Picture this

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. I can believe that. If that is true, then it also means that a thousand words make a good picture. In essence, that is what a paper is doing--drawing a picture in the reader's mind of what the author is saying. Maybe it isn't a picture of a tree or a landscape, and maybe it isn't an object as much as an idea, such as justice, faith, or understanding. Whatever it is, the mode of communication is the same.

However, this brings up a good point. If we follow the analogy, what makes a picture clear or hazy? If there is a lot of static on the television screen, it is hard to make out the details of the picture. How much better are high definition plasma screens? Similarly, too many phrases and extraneous words in the sentences can make the image less than well defined. When the writing is concise, the picture becomes sharp. Paint brushes are good for landscapes, but they don't work for blueprints and diagrams; sharp pencils give detail where detail is needed.

Almost every child enjoys coloring with crayons or color pencils. Coloring books are found almost everywhere today, as are crayons, pastels, markers, and colored pencils. Some of these are easier to use than others--especially when trying to stay within the lines. It may turn out to be a lovely picture, but those black lines make all the difference. In a paper, this is the structure and organization. Is the train of thought consistent, or does it jump around? Do the points follow in an orderly manner, or do they crawl like snails before jumping like grasshoppers? Are all the sentences on a subject grouped in their own paragraphs, or do they overlap like a crayon drawing? Clear lines make a clear picture.

So, just like a picture is worth a thousand words, those thousand words can create a very good picture. Clarity, conciseness, and structure can be difficult, but it can be what separates a cartoon drawing from a polaroid picture, a polaroid picture from a magazine photograph, and a magazine photograph from a movie clip. The clarity of the writing is what counts.