Pretentious writing refers to writing that is overly elaborate, pompous, or self-important in an attempt to impress or appear intelligent. It is often characterized by the use of unnecessarily complex language, obscure vocabulary, and grandiose phrasing that serves no purpose other than to make the writing seem more impressive.
One of the main issues with pretentious writing is that it often sacrifices clarity and simplicity for the sake of appearing sophisticated. The writer may use long, convoluted sentences and obscure words in an attempt to sound intelligent, but in reality, these choices make the writing more difficult to understand and less enjoyable to read.
Pretentious writing can also come across as insincere or inauthentic. When a writer uses language that is not natural or genuine, it can be difficult for the reader to connect with the message or ideas being conveyed. In contrast, authentic and genuine writing is often more engaging and effective in communicating a message.
Another issue with pretentious writing is that it can be alienating to readers. When a writer uses language that is unfamiliar or difficult to understand, it can be intimidating and intimidating to readers who may feel that they are not intelligent enough to comprehend the content. This can lead to a lack of engagement and a lack of interest in the topic being discussed.
Ultimately, the goal of any writing should be to clearly and effectively communicate ideas and information to the reader. While it is important to use language appropriately and to challenge readers to think critically, it is not necessary to use unnecessarily complex language or obscure vocabulary to do so. Pretentious writing does more harm than good by sacrificing clarity and authenticity for the sake of appearing impressive.
Pretentious Prose
. I could write it with beautiful prose without all the allusions Sam from my first novel insisted on using. I tell a story to my kid in a completely different voice vs friends at a bar vs corporate staff meeting. Identify your reader When it comes to avoiding pretentious writing, knowing who your reader is can help. Let it sit for a while and then come back to it again and again, as often as needed. But there's always a chance they're right. Snyder, with his unsubtle Objectivist viewpoints, doesn't seem to get this, and gives us a smugly self-righteous Superman who sees fit to save the world because he's better than all of us.
25+ Pretentious Writers Whose Books Are No Fun to Read
What I do think is this: I think writers should write what they want without fear of the judgment of others. A lot of people view easy to read, what some might call utilitarian, prose as bad. Those are two different things. This means that you have to understand things which are common to all people, and trust in their ability to fill in the blanks of what you have not expressly stated. Literally sometimes 50 pages long where he writes essays on French slang, the Paris sewer systems, the July Revolution of 1830, to name just a few. You never can tell.
Pretentious Definition & Meaning
. Simple, to the point, and I daresay more elegant despite having less big words. Being proud of pretense in writing is being proud of the fact that other people, often the "unwashed masses," don't find your work as insightful or deep as you do. Shock us, surprise us--do more! Once an audience is bored, they will hate your work. The last thing you want to do is remind your reader that they're just reading words off the page.
17 Pretentious Words & What to Use Instead
I'm too close to the work; I'm the one who thought it was so wonderful that I wrote it that way as if it were the most wonderful piece of prose ever. How can I avoid sounding pretentious? Don't deviate away from it to make the story longer than it needs to be. But the way I use that word includes being unable to take criticism or outside perspectives, and one of our main ideas is optimization through feedback, so we try not to ride around on a high horse. When I started poking holes in her plot and setting and the logic of the characters, she resisted any changes that might alter the ending, because "the whole point is to get to that ending. It's boring and pretentious. Check your language Using an abundance of long and complicated words could put your reader off.
Pretentious Writing: Reasons to Avoid
Your suggestions here all seem very valenced in a way that is intended to communicate something pejorative, either that something is bad style or deliberately occult or similar, as part of that "accumulated wisdom" you note in tags. . I'm proposing a tag that indicates Extreme English. The times that the show Family Guy has poked fun at the character Brian's writing attempts - "Let's see, I'll call the protagonist 'Norm Hull,' because he's just a normal guy. Pretentious writing can be the worst writing to read.
How do you avoid being pretentious? : writing
Don't avoid the deeper meaning, and drop clues to it in subtle ways like word choice, but accept that many people are either not going to get it or will get something completely different out of it. Because sometimes, the people saying that just aren't the audience you're writing for. I could be anyone but I. I'm over-tired, mind is racing. My overall feeling right now, though, is to let the tag stay, see if problems develop, and figure out how to address them when and if that happens.
