eos-style

What this skill does

# Elements of Style: 21 Style Reminders

Review writing against Strunk & White's 21 style principles from Chapter V "An Approach to Style."

## Instructions

Analyze the provided text against each of the 21 style reminders. Focus on actionable feedback with specific examples from the text. Not all principles apply to every piece—mark N/A when appropriate.

### Output Format

**Text Under Review**: [title or brief description]

---

## Style Review

| # | Principle | Status | Notes |
|---|-----------|--------|-------|
| 1 | Place yourself in the background | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 2 | Write naturally | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 3 | Work from suitable design | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 4 | Write with nouns and verbs | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 5 | Revise and rewrite | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 6 | Don't overwrite | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 7 | Don't overstate | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 8 | Avoid qualifiers | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 9 | Don't affect breeziness | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 10 | Use orthodox spelling | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 11 | Don't explain too much | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 12 | Don't construct awkward adverbs | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 13 | Make sure speakers are clear | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 14 | Avoid fancy words | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 15 | Use dialect sparingly | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 16 | Be clear | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 17 | Don't inject opinion | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 18 | Use figures of speech sparingly | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 19 | Don't sacrifice clarity for shortcuts | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 20 | Avoid foreign languages | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |
| 21 | Prefer standard to offbeat | Pass/Needs Work/N/A | [specific feedback] |

---

## Key Issues Found

### High Priority
- [Issue with specific example and suggested fix]

### Medium Priority
- [Issue with specific example and suggested fix]

---

## Principle Reference

1. **Place yourself in the background** — Write to serve the reader, not to show off. Style emerges from content, not from the writer's ego.

2. **Write naturally** — Don't consciously imitate others or force an affected style. Write as you would speak to an intelligent friend.

3. **Work from suitable design** — Plan your piece. Know your scope and structure before writing extensively.

4. **Write with nouns and verbs** — These give writing strength. Adjectives and adverbs are not your principal weapons.

5. **Revise and rewrite** — Good writing is rewriting. Don't expect first drafts to be final.

6. **Don't overwrite** — Avoid ornate, flowery prose. Rich prose is hard to digest.

7. **Don't overstate** — Avoid superlatives and exaggeration. A single overstatement can undermine your credibility.

8. **Avoid qualifiers** — Words like "very," "rather," "quite," "pretty," and "little" weaken prose.

9. **Don't affect breeziness** — Forced casualness and flip remarks suggest the writer values cleverness over substance.

10. **Use orthodox spelling** — Follow standard conventions unless you have good reason not to.

11. **Don't explain too much** — Trust the reader. Avoid excessive adverbs after "said" and over-explanatory dialogue tags.

12. **Don't construct awkward adverbs** — Avoid forcing "-ly" onto words that don't take it naturally.

13. **Make sure speakers are clear** — In dialogue, readers must always know who is speaking.

14. **Avoid fancy words** — Prefer the plain word to the fancy one. "Home" not "domicile."

15. **Use dialect sparingly** — The best dialect writers use minimal deviation from standard language.

16. **Be clear** — Clarity is the foundation. Muddiness is not depth; obscurity is not profundity.

17. **Don't inject opinion** — Keep personal opinions out unless they serve the work. They mark the egoist.

18. **Use figures of speech sparingly** — Metaphors and similes need space. Constant comparison exhausts the reader.

19. **Don't sacrifice clarity for shortcuts** — Strong, precise words are better than clever abbreviations.

20. **Avoid foreign languages** — Write in English. Foreign phrases can seem pretentious.

21. **Prefer standard to offbeat** — Choose established words over trendy or invented ones.

---

## Summary

**Overall Assessment**: [Strong/Needs Revision/Major Issues]

**Top 3 Improvements**:
1. [Most impactful change]
2. [Second priority]
3. [Third priority]

## Guidelines

- Focus on patterns, not isolated instances
- Some rules can be broken intentionally for effect—note when this seems intentional
- "Needs Work" means a pattern of violations, not a single instance
- Technical or specialized writing may legitimately use jargon
- Creative writing may intentionally break rules for voice

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