I had more of a knack
as a journalist than as an academic writer, and that’s where my stylistic bias
lies. Professor Paul (“fresh, fair,
phrased well”) Fromer, who also advised the student
paper in college, beat us over the head with Strunk
and White’s The Elements of Style. I
can think of no better book than to develop a style of writing. Paul would go through our copy and annotate
from the Strunk and White book in red ink an element
that we had violated—S-8 (“Avoid the use of qualifiers”) or S-14 (“Avoid fancy
words”), for example. I was a reporter
on the college paper on the day that President Gerald Ford came to campus in
1976. “Ford arrived at chapel time,”
Vern Becker, the editor, recalled. “We
had a slew of reporters and photographers on hand, and all the major networks
were on the sport as well. In fact, the
night before, all the TV stations had come in and constructed a raised photo
platform in the middle of Edman Chapel. One of the photographers snuck in that night,
and when he saw all the spaces marked off for CBS, NBC, and ABC, he marked off
a space, Record. He did it as a joke, but sure enough, that
spot was empty! A couple of our
photographers did take advantage of it.”
In 1989, college administrators relieved Paul from his
duties as advisor due to “the issue of censorship, specifically, and the
suppression of truth in general.” The Record quoted Dr. Henry Nelson, chairman of the College Committee on
Student Publications: “I think Fromer pursued a journalistic style that, generally
speaking, doesn’t take into consideration some non-objective features like
compassion and concern for others.”
When I was at
I admired Henry Luce, the founder of TIME. Luce and I had a few
things in common. We were both sons of
missionaries to
I think anyone can pick up the nuts and bolts of writing
without much effort. But I don’t think
the art of writing can really be taught.
Just as some people have a knack for shooting baskets, I seem to have a
knack for writing. When I was writing my
two books, I was able to crank out ten pages each night. Discipline more than talent is needed to
succeed at writing or anything for that matter. I think or that writers need is a cat-like
curiosity about everything. I’m
especially interested in why people believe what they believe and what forces
shaped critical life decisions, such as immigration and marriage. I like to watch people, and, as time permits,
sketch them. As I’ve aged, my hobbies
have gotten simpler and less expensive—from sailing, stocks, and stamps to
drawing, reading, talking, and thinking.