Sin and Syntax: How to Craft Wicked Good Prose Paperback – August 13, 2013

This book is excellent for a writer or someone wanting clarification in writing correct and accurate sentences.This is a non-fiction book and the title does not refer to sin. I recommend this book for any author, or English teacher. It's also a great resource. I used it for my graduate class in writing.

Oh, man, this book is so inspiring. It's one thing to be a writer, but something more to be a word smith, a craftsman, a stylist with language. This guide goes through the basic grammar with a section each on nouns, verbs, adverbs, etc. and then it discusses putting the life into sentences. I thought I knew a lot about this stuff already, and I did, but after reading this book I have a whole new appreciation for language and what it's good for. And the author knows what she is talking about. The style of her writing is so approachable and enjoyable. She's a serious academic who has done a lot of research, reading original drafts of classical writers, for instance, but you'd never know it (in a good way.) If you're a writer (even of emails, or especially of emails really) then I recommend you read this book.

Constance Hale is a journalist and an author. This book is about how to craft effective prose. As the back cover states, “mere devotion to grammar commandments won’t make your prose shine.”Here are some thoughts:A. On the one hand, Hale promotes an economy of words: getting rid of all those distracting adverbs, for example! Use a simple word like “use” rather than “utilization”! Hale is also critical of being so formal as to sound pompous, by, say, using “one” as a subject rather than “you” (i.e., “one must do such-and-such”). On the other hand, Hale wants writers to be imaginative and creative about the words that they do choose to use, as opposed to being banal. The prose that she advocates does not just tell but shows, enabling readers to see or to feel what is being described.B. Hale overlaps with other writing manuals in that she encourages writers to keep their prose simple. At the same time, she qualifies the advice of other writing manuals, as when she states that writing manuals are often correct to discourage the use of the passive voice, but that in some cases the passive voice is appropriate.C. Hale is sometimes a stickler for grammar, and at other times she is more liberal, as in her discussion about whether a writer can end a sentence with a preposition.D. The book has a lot of political references. Political junkies like me will appreciate that! She even has a sarcastic comment about Donald Trump, before he became a politician.E. In some cases, Hale could be dismissive, and I rolled my eyes at her corny put-downs of others’ prose, even as I understood why she was criticizing it.F. The book confirmed something that I have long suspected, and that is that some of the rules that students are taught in school can hinder effective prose. For example, I have often felt as if I have to qualify everything that I say to avoid generalizations or misrepresentations of people’s position. Thus, I use what Hale calls “wimp verbs,” namely, “seem” and “appear.” The problem with this is that readers gravitate towards prose that manifests conviction and a sense of authority.G. Hale shows what effective prose looks like and explains why it is effective. The book is not as helpful in explaining how writers can become imaginative enough to write it, however. It does not provide much of a road map.H. I think that there is a place for formal prose, especially in academic writing. Formal prose—-as is four or five syllable words—-can command respect. But, even then, there is a place for getting rid of disruptive jargon.

I buy books on writing from time to time. Most of them go unread. I have a small collection I use, rotating in better ones when I find them. Sin and Syntax by Ms. Hale now has a strong spot in my collection. It's not so wicked, but useful advice oozes from its pages.

The best part, for me, is that she is obviously a grammar nerd, but without being holier-than-thou about it. Instead of telling you hard and fast rules, she mostly sticks to pointing out how various grammar choices will change the tone of your writing. The excerpts she chooses clearly illustrate her passion for syntax (duh). It mostly just felt like I was talking to a friend about her favorite thing, and I enjoyed soaking up the passion vicariously.I give this 5 stars but I am assuming readers know this isn't going to be Harry Potter. It's 5 stars for a book about grammar.

This book is a delight. Its advice is extremely specific and easy to apply, and it works wonders. It's full of clear and usually clever examples to make its lessons clear and easy to understand. I teach writing and I write professionally, and I return to this book every year. Great for novices and advanced writers alike.

Different parts of speech and linguistic units (i.e., sentences, phrases, etc.) are examined along different dimensions: Bones (basics), Flesh (usage), Sin (bad practices), Pleasures (fine practices), and Catechism (exercises).I enjoyed reading the basics as it helped refresh my memory. Yay! to basics. Reading through (instead of skimming) through the other parts was tedious because the presentation switched between being inferential (i.e., do you see what writer did?) and being explicit, i.e., the speaker should have said Y instead of saying X. I prefer consistent presentation in non-fiction or technical exposition.All said, I would highly recommend the Bones parts to everyone. The entire book may be useful for folks like high school students who are having their first brush with essays and reports.

Old-timer as in writing for over a decade, not actual age! I could tell from reading the first couple of pages of this book that it was going to be a good kick-in-the pants to get inspired and rev back up. I'd been on a hiatus from writing for a while and needed something to put me back that "eager to tell a story" mode. This book did that and more. So whether you're just starting out or have been writing for a while, check out this title for an abundance of examples on how to keep your work lean and fresh. Recommended.