How not to write: The traps we all fall into and how to avoid them.

2/ Ranting to order

There are hundreds of guides that tell you how to write, but I thought Writing from London might perform a service by offering a series of pieces on how not to write. I am not setting myself up as a great authority. I have made every mistake I highlight – often to the point of excess.

Stephen King once said that you can never teach people to be great writers, but you can encourage people to become better writers. I encourage you now to avoid the second pit I have fallen into:

2/ Ranting to order

So much of the worst political commentary sounds the same. It does not matter if it is left or right-wing, Republican or Democrat, pro- or anti-woke. Opinion pieces become like a Rubik’s cube: whichever way writers twist their words, there is only one answer.

Here is a test. Guess the political aims of the author of this piece.