Writing Tips From Elmore Leonard

Received this in an email from Gotham Writers' Workshop: 10 writing tips from crime writer Elmore Leonard (Glitz, Get Shorty). They first appeared in The New York Times, Easy on the Adverbs, Exclamation Points, and Especially Hoptedoodle.

1. Never open a book with weather.
2. Avoid prologues.
3. Never use a verb other than "said" to carry dialogue.
4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb "said”…he admonished gravely.
5. Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two
or three per 100,000 words of prose.
6. Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose."
7. Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.
8. Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.
9. Don't go into great detail describing places and things.
10.Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

My most important rule is one that sums up the 10.

If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.

You have to decide for yourself what works for you, but there's some very good advice here. It's terse, pithy, and to the point. But then what else would you expect from Elmore Leonard?