I recently saw Austin’s Hip Hop Theater Explosion, the city’s equivalent of the old Motown Revue—a showcase for the city’s leading rappers, slam poets, tap dancers, break-dancers and much more. This ...

You may already have heard about the passive voice. It works well in some instances, but you don’t want to use it all the time. But you also won’t want to overuse “to be” in general because that can ...

Why concision matters: Wordiness slows pacing, blurs meaning, and can weaken your authority. Concise writing keeps readers engaged and your ideas crystal clear. Where to start: Tackle macro issues ...

In the time of Twitter, concision may be a valid goal in student writing. But clarity and accuracy are often emphasized too little, Kim Epting argues. In a New York Times opinion piece this spring, ...

To help students improve their writing style by teaching them how to say more using less words in a fun writing exercise Students will have completed and received back a graded "Interview and Analysis ...

Require many reliable sources to back up your thesis/claim. Take up a position and support it with evidence. Usually about events (historical or current), textual arguments, or personal interests.

YOU must have heard the expression ‘less is more’. People say this regarding dressing and cosmetic usage. You may have wondered if that applies to writing and speaking contexts. In many language skill ...

Why clarity matters: Clear writing helps readers understand your ideas without confusion, making your message stronger and more persuasive. Cut the clutter: Eliminate redundant words, weak adverbs, ...

A friend of mine sent me the video below as an expansion on our conversation around cable news. It's a discussion from the 1980s about why Noam Chomsky had never been on Nightline. I dislike many of ...