William Safire's "Rules for Writers"

I have taken Safire's rules from Susan Stepney, Professor of Computer Science, University of York, UK. She says that they may be found in Safire's book, How Not to Write: The Essential Misrules of Grammar (Norton, 2005).

Remember to never split an infinitive.

The passive voice should never be used.

Do not put statements in the negative form.

Verbs has to agree with their subjects.

Proofread carefully to see if you words out.

If you reread your work, you can find on rereading a great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.

A writer must not shift your point of view.

And don't start a sentence with a conjunction.

(Remember, too, a preposition is a terrible word to end a sentence with.)

Don't overuse exclamation marks!!

Place pronouns as close as possible, especially in long sentences, as of 10 or more words, to their antecedents.

Writing carefully, dangling participles must be avoided.

If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.

Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors.

Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.

Everyone should be careful to use a singular pronoun with singular nouns in their writing.

Always pick on the correct idiom.

The adverb always follows the verb.

Last but not least, avoid clichés like the plague; seek viable alternatives.

To these original precepts, Stepney added:

Never use a preposition to end a sentence with.

Avoid anoying alliteration.

Don't verb nouns.

Don't use no double negatives.

Make each pronoun agree with their antecedent.

When dangling, watch your participles.

Don't use commas, which aren't necessary.

Verbs has to agree with their subjects.

About those sentence fragments.

Try to not ever split infinitives.

Its important to use apostrophe's correctly.

Always read what you have written to see if you've any words out.

Correct spelling is esential.

Proofread you writing.

Between you and I, case is important.

Verbs has to agree with their antecedents.