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Essay on Good Habits for Children: List of Healthy Habits

• Updated on  
• Mar 15, 2024

Good habits are very important to become a successful and respectable person. Everybody must master good habits for their benefit and the welfare of their society. Good habits teach us some valuable lessons, such as eating healthy food, talking nicely, focusing on our goals, taking care of our things, etc. 

An essay on good habits is an important topic for students, where they discuss their good habits and what benefits they offer them. On this page, we will discuss some essays on good habits for children.

Table of Contents

• 1 10 Lines Essay on Good Habits for Class 1
• 2 10 Lines Essay on Good Habits for Class 2
• 3 Essay on Good Habits for Class 5
• 4 How to Write an Essay on Good Habits?

Check out our 200+ Essay Topics for School Students in English

10 Lines Essay on Good Habits for Class 1

Here is a 10-line essay on good habits for Class 1 students.

• ‘Early to bed and early to rise is one of the best good habits for students.’
• ‘Brushing our teeth every day keeps them clean and healthy.’
• ‘Washing our hands before and after meals helps us stay germ-free.’
• ‘Eating fruits and vegetables makes us strong and full of energy.’
• ‘Listening to our teachers in class helps us learn new things.’
• ‘Being kind to our friends and sharing with them makes us happy.’
• ‘Saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ shows good manners.’
• ‘Taking care of our toys and belongings makes them last longer.’
• ‘Going to bed early and getting enough sleep helps us feel good.’
• ‘Picking up after ourselves and keeping our surroundings clean is important./
• ‘Being responsible and doing our chores helps us grow up to be responsible adults.’

Also Read: Essay on Athletics in 100, 200 and 300 Words

10 Lines Essay on Good Habits for Class 2

Also Read: Essay on My House for Children

Essay on Good Habits for Class 5

‘Good habits are very important to build a happy and healthy lifestyle. Good habits keep our minds and body healthy and make us a good human being. Some of the good habits to develop are waking early in the morning, eating green vegetables, avoiding junk food, brushing our teeth, talking respectfully, listening to our teachers and parents, etc.’

‘Good habits make us a better person. Good habits can help us build healthy relationships. Active listening, empathy, and politeness lead to positive communication and stronger interpersonal connections.’

‘Good habits can help us achieve success in life. Consistently practicing good habits leads to long-term success by creating a foundation for personal and professional achievements. Healthy habits like mindfulness and meditation are very important to enhance focus and concentration. This allows us to work efficiently and attentively.’

The objective of following good habits is to lead a positive and happy life. Good habits can lead to better physical and mental well-being, build healthy relationships, and can also bring financial stability.’

How to Write an Essay on Good Habits?

To write an essay on good habits, there are some simple tips you can follow. Start your essay on good habits introduction with the definition of good habits and what benefits they bring. Highlight some of the best good habits for children and how they can include them in their daily lives. Then focus on the long-term benefits of good habits. Conclude your essay by listing some of the popular good habits and how important they are for a happier and healthier life.

• Definition of Good Habits

Good Habits are positive and healthy habits done daily that contribute to one’s overall well-being, personal development, and success.

• Benefits of Good Habits

Practicing good habits regularly promotes physical health, mental clarity, emotional balance, and positive relationships. Good habits lead to a positive impact on various aspects of like, such as work, education, relationships, and personal growth.

• Best Good Habits for Children

Some of the best good habits for children include eating lots of fruits and vegetables, regularly brushing their teeth, washing hands, respecting elders and friends, regularly exercising, taking care of their books and other important things, etc.

• Good Habits Lead to a Happy and Healthier Life

Good habits lay the foundation of a successful and fulfilling life. They contribute to physical well-being, personal development, positive relationships, and professional success. 

Ans: To write an essay on good habits, there are some simple tips you can follow. Start your essay on good habits introduction with the definition of good habits and what benefits they bring. Highlight some of the best good habits for children and how they can include them in their daily lives. Then focus on the long-term benefits of good habits. Conclude your essay by listing some of the popular good habits and how important they are for a happier and healthier life.

Ans: Some of the best good habits for children include eating lots of fruits and vegetables, regularly brushing their teeth, washing hands, respecting elders and friends, regularly exercising, taking care of their books and other important things, etc.

Ans: Good habits are very important to become a successful and respectable person. Good habits teach us some valuable lessons, such as eating healthy good, talking nicely, focusing on our goals, taking care of our things, etc. Good habits make us a better person. Eating fruits and vegetables makes us strong and full of energy ‘Listening to our teachers in class helps us learn new things.’

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Shiva Tyagi

With an experience of over a year, I've developed a passion for writing blogs on wide range of topics. I am mostly inspired from topics related to social and environmental fields, where you come up with a positive outcome.

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Essay on Good Habits

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Good habits are the foundation upon which a successful and fulfilling life is built. They are like the bricks that construct the walls of our character, and they play a pivotal role in shaping our destiny. Developing and cultivating good habits is not only essential for personal growth but is also a critical aspect of achieving success in various aspects of life. In this essay, we will delve deep into the significance of good habits, their formation, and how they can pave the way for a brighter future.

The Nature of Habits

Habits are routine behaviors or actions that we perform almost unconsciously. They are deeply ingrained in our daily lives and have a significant impact on our thoughts, actions, and ultimately, our outcomes. Habits can be categorized into two types: good habits and bad habits. Good habits are actions that bring positive benefits to our lives, while bad habits have detrimental consequences.

The Formation of Habits

Habits are formed through a process that involves a cue, a routine, and a reward. The cue is the trigger that initiates the habit, the routine is the behavior itself, and the reward is the positive outcome or satisfaction gained from completing the routine. For example, the cue for a habit of reading daily may be the sight of a book, the routine is the act of reading, and the reward is the knowledge gained or the sense of accomplishment.

Developing Good Habits

Developing good habits requires conscious effort and commitment. Here are some key steps to help students inculcate good habits into their lives:

• Self-awareness: Identify areas in your life where you want to develop good habits. It could be related to academics, health, time management, or personal growth.
• Start small: Begin with one habit at a time. Trying to change too many things at once can be overwhelming and counterproductive.
• Set clear goals : Define what you want to achieve with the habit and set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals.
• Create a routine: Establish a regular schedule or routine that includes the habit you want to develop. Consistency is key.
• Stay motivated: Find sources of motivation and inspiration to keep you on track. This could be in the form of quotes, role models, or rewards for achieving milestones.
• Overcome obstacles: Identify potential challenges that may hinder your habit formation and develop strategies to overcome them.
• Seek support: Share your goals with friends or family who can offer encouragement and hold you accountable.

Examples of Good Habits

• Reading: Cultivating a habit of reading regularly enhances knowledge, vocabulary, and critical thinking skills. It also provides an avenue for relaxation and entertainment.
• Time management: Effective time management is a valuable skill that can lead to increased productivity and reduced stress. It involves setting priorities, creating schedules, and avoiding procrastination.
• Healthy eating: Adopting a habit of eating nutritious foods can lead to better physical and mental health. It supports growth, energy, and overall well-being.
• Regular exercise: Incorporating regular physical activity into your routine promotes physical fitness, reduces the risk of diseases, and enhances mood and mental clarity.
• Positive thinking: Developing a habit of positive thinking can improve your mental attitude, resilience, and overall outlook on life.
• Goal setting: Setting and pursuing goals is a habit that helps individuals strive for personal and academic achievements. It provides direction and motivation.

The Impact of Good Habits

The benefits of good habits are far-reaching and can be seen in various aspects of life:

• Academic success: Students who develop good study habits, time management skills, and a thirst for learning often excel in their studies. These habits lead to improved grades and a deeper understanding of subjects.
• Career advancement: In the professional world, good habits such as punctuality, effective communication, and a strong work ethic are highly valued. They can open doors to career opportunities and advancement.
• Health and well-being: Habits like regular exercise, balanced nutrition, and adequate sleep contribute to physical fitness and overall health. They reduce the risk of chronic illnesses and increase longevity.
• Personal development: Good habits are integral to personal growth and development. They enable individuals to become more disciplined, focused, and self-aware, leading to increased self-confidence and better decision-making.
• Positive relationships: Habits like active listening, empathy, and effective communication improve interpersonal relationships. They foster trust and understanding among friends, family, and colleagues.
• Stress reduction: Good habits can help manage stress by providing structure and coping mechanisms. Meditation, mindfulness, and relaxation techniques are examples of habits that promote emotional well-being.

The Role of Discipline

Discipline plays a crucial role in the formation and maintenance of good habits. It involves the ability to control one’s impulses and stay committed to a chosen course of action. Discipline requires determination, willpower, and a strong sense of purpose. It helps individuals overcome the temptation to revert to bad habits and ensures the consistency needed to reinforce good habits.

In conclusion, good habits are the cornerstones of success and personal development. They are not only essential for achieving academic excellence but also for leading a healthy, fulfilling life. Developing and nurturing good habits is a lifelong journey that requires self-awareness, commitment, and discipline. By consciously choosing to cultivate positive routines, students can set themselves on a path to a brighter future filled with achievement, good health, and happiness. Remember, as Aristotle wisely said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”

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Essay On Habits

• Post category: Essay
• Reading time: 4 mins read

Set 1: Essay On Habits

All of us have habits. Anything that is done repeatedly becomes a habit. Once we get into a habit we do a thing without thinking about it. Habits may be good or bad. Rising early, working hard, being punctual are good habits. Gambling, swearing, lying, using bad language, drinking, stealing and quarrelling are bad habits.

It is necessary to cultivate good habits and avoid bad ones. There is a saying that habits are at first cobwebs but after wards cables. This shows that habits might be weak at first, but, once they become strong, they are difficult to break. Hence we should try to acquire only good habits.

Everyone respects a man who has good habits. Good habits help one to succeed in life. A person with bad habits is despised and mocked at. Childhood is the right time to instill good habits in children. If a child grows up with bad habits no one can make him undo them when he grows up. Hence parents should be careful to see that children have only good habits.

Set 2: Essay On Good Habits

Habit means how we behave generally. Good habits are not in born. We may have good habits by practicing kindness and courtesy.

They are important in our life. They win everybody’s love and respect. No one likes a child with bad habits. To stand in a queue, not to damage the public property, to use thank you and sorry, to wish the elders, to use a handkerchief and the table manners are all good habits and should be taught to all children. Good habits may be taught at home or even in the school. We may say that good 80 habits are must for every child.

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Essay on Good Habits – 10 Lines, Short and Long Essay for Children

Key Points To Remember When Writing An Essay on Good Habits For Lower Primary Classes

10 lines on good habits for kids, short essay on good habits in english for children, long essay on good habits for kids, importance of good habits in life, list of good habits for successful life, what will your child learn from an essay on good habits.

Essay writing is an important skill for kids because it helps them think deeply about a topic and conclude. It also helps with sentence structure, vocabulary, coming up with ideas, and presenting them in words. In the lower primary classes, students are taught the importance of good habits. One way in which the teachers focus on this topic is by assigning it for essay writing. An essay on Good Habits for classes 1, 2 & 3 can give kids many ideas for writing about their good practices as they learn how to write short and long compositions.

‘Healthy Habits’ is a great essay topic as ample knowledge on this helps kids grow up happy and healthy. We all need good habits in our daily lives. These are mostly taught to us when we are young and stay with us until the end. Let us guide your child with some essential points for writing a good essay on habits.

A broad topic like good habits for an essay can be complicated for young students to understand, and that’s why kids need a lot of practice and exposure to language to learn how to write well. If you’re also unsure how to write an essay on good habits for children, consider a few points.

• Everything you write should back up the central point.
• Write a sentence that sums up what you want to say. Lastly, use facts and examples to back up your point.
• There should be an introduction, the body (one to three paragraphs), and the end. Each paragraph should have about three to four sentences, which can change depending on your writing.
• Start your essay by saying what the main point is, and at the end of your essay, you should restate your main point.

Having good habits is like having wisdom. If you keep up the good habits, you will move ahead in life and get more admiration. You can use these 10 points in an essay on good habits for classes 1 and 2.

• Being a good person comes from having good habits.
• Successful people have good habits that help them grow in life.
• Everyone respects people with good habits.
• If you have good habits, everyone will look up to you.
• Good habits help you learn how to control yourself.
• An excellent social reputation depends on good habits.
• Having good habits can make your life better.
• Healthy habits help you stay healthy.
• A happy life is built on good habits.
• Good habits will attract friends and company.

Good habits are vital for good health. It is possible to develop a variety of healthy habits that are helpful to one’s health. Children will learn to write a paragraph by reading this small essay on good habits.

Good habits are essential for having good education and behaviour. It is the foundation for the growth of everyone. We need time and determination to develop good practice. We need to be disciplined as it’s difficult to leave bad habits behind. Having good manners is a stepping stone. We need to practice all positive values such as hard work, punctuality, honesty and more until it becomes a routine. Everyone loves and looks up to someone with good habits. If we have clean habits, maintain good hygiene, appear well-groomed and remain tidy, people will find us attractive and will want to be our friends. Right from children to elders, we all should have good habits to be better people.

Good habits have a great impact on a person’s lifestyle and progress in their work. Writing an essay on good habits will allow kids to know more about this crucial asset of life and they will feel encouraged to embrace some good habits in their disposition. Here is a template for your reference:

Healthy living needs a healthy body as it is the base of progress and happiness. For our body and mind to stay healthy, we must follow some good habits. We can have a healthy lifestyle by taking essential steps as follows.

Structured Timetable

Keeping a good schedule every day is very important. We should try to eat three to four healthy meals a day, drink a lot of water, and maintain a fitness routine like walking, jogging, or running. This regime keeps the body healthy and balanced, which is the key to keeping the mind healthy.

Sincerity And Honesty

Being honest is an essential good habit because it shapes our overall disposition. We can show honesty in many ways, such as by telling the truth, admitting mistakes, recognising and fixing errors, not slandering other people, and analysing and improving ourselves.

To succeed in all aspects of life in today’s world, we must be honest and work hard. The goal should be to do the best work that benefits us and the people we are with. Work ethic and honesty are the best traits to develop for school or a job.

Punctuality

Being on time is one of the best habits to succeed in life and is an essential aspect of life. Being on time gives us confidence because it creates a good impression and shows how interested and honest we are in our work.

Whether old or young, we need to learn to value other people. What we offer always comes back to us. People will respect us if we treat them with respect. We should always be respectful enough to say “thank you” and “I’m sorry” when appropriate.

Cleanliness

We need to keep our surroundings clean. We need to make sure that our habits are good for the environment, and don’t cause any damage to it. Small acts like not littering, reducing the use of plastic and using dustbins will help us keep our environment clean. We need to maintain the same habit of keeping everything neat and tidy at home. When things go wrong, it’s hard to find anything if the place is messy.

Sharing is one of the most important values that helps us show love and care towards others. It develops the feeling of compassion, empathy, and togetherness.

Here are some reasons why good habita are important:

• To help you reach your goals and dreams.
• To make lifelong friends.
• Family, friends, and people, in general, will respect you more.
• Having good habits makes your life better.
• You will achieve more success.
• People will be willing to help you when you need it.

These good habits will help you succees in life:

• Wake up, and go to bed early
• Always be kind and polite to other people
• Respect your friends, teachers, and elders
• Have fun with good people
• Read and learn all the time
• Have a plan to study

Writing a composition on good habits will teach your youngster to organise their thoughts. In this way, they will learn how to structure their thoughts and ideas into the paragraphs that make up the body of their essay. They will feel motivated to absorb some good habits in their routine too.

Good habits take time to form and need discipline. Children need to learn good habits from an early age. We can live a healthy life if we keep up with good habits.

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Reading is Good Habit for Students and Children

 500+ words essay on reading is good habit.

Reading is a very good habit that one needs to develop in life. Good books can inform you, enlighten you and lead you in the right direction. There is no better companion than a good book. Reading is important because it is good for your overall well-being. Once you start reading, you experience a whole new world. When you start loving the habit of reading you eventually get addicted to it. Reading develops language skills and vocabulary. Reading books is also a way to relax and reduce stress. It is important to read a good book at least for a few minutes each day to stretch the brain muscles for healthy functioning.

Benefits of Reading

Books really are your best friends as you can rely on them when you are bored, upset, depressed, lonely or annoyed. They will accompany you anytime you want them and enhance your mood. They share with you information and knowledge any time you need. Good books always guide you to the correct path in life. Following are the benefits of reading –

Self Improvement: Reading helps you develop positive thinking. Reading is important because it develops your mind and gives you excessive knowledge and lessons of life. It helps you understand the world around you better. It keeps your mind active and enhances your creative ability.

Communication Skills: Reading improves your vocabulary and develops your communication skills. It helps you learn how to use your language creatively. Not only does it improve your communication but it also makes you a better writer. Good communication is important in every aspect of life.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Increases Knowledge: Books enable you to have a glimpse into cultures, traditions, arts, history, geography, health, psychology and several other subjects and aspects of life. You get an amazing amount of knowledge and information from books.

Reduces Stress: Reading a good book takes you in a new world and helps you relieve your day to day stress. It has several positive effects on your mind, body, and soul. It stimulates your brain muscles and keeps your brain healthy and strong.

Great Pleasure: When I read a book, I read it for pleasure. I just indulge myself in reading and experience a whole new world. Once I start reading a book I get so captivated I never want to leave it until I finish. It always gives a lot of pleasure to read a good book and cherish it for a lifetime.

Boosts your Imagination and Creativity: Reading takes you to the world of imagination and enhances your creativity. Reading helps you explore life from different perspectives. While you read books you are building new and creative thoughts, images and opinions in your mind. It makes you think creatively, fantasize and use your imagination.

Develops your Analytical Skills: By active reading, you explore several aspects of life. It involves questioning what you read. It helps you develop your thoughts and express your opinions. New ideas and thoughts pop up in your mind by active reading. It stimulates and develops your brain and gives you a new perspective.

Reduces Boredom: Journeys for long hours or a long vacation from work can be pretty boring in spite of all the social sites. Books come in handy and release you from boredom.

Read Different Stages of Reading here.

The habit of reading is one of the best qualities that a person can possess. Books are known to be your best friend for a reason. So it is very important to develop a good reading habit. We must all read on a daily basis for at least 30 minutes to enjoy the sweet fruits of reading. It is a great pleasure to sit in a quiet place and enjoy reading. Reading a good book is the most enjoyable experience one can have.

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Brief Notes on Robin Sharma’s 7 Good Habits

Brief Notes on Robin Sharma's 7 Good Habits Robin Sharma begins this essay Seven Good Habits by himself thinking of about the fundamentals of greatness, which were followed by simple and most unforgettable men and women and found that in order to be excellent in what ever we do we must be good. We have to be good

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Lydia Davis: Ten of My Recommendations for Good Writing Habits

Advice for writers on editing, revising, and taking notes.

Adapted from the essay “Thirty Recommendations for Good Writing Habits” in   Essays One .

The following are just my personal pieces of advice. They won’t be the same as someone else’s, and they may not fit your life or practice, but maybe you’ll pick up something useful.

1. Take notes regularly. This will sharpen both your powers of observation and your expressive ability. A productive feedback loop is established: Through the habit of taking notes, you will inevitably come to observe more; observing more, you will have more to note down. Here are some examples from my own notebooks and also from the Austrian fiction writer Peter Handke’s notebook selection entitled The Weight of the World . Other notebooks that might serve as useful models are Kafka’s and the painter Delacroix’s.

* Observe your own activity:

From my notebook:

a. “I keep hoping for a new and interesting email, and for hours now it has been the same subject line: ‘Used Kubota tractor for sale’.”

b. “I kept smelling a smell of cat pee but could not find where it was coming from, until I found the cat pee—on the tip of my very own nose!”

From Peter Handke’s notebook:

c. “Someone [a stranger] drops something and I pull my hand out of my pocket, but that’s all I do.”

* Observe your own feelings (but not at tiresome length):

a. “At the sight of a woman with enormously protuberant eyes, my irritation vanished”

b. The feeling of love, it seems, in my response to Peter Bichsel’s stories—they are loving stories. They awaken in me a feeling (love) that I am then quicker to feel in response to other things.

* Observe the behavior of others, both animal and human:

a. Little kitty crouches down and flattens her ears (in the entryway, in front of the glass door) so that she won’t be seen by the dead leaves whirling around outside.

b. Grandpa is over there under the tree working on his retractable umbrella.

c. That very handsome dark-haired and dark-eyed young man walks up and down the aisle of the train so many times to show us how nice he looks in his cream-colored summer suit and white shirt. He will continue to walk up and down until he is sure we have all seen him.

(In this case, the observation has already turned into something a little more, even as I write it, because I am adding something to it that I imagine, or can pretend I imagine, about the man.)

* Observe the weather, and be specific:

a. High wind yesterday blew women’s long hair, women’s long skirts, crowns of trees, at dinner outdoors napkins off laps, lettuce off plates, flakes of pastry off plates onto sidewalk.

Apropos of weather and precision, here is Webster ’ s Collegiate Dictionary ’s chart of the Beaufort scale—a scale in which the force of the wind is indicated by numbers from 0 to 17. This source is “just” a dictionary, but the images are vivid because of their specificity and the good clear writing in the dictionary, and because the increasing strength of the wind on the scale becomes, despite the dry, factual account, dramatic.

I have to say, as an aside, that I’m sure I learned something about writing clear and exact prose from the very precise definitions in this same dictionary, which I acquired at age 25 and consulted constantly.

* Observe other types of behavior, including that of municipalities:

From my notebook, while traveling:

a. To commemorate the St.-Cyprieux victims of the flood of 1875, the city erected . . . a fountain.

(I revised this, in the notebook: I changed the order a little to avoid a succession of prepositional phrases. My sentence originally read: To commemorate the victims in St. Cyprieux of the flood of 1875, the city erected . . . a fountain. That version may, after all, be perfectly all right, or even better.)

* Note facts

As a writer, whether you are writing fiction, non-fiction, or poetry, you must be responsible for accurate factual information about how a thing works, if you’re writing about it. You will have to be well informed about such things as the weather, biology, botany, human nature, history, technology, such matters as color spectrums and the behavior of light waves etc. etc. This means that, over time, you will learn a good deal. Here’s an example of a piece of knowledge acquired while traveling:

Question: can you figure out three reasons why trees were planted along this canal in a French city?

My answer, noted in notebook:

a. trees planted along canal for three reasons: shade for boatmen, help slow evaporation of water, hold earth in banks. Often planted at exactly equal intervals.

* Note technical/historical facts:

Here are some notes I took in the Cluny Museum in Paris, about construction methods in Ancient Rome:

a. “Courses of limestone (rows) intersected by leveling courses (bands) of horizontal bricks forming a construction named opus vittatum mixtum , [banded mixed materials], a reference to the layering techniques and to the mixing of different materials.”

b. “The floor . . . is made of Roman concrete, opus caementicium , a mix of stones and lime mortar . . . probably covered in stone slabs or mosaics.”

Important: Take notes at the time, because you will forget so much, if not everything, later—you will inevitably either forget the moment entirely, or forget a part of it, so that won’t be as complete or interesting when you do note it down.

a. Here is Samuel Johnson on the subject of travel writing: “He who has not made the experiment will scarcely believe how much a few hours take from accuracy of knowledge.”

On the subject of taking notes, I want to add one last thing, and that is about public transportation: I do a lot of writing and note-taking on trips: in airports, on airplanes, on trains. I recommend taking public transportation whenever possible. There are many good reasons to do this (one’s carbon footprint, safety, productive use of time, support of public transportation, etc.), but for a writer, here are two in particular: 1) you will write a good deal more waiting for a bus or sitting on a train than you will driving a car, or as a passenger in a car; and (2) you will be thrown in with strangers—people not of your choosing. Although I pass strangers when I’m walking on a city street, it is only while traveling on public transportation that I sit thigh to thigh with them on a subway, stare at the back of their heads waiting in line, and overhear sometimes extended conversations. It takes me out of my own limited, chosen world. Sometimes I have good, enlightening conversations with them.

2. Always work (note, write) from your own interest, never from what you think you should be noting, or writing. Trust your own interest. I have a strong interest, at the moment, in Roman building techniques, thus my notation above, taken down in the Cluny Museum in Paris. My interest may pass. But for the moment I follow it and enjoy it, not knowing where it will go.

Let your interest, and particularly what you want to write about, be tested by time, not by other people—either real other people or imagined other people.

This is why writing workshops can be a little dangerous, it should be said; even the teachers or leaders of such workshops can be a little dangerous; this is why most of your learning should be on your own. Other people are often very sure that their opinions and their judgments are correct.

3. Be mostly self-taught.

There is a great deal to be learned from programs, courses, and teachers. But I suggest working equally hard, throughout your life, at learning new things on your own, from whatever sources seem most useful to you. I have found that pursuing my own interests in various directions and to various sources of information can take me on fantastic adventures: I have stayed up till the early hours of the morning poring over old phone books; or following genealogical lines back hundreds of years; or reading a book about what lies under a certain French city; or comparing early maps of Manhattan as I search for a particular farmhouse. These adventures become as gripping as a good novel.

4. Revise notes constantly—try to develop the ability to read them as though you had never seen them before, to see how well they communicate. Constant revision, whether or not you’re going to “do” anything with what you’ve written, also teaches you to write better in the first place, when you first write something down.

I have already given some examples of revision, since it is an inveterate habit when I reread anything I’ve written. I will give more examples as I go along and explain more about the importance of this later.

5. If you take notes regularly, sitting in an airport, for example, you can “grow” a story right then and there. Revising it, you can give it a good shape and pace. Here are some notes I took sitting in an airport lounge at a table near a Starbuck’s:

a. First I copy down some dialog I hear that strikes me:

“Caramel syrup or caramel drizzle?”

“Caramel syrup or caramel drizzle?” (I look up; it is a tall slim woman with a ponytail buying the drink. She’s an airline employee in the Starbuck’s line.)

Long pause for deliberation.

“I’ll take the drizzle.”

(I see her now from behind, over there, her blond ponytail and sticking-out ears, drinking her caramel drizzle. As she deliberated, I was deciding that drizzle was a smaller amount of caramel than “syrup” even though “syrup” must be involved in the “drizzle.”)

Later, she walks away with another airline employee, the empty cup in her hand, the caramel drizzle inside her.

And then she turns out to be the attendant on our flight—her name is Shannon—so her caramel drizzle will also be going to Chicago with us.

In between my observations of the flight attendant, there were other notes, first a comment about something I had experienced trying to learn Dutch, and then another people observation, as follows:

b. Stout, cheerful, rather dandyish man dressed in preppy clothes—tweed jacket, bow tie, loafers, etc.—starts off down the airport corridor in pursuit of a boy of six or seven in camouflage clothes who was galloping away. Stout man calls cheerfully back to woman at table, who is evidently boy’s mother: “James and I are going potty!”

Then I go back to observing the stewardess.

6. Taking notes as you sit outside at a cafe table, you can also begin to develop a poem. This is the same wind as before, at the same cafe table. I did not write it to be a poem, but later I look at it, and it almost reads as one:

a. In the wind, the grass is bowing and the Queen Anne’s lace is nodding.

Now, as though blown by the wind, come the runners in the footrace.

Here is how the revision worked: originally I did not have “In the wind” at the beginning. I was sitting there in the wind, I knew it was windy, I knew why the grass and the Queen Anne’s lace were bowing and nodding. But when I read it over with fresh eyes, I could see that I needed to say the wind was blowing, otherwise the reader might hesitate or take time figuring out why the grass and flowers were moving. You want the impact of what you write to be unobstructed ; you don’t want confusion or hesitation in the reader’s mind.

I say “the reader” for convenience, by the way. The fact is that when I revise in my notebook, I’m revising for the sake of the piece itself, to make it work. I’m not thinking about any reader. I may never do any more with it than leave it in the notebook.

7. Another advantage of revising constantly, regardless of whether you’re ever going to “use” what you’ve written, is that you practice, constantly, reading with fresh eyes, reading as the person coming fresh to this, never having seen it before. This is a very important skill to develop, and one that probably develops only with time and practice (although some people recommend various tricks, such as printing different drafts of your work in different fonts).

Another way to see your work freshly is to leave it alone and come back to it after time has passed. I will quite often begin a piece of writing, even hastily, getting a few lines or sentences down, with a title, and then leave it and work on other things, and sometimes I leave it for so long—weeks or months—that when I see the title again I wonder what it is, and even when I read it I don’t recognize it, having completely forgotten it existed.

8. Sentences or ideas reported from reality out of context can be wonderful. But then, when and if you use them in a piece of finished writing, beware of how much context you give them.

Context can mean explanation, exposition. And too much of it can take away all the interest that the material originally had. Here are some more notes, effective alone, without context, less effective with context:

More notebook entries:

a: “When he was in his sixties, he often seemed tired of life.” (from Wikipedia article about the Dutch painter Willem Maris)

b. “Another of Tennyson’s brothers, Edward Tennyson, was institutionalized at a private asylum, where he was deemed dead.” (from Wikipedia article on Tennyson)

c. Alas I’m in Denver” (email)

d: “I can always get someone to open a window in Paris.” (email from schoolmate about learning French)

e. “The children at The Children’s Center are interested in building a castle.” (email)

In this last example, part of the vividness of the entry is the language: the repetition of “children”and then the word “interested”, which somehow seems incongruous to the behavior of children. And then the picture conjured up by children building a (real) castle. This would not have been as striking if the situation as a whole had been more fully explained and the language had been slightly changed, thus: “The children at the daycare center want to build a castle out of blocks.”)

f. “I need a plumber.” (email)

9. Go to primary sources and go to the great works to learn technique. This was the advice of Matsuo Basho, the 17th-c. Japanese master of the haiku.

Read the best writers: maybe it would help to set a goal of one classic per year at least. Classics have stood the test of time, as we say. Keep trying them, if you don’t like them at first—come back to them. I tried Joyce’s Ulysses three times before I read it all the way through. (It helped that I was living in Ireland at the time, where I saw Joycean and Beckettian characters all around me.) I haven’t yet read Don Quixote , but I think I’ll actually enjoy it.

10. How should you read? What should the diet of your reading be? Read the best writers from all different periods; keep your reading of contemporaries in proportion—you do not want a steady diet of contemporary literature. You already belong to your time.

——————————————

Adapted from the essay “Thirty Recommendations for Good Writing Habits” in Essays One by Lydia Davis. Reprinted with the permission of the publisher, Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Copyright © 2019 by Lydia Davis.

Lydia Davis

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Full Transcript of Kamala Harris’s Democratic Convention Speech

The vice president’s remarks lasted roughly 35 minutes on the final night of the convention in Chicago.

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• Aug. 23, 2024

This is a transcript of Vice President Kamala Harris’s speech on Thursday night in which she formally accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for the presidency.

OK, let’s get to business. Let’s get to business. All right.

So, let me start by thanking my most incredible husband, Doug. For being an incredible partner to me, an incredible father to Cole and Ella, and happy anniversary, Dougie. I love you so very much.

To our president, Joe Biden. When I think about the path that we have traveled together, Joe, I am filled with gratitude. Your record is extraordinary, as history will show, and your character is inspiring. And Doug and I love you and Jill, and are forever thankful to you both.

And to Coach Tim Walz. You are going to be an incredible vice president. And to the delegates and everyone who has put your faith in our campaign, your support is humbling.

So, America, the path that led me here in recent weeks was, no doubt, unexpected. But I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys. So, my mother, our mother, Shyamala Harris, had one of her own. And I miss her every day, and especially right now. And I know she’s looking down smiling. I know that.

So, my mother was 19 when she crossed the world alone, traveling from India to California with an unshakable dream to be the scientist who would cure breast cancer.

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