A major secret of effective writing
<p>I&#8217;m in the process of editing a document for a technical project that is intended to be an introduction for newbies to certain fairly complex issues.  While requesting feedback on the project mailing list, I realized that I had accidentally revealed a major secret of really top-grade writing, exactly the sort of thing that put <cite>The Cathedral and the Bazaar</cite> on the New York Times best-seller list.</p>
<p>I see no reason not to share it with my readers.  So here is the relevant part of my request for feedback:</p>
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<p>Please fix typos and outright grammatical errors. If you think you have spotted a higher-level usage problem or awkwardness, check with me before changing it. What you think is technically erroneous may be expressive voice.</p>
<p>Explanation: Style is the contrast between expectation and surprise. Poets writing metric poetry learn to introduce small breaks in scansion in order to induce tension-and-release cycles at a higher level that will hold the reader&#8217;s interest.  The corresponding prose trick is to bend usage rules or change the register of the writing slightly away from what the reader unconsciously expects.  If you try to &#8220;fix&#8221; these you will probably be stepping on an intended effect. So check first.</p>
<p>(I will also observe that unless you are already an unusually skilled writer, you should <em>not</em> try to replicate this technique; the risk of sounding affected or just teeth-jarringly bad is high.  As Penn &#038; Teller puts it, &#8220;These stunts are being performed by trained, <em>professional</em> idiots.&#8221;)</p>
