Claude Writing Rules

writing.md

Personal Writing Rules

Apply these on top of Strunk's Elements of Style when writing or editing prose.

Punctuation:

• No colons. Use conjunctions, commas, or split into separate sentences.
• No em dashes. Use commas, conjunctions, or new sentences.
• No semicolons unless joining two closely related independent clauses.

Sentence structure:

• Prefer short, full sentences. Break long clauses into standalone sentences.
• Vary sentence rhythm. Alternate short punches with medium explanatory sentences.
• Every sentence must be complete. No fragments.

Word choice:

• No "it's not X, it's Y" constructions. Say what it IS. Stricter than Strunk's Rule 11.
• No AI filler language: "it's important to note," "it's worth mentioning," "interestingly," "basically," "essentially."
• Specific over abstract. Name the tool, the company, the number.

Tone:

• Confident and direct. Write like you know the material.
• Conversational but precise. Read it aloud — if it sounds stiff, rewrite.

Writing Style (Elements of Style, Condensed)

Apply Strunk's composition principles when writing prose for humans. Reference file has before/after examples for each rule.

Elements of Style at a Glance

Composition (the important ones):

• 8: One paragraph per topic
• 9: Topic sentence first, end in conformity
• 10: Active voice
• 11: Positive form (say what IS, not what ISN'T)
• 12: Specific, concrete language
• 13: Omit needless words
• 14: Vary sentence structure
• 15: Parallel construction for coordinate ideas
• 16: Keep related words together
• 17: One tense in summaries
• 18: Emphatic words at end

Grammar (apply from knowledge — no reference needed): Rules 1-7: possessives, serial comma, parenthetic commas, compound clauses, no comma splices, no fragments, dangling participles.

Elements of Style — Composition Principles

Condensed from William Strunk Jr.'s 1918 text. One principle + best example per rule.

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8. One paragraph per topic

Each paragraph = one idea. Beginning signals a new step to the reader. Single sentences should not stand as paragraphs.

9. Topic sentence first

(a) Topic sentence at the beginning, (b) middle sentences develop it, (c) final sentence emphasizes or states consequence. Never end with a digression.

10. Active voice

Passive/Weak	Active/Strong
There were dead leaves lying on the ground.	Dead leaves covered the ground.
The sound of a guitar could be heard.	Somewhere in the house a guitar hummed sleepily.
It was not long before he was very sorry that he had said what he had.	He soon repented his words.
A survey of this region was made in 1900.	This region was surveyed in 1900.

Active voice is more direct, bold, and concise. Don't discard passive entirely — use it when the receiver of action is the topic.

11. Positive form

Negative/Evasive	Positive/Direct
He was not very often on time.	He usually came late.
did not remember	forgot
did not pay attention to	ignored
not important	trifling
did not have much confidence in	distrusted

Use not for denial or antithesis ("Not charity, but simple justice"), never as evasion.

12. Specific, concrete language

Vague	Concrete
A period of unfavorable weather set in.	It rained every day for a week.
He showed satisfaction as he took possession of his well-earned reward.	He grinned as he pocketed the coin.

The surest way to hold attention is being specific, definite, and concrete.

13. Omit needless words

Every word must tell. Common offenders:

Wordy	Concise
the question as to whether	whether
there is no doubt but that	doubtless
owing to the fact that	since
in spite of the fact that	although
he is a man who	he
the fact that I had arrived	my arrival

Combine fragmented ideas:

• 51 words: "Macbeth was very ambitious. This led him to wish to become king of Scotland. The witches told him that this wish of his would come true..."
• 26 words: "Encouraged by his wife, Macbeth achieved his ambition and realized the prediction of the witches by murdering Duncan and becoming king of Scotland in his place."

14. Vary sentence structure

Don't chain clause after clause with and, but, so, which. A whole paragraph of this structure becomes monotonous. Recast into simple sentences, semicolons, or periodic sentences.

15. Parallel construction

Broken Parallel	Parallel
Formerly, science was taught by the textbook method, while now the laboratory method is employed.	Formerly, science was taught by the textbook method; now it is taught by the laboratory method.
It was both a long ceremony and very tedious.	The ceremony was both long and tedious.

Correlatives (both/and, not/but, either/or) must be followed by the same grammatical form.

16. Keep related words together

Scattered	Gathered
He only found two mistakes.	He found only two mistakes.
All the members were not present.	Not all the members were present.
Wordsworth, in the fifth book of The Excursion, gives a minute description of this church.	In the fifth book of The Excursion, Wordsworth gives a minute description of this church.

Subject and verb close together. Modifier next to what it modifies. Relative pronoun immediately after its antecedent.

17. One tense in summaries

Pick present or past, then hold it throughout. Shifting tenses signals uncertainty.

18. Emphatic words at end

Buried Emphasis	End Emphasis
Humanity has hardly advanced in fortitude since that time, though it has advanced in many other ways.	Humanity, since that time, has advanced in many other ways, but it has hardly advanced in fortitude.
This steel is principally used for making razors, because of its hardness.	Because of its hardness, this steel is principally used in making razors.

The beginning of a sentence is the second most emphatic position. The end is first.