Summary of Malcolm Gladwell’s Masterclass on Writing

21 key takeaways from the NY Times bestselling author of Outliers

masterclass.com

1. Go for the imperfect argument. Because the perfect argument is too obvious, too overused, and no longer intrigues. It’s the works of art with some glaring flaws that get people talking. Imperfections allow for diversions and questions that perhaps can never be fully answered, and that’s often where the most interesting stories are.
2. Sprinkle candies. If you’re writing intellectually rigorous nonfiction, like a heavy meal, it can get too dense. To help with this, sprinkle candies, such as little did-you-know facts or funny quotes, throughout the story to help the reader get to the end. Candies can also be fun little tidbits that readers can easily remember and share with others.
3. Let the reader discover the patterns. Make data more interesting to the reader by presenting it in small chunks, in a way that helps the reader easily see the patterns in the data themselves. Rather than lecture them with charts and graphs, inspire them to become their own data detectives.
4. Engage with suspense and surprise. To keep readers moving through the story, use elements of both suspense and surprise. Suspense is when readers know that something is about to happen, they just don’t know when. Surprise is when readers think that one…