Useful writing tells people something true and important that they didn't already know, and tells them as unequivocally as possible.
Paul Graham • How to Write Usefully
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Useful writing tells people something true and important that they didn't already know, and tells them as unequivocally as possible.
The way to get novelty is to write about topics you've thought about a lot. Then you can use yourself as a proxy for the reader in this department too. Anything you notice that surprises you, who've thought about the topic a lot, will probably also surprise a significant number of readers. And here, as with correctness and importance, you can use t... See more
Matter
Telling people something they didn't know doesn't always mean surprising them. Sometimes it means telling them something they knew unconsciously but had never put into words. In fact those may be the more valuable insights, because they tend to be more fundamental.
Paul Graham • How to Write Usefully
The world doesn’t reward the people with the best ideas. It rewards the people who are best at communicating ideas. Want to publish a bestseller or launch a startup? Want to spread your ideas across the Internet like schmear on a New York bagel? Then become a better writer .
[Announcement] Write of Passage Is Now OPEN!
The people you can say heretical things to without getting jumped on are also the most interesting to know.
Paul Graham • Hackers & Painters: Big Ideas from the Computer Age
I believe the formula I've given you, importance + novelty + correctness + strength, is the recipe for a good essay.