The gem

How I Write Critically

On the critical piece never being the one you intended to write...

gem

Sep 22, 2025

∙ Paid

I was the sad person at uni who enjoyed writing essays. I found them fun, weaving in a touch of personal tone with the academic. And I feel like this is something I honed and carried through to my writing today. My writing may not be fluffy and fun, but it’s distinctly mine and I would like to say critical.

There were times where I tried to adjust to the writing of those on here who people seemed to love reading, but I soon realised that was not me. It was not the voice I loved to write in, and the type of newsletter I wanted to produce. I think I’ve created a nice nuance between the informative and the personal — particularly with my quotation studies.

I've been thinking about what separates essays that feel vital from those that feel like academic exercises. After years of reading others work (Fanon, Leavis etc) and wrestling with my own writing, I've noticed it often comes down to whether the writer is genuinely engaging with something that matters to them — or just going through familiar motions.

So I’ve reflected on my own writing experience throughout academia, throughout the book reviews I have wrote for online publication and developed this guide on how to write critically, divided into three sections:

Unique Perspective

Engaging Critically

To be in Dialogue

Simple Language

Unique Perspective

Media can be over saturated and if you want to stand out you need to be writing about something that is new — or at least providing a new spin to the topic. To write something critical is to engage in a conversation but offer a unique standpoint at the same time.

However, there is also the question of is your topic over ambitious? You don’t want to be like: yeah I want to write about the representation of aliens in all of literature because that is a big topic to take on and unless you plan on writing 30k+ words (an entire thesis), you will barely be able to scratch the surface.

So find that specific area of the topic and then make sure you stay on track.

When I was writing academic essays, it was the question of the essay that kept me on track. So it can be helpful to write yourself a question, or gather yourself a mini-thesis before you start writing. Or to know the title of your newsletter before you begin.

When you have this argument summed up in a single like, your writing can become more streamlined and critical because you know what you are writing towards.

At the end of each section of your writing, come back to that question and explain how you are answering it. You can either do this directly or more subtly. Over time the more subtle approach comes naturally and you can do fun little tricks with it.

Connections don't need to be ground breaking and they can be very subtle, you just need to show it’s your perspective.

Engage Critically

If you want to write critically, you need to engage critically. The two are inextricably linked. You need to have the knowledge and that means putting in the work.

A wikipedia page might not be enough, or stealing thoughts from someone’s goodreads. You need to critically engage with the topic in order to write critically.

Take my quotation studies for instance. I critically engage with the novels I read to produce critical pieces (with a hint of personal) in them. When I read, I highlight quotes and I write notes in a little notebook each morning to ensure I recall.

You have to know the detail and be specific with what you are saying.

I will note that often that knowledge that first aim to share may alter and change. Often the original focus of your writing may shift into a new perspective and that is often what is better —

The critical piece is never the one you intended to write.

To be in Dialogue

Writing critically does not mean having arguments and being nasty. To write critically is to be in dialogue with others — with the novel you are writing about, an article that you are engaging with, or with fellow Substackers.

This dialogue approach transforms your writing from a monologue into a conversation. When I analyse a quote from a novel, I'm not just stating what it means, I'm responding to it, questioning it, letting it speak to me and then speaking back. Sometimes I find myself agreeing with an author's perspective, other times pushing against it. Both responses can produce valuable insights.

The same applies when engaging with other writers or critics. Rather than dismissing their arguments outright or accepting them wholesale, critical writing involves genuine intellectual engagement. You might build on someone's idea, complicate their argument with additional evidence, or respectfully disagree while acknowledging what they got right.

Critical dialogue also means being honest about where you're coming from. I don't pretend to be objective when I write about books — I acknowledge my biases, my personal responses, my limitations. This isn't weakness; it's intellectual honesty that allows readers to engage more meaningfully with your arguments.

Simple Language

Yes I have two English degrees, no I don't have a vast vocabulary (I went to a rubbish school). And honestly that is ok and I am not ashamed by it. The reason I did well in my degrees was for the very fact of the mundanity and simplicity of my language. I don't need grand words to impress people, I know how to use and work the language I have.

There's this misconception that writing success requires an elaborate vocabulary, that you need to sound like a Victorian scholar to be taken seriously. But here's what I learned: the most powerful writing often uses the simplest words. When you strip away unnecessary complexity, your actual ideas become clearer. Your argument stands or falls on its merit. Write the waffle and then cut it back.

My simple language forced me to think more precisely. When you can't hide behind fancy terminology, you have to actually understand what you're trying to say. You have to make genuine connections rather than relying on impressive-sounding phrases to mask weak reasoning.

I want to do a whole newsletter on this so I’ll stop there on this one. But:

Clarity is the best policy.

I hope these four core themes have provided you with some ideas on how to write with clarity. These are the four pillars on which I stand by and they have never failed me in my writing.