The Art of Writing

The art of writing can be either- flamboyant or simple. It is tempting to be flamboyant while writing, especially if you grow up reading descriptions of authors like Dickens, Shaw, Fitzgerald, Steinbeck, and the likes. When I think of their works, I think of grand. Their narratives are so magically flamboyant that the mesmerizing imagery that it builds sweeps us off our feet. 

Flamboyancy is tempting. It draws you into its world of well-articulated, fancy vocabulary that captures a resplendence so dazzling and brilliant that you will never want to stop reading or writing. To an average reader, it can be elevating, and to the seasoned readers, it is a pleasure in the grandest sense. Employing those long-winding, complex yet perfect sentences unabashedly to boundlessly describe a scene, building the magnificent imagery, word by word, syllable by syllable, and painting the picture in front of your reader's dreamy eyes, is a whole satisfaction in itself. 

Yet, our flamboyancy is not for display at every instance of writing possible. The relevancy that our writing has to the readers is what that helps us distinguish when to be grand in writing, and when not to be. When the purpose of writing something is to inform the readers on something, the beauty is to keep it simple, short, sweet, and to the point. However, when writing for the sole purpose of appreciating the language itself, one can afford to show off their flamboyance and command over the language. 

Ultimately, the nature of the narrative of a text must primarily keep in mind its purpose and readers. There is no hierarchy between simple and grand writing. Whether a piece of text is good or bad is solely decided by how effectively it has achieved its purpose. Both simple narratives and grand literature are necessary, though they serve different purposes. 

As a writer, the maximum justice that one can do is to write consciously to add value to the readers, rather than being flamboyant when simplicity is needed or being excessively plain when the readers are looking for a spark of mastery on the language. It's all about the right balance!