Padding

When I write these entries or any other sort of essayist nonfiction, I am tempted to break them up into sections. It always seems like a good idea, but I never end up doing it.

Sections are nice because they add order. Instead of an essay requiring a smooth flow of transition, I get to throw information into its section and I'm good to go (this is, of course, an oversimplification). And because of that order, it also adds an ease of navigation. Instead of having to scan through the entire piece to find the section you want, you can narrow your search to the relevant section it would be found in.

The main reason I don't do this is that it is wasteful. I only have so much to say on any given subject, usually not enough to warrant its own section. If I did divide my posts into sections, I would have to add a lot more text to each one. And this is where the waste comes from. All of the words I would add would be padding.

Padding is not necessarily a bad thing. If you are writing a large work, say in science or philosophy, you will need to make sure that you are as thorough as possible. That padding basically is every single step from Point A to Point B. Most people already know the little steps, or at least can follow the big jumps, but this is adding a degree of thoroughness.

I have no need for padding. I write essays and blog entries. I am best served by getting to the point and leaving the BS out. Since I rarely, if ever, go above 10 paragraphs here, I don't think that there is much difficulty in navigating through any particular post.

When you write, you have to decide how much padding you need. If you need to cover every single step, add a lot of it. If you need to say your piece and be done, then keep it spartan.