Keep It Short and Simple (KISS) is an oft-heard refrain in technical writing.

William Strunk, Jr. says it best in his seminal book, The Elements of Style, when he writes:

Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all his sentences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his subjects only in outline, but that every word tell.

The Elements of Style is a treasure trove of tips & tricks that can help us write concisely (among other things).

While we strongly urge you to read the book, you can also see the video of an entertaining rap version created by Jake Heller and Ben Teitelbaum, two journalism students from Columbia University. 🙂

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/33410512]