I knew really did threaten to have his personal enemies killed by hired gunmen after the war. And so on. I’ve changed all the names.
The paragraph pulls you right into the story. The sentences are sparse and to the point. There are no unnecessary adjectives or flowery language. It makes you want to read more. Why was a guy shot for taking a teapot? Who were these enemies that this other guy wanted to have killed?
Vonnegut’s style is particularly suited to blogging. In this medium, we want to get our point across quickly. There are so many articles vying for our readers’ attention. If a reader isn’t hooked by the first paragraph, he’s probably not going to keep reading.
And he also won’t keep reading if the writing is too difficult to untangle. It’s important to write conversationally as if you were speaking to a friend: address the reader with the word “you”, use contractions, use short words, avoid the passive voice, and let your personality shine through.
If you enjoyed Vonnegut’s eight rules for writing with style, you might also like his eight rules for fiction writing. And here’s another bonus for all of you Vonnegut fans: a short video of Vonnegut presenting what he believes are the three different types of stories.
Kimba Han says
Wonderful post! Thank you for organizing Vonnegut’s brilliant advice into an infographic. I’ll definitely be using it to set writing goals for myself in the future.
Kimba | DenAndSky.com
Nicole Bianchi says
Thanks, Kimba! So happy it will be useful to you. 🙂 All the best with reaching your writing goals!
May says
This is such an amazing post! Mostly because I love Kurt Vonnegut’s writing, it’s so charming and intriguing. Love the tips, I will definitely be coming back to them!
https://queensandkinks.wordpress.com/
Nicole Bianchi says
Thank you, May! 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I have only read Slaughterhouse-Five, but I’m looking forward to reading more of Vonnegut’s work.
Resh Susan says
This is great Nicole. Yes to point 1. FInd something you are passionate about
Nicole Bianchi says
Thanks, Resh! 🙂 Yes, I love that one too. I think it’s much better advice than the usual ‘write about what you know.’ If you are passionate about something, you’ll take the time to learn more about it.
Rhonda Swan says
Great article, lovely lady. I agree it’s so important to get your message out succinctly. Keep up the good work and live unstoppable!
Nicole Bianchi says
Hi, Rhonda! Thank you! So happy to hear you enjoyed the article. 🙂
ayodeji says
Hey Nicole,
Great tips here. I’m halfway through SH5. It’s definitely not your typical book, but his prose is something to admire.
Glad to see a fellow Tribe Writer with a thriving blog.
Keep up the great work!
Nicole Bianchi says
Hi, Ayodeji! So nice to meet a fellow Tribe Writer. Thanks for your comment. I’ve actually only read Slaughterhouse-Five. It’s definitely an unusual story. Still not sure what I think of it. 😉 I’d love to read more of his work.
Brendan says
Great post! I love Vonnegut’s style, it’s so laid-back & easy to read. Yet there are key things messages that should be heard by everybody. If only more writers went for simplicity!
Nicole Bianchi says
Hi, Brendan! Thanks for your comment! I definitely agree. When you are sharing an important message, it’s so important to write simply so everyone can understand it. This is something I wish more Victorian authors had learned!
Marisa says
Lovely post, Nicole – the infographic was very readable and attractive, and Kurt Vonnegut’s attitude to writing is refreshing. The idea of just aiming to write simply, speaking in our own natural voice, is so appealing to me.
Nicole Bianchi says
Thanks so much, Marisa! 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed the infographic. Yes, I love what Vonnegut said about sounding like yourself. Our authentic voice is what makes our writing stand out.
chandi says
Hi,
I like what you say here, “In this medium, we want to get our point across quickly. There are so many articles vying for our readers’ attention. If a reader isn’t hooked by the first paragraph, he’s probably not going to keep reading.” It’s a good reminder. 🙂
Nicole Bianchi says
Thanks, Chandi! Happy to hear you found that of value. 🙂
MaryEllen Miller says
Keep it simple is my favorite and the one I need to work on the most. Loved the video at the end. What a great sense of humor!
Nicole Bianchi says
Hi, MaryEllen! 🙂 Isn’t the video great? It would have been fun to take a class from him. Thanks for your comment!
Molly says
Love number 7! Great advice.
Nicole Bianchi says
Me too. 🙂 I love how he words his advice. Thanks for your comment!
Nerdy Creator says
Great infographic. I never thought of Shakespeare’s writing as “keeping it simple”, I always thought that it’s profound. That’s an interesting perspective. The two can work hand in hand. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Nicole Bianchi says
Fantastic point. It’s so true. Shakespeare’s archaic language definitely makes his plays difficult to read, but during his time they probably came across as easy to understand and conversational. Love what you said about how simple and profound can go hand in hand.
Karli says
Neat idea, Nicole! Great tips, as usual! I also love learning all the fun facts about different authors on your blog!
Nicole Bianchi says
Thanks, Karli! Love hearing that you are enjoying all of the tidbits about authors. 😀 I think they’re so fascinating and feel compelled to share them. 😉
Barbara says
I still haven’t read Vonnegut but I intend to. I do love his rules for writing you have shared here.
Nicole Bianchi says
Thank you, Barbara! I hope you enjoy his books when you have the chance to read them. 🙂
Barbara Bras says
Kurt Vonnegut was the first writer I learned to love in high school. His irreverence was so appealing to me that I became a life long fan. I even have an autographed copy of one of his later books. However, I hadn’t thought about him much now that I am writing. This article brought back everything I loved about him and his work – a good story, well told! Thank you for sharing. Barbara Bras, author.
Nicole Bianchi says
Hi, Barbara! Thank you so much for your comment. Wow, that is wonderful that you have an autographed copy of one of his books. I have only read Slaughterhouse-Five and can’t wait to read more of his writing. He certainly knew how to tell a story!
Janice Gill says
Yes, keep it simple. So annoying to lose the flow when you are reading if you have to keep looking up words in the dictionary. A bit like a joke where you have to explain the punchline. Thank you for sharing 🙂
Nicole Bianchi says
Love how you put it, Janice! It can also make the writer sound pretentious when he uses too many overly complex words. And it just muddies what he is trying to say. I love what Vonnegut says about pitying the readers.
Cindy says
Love this post! I believe that so often writers get hung up on using proper grammar, language, etc. – to the extent they forget to just write…to write from the heart and to write in a way which best works for them. Great tips here!
Nicole Bianchi says
So true, Cindy. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of perfectionism that blocks you from putting your words on paper. Thanks for your comment!
Jodi Heisz says
Love the video at the end! He is so funny. Great information too. I’m always working on simplifying and cutting out the junk. Thanks again for the wonderful post.
Nicole Bianchi says
Hi, Jodi! 😀 Thanks for your comment! Yes, he is quite a character, isn’t he? It would have been very entertaining to have taken a creative writing class from him. Glad you enjoyed the post!