Advice from the Masters: Tracy Kidder

Apr 26, 2017 | Better Writing

Tracy Kidder has a new book out. It’s called A Truck Full of Money. I haven’t read it yet, but I will because I’ve been loving his writing since I read The Soul of a New Machine many years ago. In addition to his other work, Tracy co-wrote a fine book about writing nonfiction titled Good Prose. That’s where I found the following.

“Yet it is undeniable that good writing must have a human sound. Maybe that is the more modest word to keep in mind: sound. You try to attune yourself to the sound of your own writing. If you can’t imagine yourself saying something aloud, then you probably shouldn’t write it.”

Want more? Check out the complete list of Advice from the Masters posts

If you want even more writing advice from writers, check out Jon Winokur’s blog, “AdvicetoWriters.”