The Art of Writing – Part 1: Conciseness

by Erik Scothron

Who is this for?

1. Professionals writing reports or presentations.
2. Students preparing for English exams.

What’s this about?

1. Choosing the right words.
2. Cutting unnecessary words—redundancies, repetitions, and tautologies.

Whether you’re drafting a business report or an essay, clarity and conciseness are key. Your colleagues don’t have time for waffle (talking/writing without saying anything useful), and examiners penalise wordiness.

Why does conciseness matter?

Every extra word dilutes your message. Let’s fix some common flabby sentences:

1. ❌ The reason why she left early was because she felt sick. (11 words) ✅ She left early because she felt sick. (7 words) «The reason why» and ‘was’ are redundant.
2. ❌ The book that is on the table belongs to me. (10 words) ✅ The book on the table is mine. (7 words)
3. ❌ She is someone who always helps others. (7 words) ✅ She always helps others. (4 words)

More Examples:

1. ❌ He is a man who is known for his generosity. ✅ He is known for his generosity.
2. ❌ When I was walking to the store, I saw an old friend. ✅ Walking to the store, I saw an old friend.
3. ❌ It was in the year 2020 when we first met. ✅ We first met in 2020.
4. ❌ The fact that he is late is surprising. ✅ His lateness is surprising.
5. ❌ She has a habit of always being late. ✅ She is always late.
6. ❌ The price of the car is expensive in cost. ✅ The car is expensive.
7. ❌ She went to the store for the purpose of buying milk. ✅ She went to the store to buy milk.

Test Yourself:

Trim the fat from these sentences: 11. The meeting has been postponed until a later date.

 12. If you want to succeed, you must make sure that you work hard.

13. There is a possibility that it might rain tomorrow.

14. He gave a brief summary of the main points.

15. The reason is because I was tired.

© 2025 Erik Scothron. All rights reserved.