When I edit website content for my clients, I search for common writing offenses. These aren’t simple grammatical mistakes or spelling errors. Instead, I mark style infractions that impact the readability of a piece. I have developed a practical list that I reference when I edit content.

First, I use the “find” function to identify and highlight the issues. Then, I read the document and adjust the issues while maintaining the tone of the piece. Often, I see writers using not to hedge a thought. It creates a hesitant, handwringing tone that removes confidence from the author’s voice. By contrast, a definitive phrase enhances the meaning — while also improving readability.

Strunk and White’s Rule Number 11: Put Statements in the Positive Form

Many writers write statements in the negative when they could use a simple positive phrase. Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style addresses this common mistake in rule number 11.

Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, non-committal language. Use the word not as a means of denial or in antithesis, never as a means of evasion.

The guide offers the following examples:

He was not very often on time. He usually came late.
She did not think that studying Latin was much use. She thought the study of Latin useless.
The Taming of the Shrew is rather weak in spots. Shakespeare does not portray Katharine as a very admirable character, nor does Bianca remain long in memory as an important character in Shakespeare’s works. The women in The Taming of the Shrew are unattractive. Katharine is disagreeable, Bianca insignificant.

You can see how these revisions make the sentences clearer and easier to read. Often, a single word replaces an entire phrase. From a reader’s perspective, this shortens the amount they have to remember between the beginning and end of the sentence.

Build a Habit for Strong Writing

As a writing habit, this change will strengthen your text. You will select precise language. Within Rule 11, the guideline also offers substitutions for several common infractions.

not honest dishonest
not important trifling
did not remember forgot
did not pay any attention to ignored
did not have much confidence in distrusted

Ideally, these swapped phrases improve the rhythm of your writing. The guide shows how the shift creates a proper emphasis throughout a thought.

The antithesis of negative and positive is strong:

Not charity, but simple justice.

Not that I loved Caesar less, but Rome the more.

Negative words other than not are usually strong:

The sun never sets upon the British flag.

For the web writer, this is essential. Bounce rate increases and on-page time shortens when readers struggle to absorb sentences.

Why?

Most website visitors skim the text before they begin reading. If they encounter long sentences, full of difficult punctuation and fractured thoughts, they simply leave. As a result, search engines favor text that is easier to skim and read.

Write Better

The positive form emphasizes what something is, rather than what it is not. For instance, instead of saying, “Do not use vague language,” it is more effective to say, “Use clear and specific language.” By focusing on the affirmative, writers can make their statements more direct, powerful, and easier to understand.

Benefits of Positive Statements

  1. Clarity and Impact: Positive statements leave no room for ambiguity. They deliver a clear message that is straightforward and impactful, making it easier for readers to grasp the intended meaning.
  2. Engagement: Readers are more likely to engage with content that is direct and to the point. Positive statements can create a more engaging narrative that keeps the audience interested.
  3. Persuasiveness: Affirmative language is inherently more persuasive. It encourages action and agreement, compelling readers to align with the presented ideas.

Positive Form and SEO Optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a critical component in content creation, ensuring that your material reaches the desired audience. Positive statements play a significant role in enhancing SEO in several ways:

Improved Readability

Readability is a key factor in SEO ranking. Search engines favor content that is easily digestible and user-friendly. By employing positive statements, your content becomes more readable, increasing the likelihood of higher rankings.

Enhanced User Experience

Positive language contributes to a better user experience by providing clear and concise information. This not only keeps visitors on your page longer but also reduces bounce rates—a favorable metric for SEO.

Stronger Keywords

Affirmative statements often incorporate stronger and more relevant keywords. For example, “increase sales” is more potent than “do not decrease sales.” Using strong, positive keywords can improve your content’s visibility in search engine results.

Encouraging Backlinks

Content that is clear, engaging, and persuasive is more likely to be shared and linked by other websites. Positive statements enhance the quality of your content, increasing the potential for backlinks—an important factor in boosting SEO rankings.

Putting It Into Practice

To effectively incorporate positive statements into your writing, consider the following tips:

  • Identify Negative Language: Review your content for negative phrasing and reframe it positively.
  • Focus on Actions: Emphasize what readers should do rather than what they should avoid.
  • Use Active Voice: Active voice complements positive statements, making them more direct and impactful.
  • Be Specific: Specificity enhances clarity, so be precise in your language choices.

Strunk and White’s Rule Number 11, encouraging the use of positive form, is a timeless guideline that enhances both the quality and effectiveness of writing. By adopting this rule, writers can create content that is not only clear and engaging but also optimized for SEO, ultimately reaching a wider audience and achieving greater impact. So, as you craft your next piece, remember to put your statements in the positive form and enjoy the benefits of better communication and improved search engine visibility.

About The Elements of Style

One of my favorite nonfiction books, The Elements of Style often influences my editing process. Overall, it promotes clean and clear writing — a valuable asset for any project. According to the introduction,

This book aims to give in brief space the principal requirements of plain English style. It aims to lighten the task of instructor and student by concentrating attention (in Chapters II and III) on a few essentials, the rules of usage and principles of composition most commonly violated. In accordance with this plan it lays down three rules for the use of the comma, instead of a score or more, and one for the use of the semicolon, in the belief that these four rules provide for all the internal punctuation that is required by nineteen sentences out of twenty.

Essentially, Strunk created a style guide to simplify the rules of writing. He wrote the original text in 1918 and it was published in 1920. In 1959, E.B. White revised and expanded the guide.

It is an old observation that the best writers sometimes disregard the rules of rhetoric. When they do so, however, the reader will usually find in the sentence some compensating merit, attained at the cost of the violation. Unless he is certain of doing as well, he will probably do best to follow the rules. After he has learned, by their guidance, to write plain English adequate for everyday uses, let him look, for the secrets of style, to the study of the masters of literature.

Overall, the text encourages the “omission of needless words” for the benefit of the reader. Also, you can read the full text for The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. on Gutenberg.org.

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