100 ways to improve your writing - Gary Provost 2019

Stop writing when you get to the end
Nine ways to save time and energy

A novel ends when your protagonist has solved his or her problem.

An opinion piece ends when your opinion has been expressed.

An instructional memo ends when the reader has been instructed.

When you have done what you came to do, stop. Do not linger at the door saying good-bye sixteen times.

How do you know when you have finished? Look at the last sentence and ask yourself, “What does the reader lose if I cross it out?” If the answer is “nothing” or “I don’t know,” then cross it out. Do the same thing with the next-to-last sentence, and so forth. When you get to the sentence that you must have, read it out loud. Is it a good closing sentence? Does it sound final? Is it pleasant to the ear? Does it leave the reader in the mood you intended? If so, you are done. If not, rewrite it so that it does. Then stop writing.