When you hear the name George Orwell, you probably think of books like 1984 and Animal Farm. But the philosopher-author also penned a 1946 essay called "Politics and the English Language." And in a guest post at the Conversation Agent blog, Lauren Vargas argues that his advice on writing can keep your copy sparkling and relevant. "A little extra effort will get your content noticed," she says.

When in doubt, Vargas recommends relying on Orwellian guidelines like these to settle your internal debate:

• Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech that frequently appears in print. You might be thinking outside of the box, hitting a home run or going for gold, but your readers have seen these clichéd phrases so many times that they now carry very little meaning.
• Give preference to shorter words. Depending on various factors, "mellifluous" may be your best word choice—but if a word like "sweet" adequately conveys your meaning, use it.
• Cut unnecessary words. Check for wordiness by reading your copy out loud. The ear does a better job than the eye of catching extraneous verbiage.
• Use the passive voice sparingly. If you notice lots of "to be" verbs or overcomplicated tenses, your copy needs to get more active.
• Avoid foreign or technical phrases if an everyday English equivalent will do. You can say "Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose" and be understood by a fraction of your readers, or you can say "The more things change, the more they stay the same" and be understood by everyone.

The Po!nt: "Begin a movement to send jargon to the virtual dustbin by examining your own content," says Vargas.

Source: Conversation Agent. Click here for the complete post.

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