I read about "word economy" and being clear and concise in how-to-write books. The classics seem to be full of page-long sentences and endless description, but nowadays short and sweet seems to be the literary fashion. Poetry as a genre is concise, but here's an especially good example. It's a three-word couplet by Ogden Nash.Fleas
Adam
Had 'em
But indeed, I think even though some Jane Austen lines are long, they are full of such many-faceted meaning that it's quite amazing that she got all that into one sentence.
ReplyDeleteThat's true, and I like more description than the writing books say. At least for fiction, it's too dull and reporty if you cut out too much. I guess there's both sides of it.
ReplyDelete