How to make your writing short, sharp, and unforgettable (tips from a 145 year old lecture)

John Morley was nominated 11 times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. When not writing famous books, he was busy counselling Kings. In 1887, he delivered a timeless lecture on aphorisms. Discover great insights on how to condense wisdom and be remembered 2,000 years later 👇

Information overload in 1887: “There is a loud cry these days for clues that shall guide the plain man through the vast bewildering labyrinth of printed volumes.” This bewildering labyrinth has grown exponentially since 1887. This is the labyrinth writers must cut through. How?

Aphorists have the “cursed ambition to put a whole book into a page, a whole page into a phrase, and the phrase into a word.” If art is succeeding within the limitations we set for ourselves, there are fewer art forms more limiting and more demanding than that of the aphorist.

Aphorisms can be neither “enigmatical” nor “flat.” A “truism” is not worth listening to while a “riddle” has no direct relevance to life. A great aphorism strikes the perfect balance between the two: It speaks of a new insight that is confirmed by one’s oldest instincts.

Aphorisms can be stylish, but Bacon said they’re not mere “ornaments." They must be useful for “action and business.” They must have an “edge” with which one can cut through important knots. For Cicero aphorisms should be versatile like salt-pits: extract and sprinkle wherever.

Morley notes Klinger's aphorism on writing: “A writer must be able to keep heart and reason in close and friendliest connection. The heart must warm the reason, and reason must in turn blow on the embers if they are to burst into flame.” The tension between opposites = insight.

Edward Gibbon said aphorists tend to “strangle a thought in the hope of strengthening it.”Fair enough - the risk of writing aphorisms is you might become a cliché merchant. But the risk of not writing aphorisms is you will leave fluff and fat in your writing.

An inspired insight - a genuine Eureka moment of the soul - tends to be short, enigmatic, unconnected from everyday life, and complete. The “short and pregnant” form of maxims and aphorisms is perfect for such flashes of brilliance.

Thucydides wrote 2700+ years ago, he’s still being read. Why? Morley’ 3 reasons: Thucydides wrote with “gravity and concision” and avoided “over-colored” prose. He gave “pathos and dignity” to his actors. And “most of all,” he peppered wise aphorisms throughout - but sparingly.

The aphorism gives us no new insight just like the painter shows us no new colors. But what the painter does do is wake up “blind men to impressions of color and light and form” - similarly, aphorisms jolt us awake to the truths about human nature that we’ve grown blind to.