Writing Style

English grammar and punctuation are governed by specific rules. Some are flexible and at the discretion of the author. But even those grey areas of flexible exceptions follow certain guidelines as the author conveys his or her meaning to the reader.

Your writing style, on the other hand, is subjective. It is based on each writer’s inner perspective of a character, a scene, a plot, a climax. There are as many writing styles as there are authors. E. B. White explained Writing Style best in the fourth edition of The Elements of Style.

“Style is an increment in writing.
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All writers, by the way they use the language, reveal something of their spirits, their habits, their capacities, and their biases. This is inevitable as well as enjoyable. All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation—it is the Self escaping into the open.
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Style takes its final shape more from attitudes of mind than from principles of composition.
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Style is the writer, and, therefore, what you are rather than what you know will at last determine your style.”

Style is how you put a sentence or a paragraph or a whole scene together while not only demonstrating grammatical correctness but also expressing directness and ease of understanding for your readers. Kathleen Cali of the University of North Carolina says, “Style is not a matter of right and wrong but of what is appropriate for a particular setting and audience.”

There are some guidelines for maintaining a suitable writing style and for avoiding wordy awkwardness and pointless repetition. Avoid using inflated, pompous words to show off your intellect when a simple word will do. Your five-thousand-dollar words will bore rather than impress the reader.

Here are some examples to demonstrate my point:

Bad Style:
Despite the fact that he was cognizant of the winsome fluttering of her long eye lashes, he was ineluctably compelled to draw away from the evil radiating from her heart.
Good Style:
Although aware of the alluring flutter of her lashes, the evil surrounding her drew him away.

Bad Style:
The establishment of a different approach on the part of the committee has become a necessity.
Good Style:
The committee has to approach it differently.

Here are some links to interesting articles about Writing Style:
http://grammar.about.com/od/yourwriting/a/whatstyledefs.htm
http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/style/
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/few/684
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Writing_style

"What's important is the way we say it. Art is all about craftsmanship. Others can interpret craftsmanship as style if they wish. Style is what unites memory or recollection, ideology, sentiment, nostalgia, presentiment, to the way we express all that. It's not what we say but how we say it that matters."
(Federico Fellini)