（一）
Stephen White 谈写风格，说往往份讲究文句抑扬顿挫，陶醉在己创造的文字声色中。他说，有一位文章曾经令写的人必须忍痛杀掉笔的一些肝宝贝（“Kill your darlings ”）。文章诱人的一字、一句、一段，往往顾引人入胜不守本份，读者於是叹观止忘其所（“Words, sentences, paragraphs that call much attention to themselves are not doing the job they are inteo do. While the reader is paying them due reverence, he is likely to ighe message they were meant to vey ”）。文体沉浮字海数十年，必定身经千万次割爱苦。艺术求“巧”，死练技术，经年累月，许不难办。求“拙”最不容易，“巧”做根基，加浓烈的破世情的悟，反璞，淡泊，不露经营，见“拙”。文章字句诱人是“巧”的功力；杀掉些巧妙处，的正是追求就论、依情说情的“常”。此中牵涉太的阅历。路易十四的近亲Liselotte 书信集说，才艺士不宜太饱，反不不谙世故、通人情；人情世故书中不，全靠阅历（“ It is not at all suitable for people of great quality to be very learned, but highly necessary for them to know the world and be able to deal with people, and they ''t learn that from books but only from experience ”）。
（二）
，文章句子绵绵诱人，未必是些风花雪月的描述，未必是引经据典的段落。读书消化，阅世通达，即便是说风说花说雪说月，另有意境；经典引顺。有一次，我在英国图书馆翻书，书页间偶掉一张的牛皮纸，面录了Gee Eliot的一段话，说是英博物馆书，视求知畏途。说，是有一盏阿拉丁神灯就，什书一说就有（“We are going now to the British Museum to read - a fearful way of getting knowledge. If I had Aladdin''s lamp I should certainly use it to get books served up to me at a moment''s notice”）。阿拉丁神灯典故人人皆知，在浅显的句子，表达浅显的愿，既有笔墨，又有情致。那张破牛皮纸的字迹很娟秀，墨水褪了色。我抄段话，破纸插回书页。
（三）
“拙”趣，那是造化。李染的画磅礴中不稚气，功力敛弥彰，代少见。文字说“拙”，领，殊难言传。我求简练已经太了。英文说 I miss you very much，那是客套；说I miss you，有点真情；弃掉一字，说miss you,跟中文的“你”一，简直是甜甜的悄悄话，亦舒说的，教人“感动软软的”，“谁吃消”。Christina Foyle坐计程车，司机跟聊，突说：人老了不机灵有什（“ What is the good of getting old, if you don''t get artful ”）。“机灵”毕竟是艺术的灵魂；笨笨的有什头，不杀掉它。