What the “rules” of writing really are
Most rules of writing are better described as habits that tend to help readers. They are not laws. A rule such as “use the active voice” exists because, in many sentences, the active form is shorter and clearer. It does not mean the passive voice is wrong.
Different writers and teachers give different lists, so there is no single official set. This guide gathers the guidelines that appear most often and shows each one at work. If you are looking for a quick answer to “what are the 7 rules of writing?”, the seven below are a reasonable working set.
Seven practical rules of writing
1. Put clarity first
Readers should understand your point on the first pass. Before you polish a sentence, check that it says what you mean.
- Unclear: The matter of the delay was one that the team felt had been dealt with.
- Clearer: The team fixed the cause of the delay.
2. Prefer the active voice when it fits
In an active sentence, the subject does the action. This usually reads faster.
- Passive: The window was broken by the storm.
- Active: The storm broke the window.
The passive is still useful when the doer is unknown or unimportant: The window was broken sometime overnight. Impersonal constructions such as It is believed that… work similarly; see impersonal pronoun examples.
3. Show with concrete detail
“Show, don’t tell” is advice to give readers details they can picture, rather than only labels.
- Telling: Maya was nervous.
- Showing: Maya folded the ticket into smaller and smaller squares until it would not fold again.
Telling is not forbidden. A short statement can move a story along when a scene does not need that much weight.
4. Cut filler
Words that add nothing slow the reader down.
- Wordy: She walked over to the door in order to open it.
- Tighter: She opened the door.
Watch for phrases like “in order to,” “the fact that,” and stacked adverbs. Cut them when the sentence still works without them.
5. Choose specific words
A precise noun or verb often does the work of several modifiers.
- General: The dog went quickly across the yard.
- Specific: The terrier bolted across the yard.
6. Vary your sentences
A paragraph of identical sentence lengths can feel monotonous. Mix short and long sentences. A short one can land a point after a longer build-up.
7. Revise
Most writers agree that a first draft is not a finished piece. Put it aside, reread it, and cut, reorder, and fix. Reading aloud can help you notice clumsy rhythm, and sentence correction exercises give you practice at fixing errors once you spot them.
Elmore Leonard’s well-known rules
The novelist Elmore Leonard published a short list of rules for writers, often cited as “10 rules of writing.” The list is commonly summarized as advice such as avoiding weather as an opening, keeping dialogue tags simple (mostly “said”), using exclamation points sparingly, and leaving out the parts readers tend to skip. Leonard’s own framing was a personal one, and he suggested that if something sounds like writing, it should be rewritten. Treat the list as one experienced writer’s preferences rather than a standard.
When to break a rule
Rules can be broken on purpose when the effect is worth it. A sentence fragment can create emphasis. A long, winding sentence can mimic a character’s racing thoughts. The key is intent: break a rule because it serves the piece, not because you did not know it existed.
A useful test is to ask what the reader gains. If the answer is clearer meaning, a stronger image, or a distinct voice, the choice is probably justified.
The four types of writing
People often ask about “types of writing.” A common classification names four:
- Expository: explains or informs (a textbook or how-to guide), which draws on the informative function of language.
- Descriptive: paints a picture of a person, place, or thing.
- Narrative: tells a story.
- Persuasive: tries to convince the reader of a view (see inclusive pronouns in persuasive writing).
Many real pieces blend these. A personal essay may be narrative, descriptive, and persuasive at once. The rules above apply across all four, though how you weigh them changes.
How to learn to write properly
There is no shortcut, but a few habits help:
- Read widely, and notice how writers you admire build sentences.
- Write regularly, even in short sessions.
- Revise your own work with the rules above as a checklist.
- Get feedback from readers who will be honest.
- Study craft one topic at a time. Point of view, voice, scene, and character each have their own techniques.
Where to go next
If you write fiction, these craft topics build on the rules above:
- Control whose thoughts the reader can access with close third person, and avoid the confusion of head-hopping.
- Learn how different voices in writing are built from word choice and rhythm.
- See how to anchor readers with scene setting examples.
- Explore how characters change in a list of character arcs.