One of the things I like the most about Anne Dillard's style of writing is her ability to be simultaneously verbose and clear; if only it was so easy! She refers constantly to her revisions, her nights awake and fitful, demolishing an entire chapter and replacing it with a single word, her desire to write everything for what it is, perfectly, without shortcuts or needless rambling. I enjoy her writing greatly, because she presents the reader with a Technicolor world, but not a five-hundred-page blather dancing around one particular topic.
I enjoy her writing style, but must also say that I find it to be an unfulfilling way to write; as a singer (and a soprano, at that), I find myself consistently dancing around "do" (or I ((1)), or Tonic, if you will); I enjoy the dance that gets to the long-awaited resolution. Deceptive cadences thrill me; modulations entrance me, and I am always pleased with changes of rhythm and meter that JUST keep the piece from its resolution. I enjoy being wordy and verbose, perhaps because I write primarily for my own sake, and not for the understanding of others. True, there are times when I want people to understand my point, but what I mostly want them to get out of what I write is how I GOT to the point... to me, the journey is almost as, if not more important than, the final result.
Again, Anne Dillard is admirable, and I fully enjoy her style. I hope to emulate it, perhaps, in my formal papers from here on out. But I do not like the idea of being so distraught over the clarity of a statement-- let the reader dance with you, I say! People get so worked up about getting to the point... slow down! Smell the roses. You may not get anywhere quickly, but a nice largo waltz can be nice once in a while, too.
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