It just makes managing flow and sentence length so much easier if you can follow up a technical sentence by dropping into that conversational register where you can sum up the big complex idea with a few quick words and a joke.
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Sometimes going back to writing or editing a formal piece of writing after working on the blog, I am really struck by how much of a useful crutch it can be to be able to drop into an informal, conversational register.
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By way of example, this long chunk would have been hard to write in an entirely formal register especially if I wanted it to be reasonably digestible. So I have some big complex sentences (especially in the first paragraph), which are then summed up conversationally at the end.pic.twitter.com/ddeiALFLlo
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Not saying that is a particularly good chunk of writing mind you, just that it was fairly quick to produce and is, I think, reasonably clear and intelligible. Also, it has a Monty Python joke in it, which is an automatic +5 to Writing Quality.
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I don't think writing in a way that respect the reader's finite capacity for concentration is a "crutch". The more I write, the more I dislike "formal writing" as a way to actually communicate information.
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I think good formal writing can do this too, but it takes a lot more effort. The key is varying sentences by length and syntactical complexity. I suppose a paragraph should have a big complex topic sentence, then simpler detail sentences, then a complex concluding sentence.
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Tools are not crutches. Admittedly, crutches are tools. Um... yeah, that was it, really...
Kiitos. Käytämme tätä aikajanasi parantamiseen. KumoaKumoa
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It's an interesting thought, which strengthens one I've always had (having read a few dozen legal books in my life), that formal pieces would greatly benefit from a more conversational tone.
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In fact, this - IMHO - unnecessary formality was one of the first reasons why I eschewed a career in academia.
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