I find it rather funny that finding an article in a well-established newspaper is not as easy as it sounds. While searching through The Washington Post I finally found an article that embraces the clear-cut rules of good writing. If you want to see firsthand what good writing consist of please follow the link by clicking here or you can continue reading as I point out parts of the article that display great writing.

One of the important rules if not the most important rule is that good writing comes to the point quickly.

“BEREA, Ohio — Trent Richardson didn’t fit into the Browns’ plans. They’re pushing forward without him.

Cleveland traded the powerful running back to the Indianapolis Colts on Wednesday, a stunning move just two games into this season and only one year after drafting Richardson in the first round.”

This article’s lead does exactly what it is supposed to do by getting to the point and hooking the reader into the message.

According to the good writing rules, it is essential to have short paragraphs. The paragraphs in this article were all either 2 to 3 sentences besides the following excerpt because it is a direct quote.

“I think people make it more pressure than what it is,” he said. “I just like to play football. At the end of the day, I’m going to play football like I’ve always been coached. The way I’ve always played. I’m going to be physical, fast, I’m going to be up-tempo, I’m going to be the one who’s trying to lead by example. No matter what, that’s a big reason why I fought through injury last year with broken ribs and two knee surgeries, because I know that being a first-round pick what the expectations are of you, and me being the man that I am, the athlete I am, I’m not going to sit down unless my legs are broke.”

The following is an excellent example of using short words in good writing.

“The former Alabama seemed to have it all: power, speed and good hands.”

One more good writing technique this article displays is the use of short sentences.

“A two-time Pro Bowl pick, McGahee was most recently with Denver.”

I may have only shown you four of the seven rules for good writing but the importance of these rules are that they make it easy for the reader to flow through the article by making things short, sweet and to the point.