Write tight: Need I say more?

By Dick Thien
Chips Quinn Writing Coach

Keep it tight.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech has 1,551 words.

The Declaration of Independence has 1,325.

The Gettysburg Address, 268.

The Ten Commandments, 85.

The Lord's Prayer, 56.

Richard Nixon's resignation letter, 11.

The legal marriage vow, two.

At the Battle of the Bulge, Gen. Anthony C. McAuliffe made his point to the Germans demanding a surrender in one: "Nuts!"

The European Common Market directive on the export of duck eggs? 26,911.

About the column

Write It Right is updated regularly. Have a suggestion for a future column, contact Dick Thien.

Read Dick Thien's biography.

Back to Top