Being concise and to-the-point is just as important as using simple English.
That blog post is too long for the ideas it conveys (kinda ironic?).
Here are some things I found tiring to read:
"There's an Italian dish called saltimbocca, which means "leap into the mouth." My goal when writing might be called saltintesta: the ideas leap into your head and you barely notice the words that got them there."
^ This analogy is distracting and not required to communicate a simple concept.
"It's too much to hope that writing could ever be pure ideas. You might not even want it to be. But for most writers, most of the time, that's the goal to aim for. The gap between most writing and pure ideas is not filled with poetry."
^Just delete this. What are you trying to say here?
"It's like trailing a long train behind you that readers have to carry."
^I don't understand this analogy. Long train I am trying to carry behind me? That is a ridiculous and distracting image you have put into the readers mind.
"If the friction of reading is low enough, more keep going till the end."
^This is an obtuse and awkward way of saying: "People are more likely to read things they easily understand"
"Indeed, lasting is not merely an accidental quality of chairs, or writing. It's a sign you did a good job."
^ Where did chairs come from?
But although these are all real advantages of writing simply, none of them are why I do it. The main reason I write simply is that it offends me not to."
That blog post is too long for the ideas it conveys (kinda ironic?). Here are some things I found tiring to read:
"There's an Italian dish called saltimbocca, which means "leap into the mouth." My goal when writing might be called saltintesta: the ideas leap into your head and you barely notice the words that got them there."
^ This analogy is distracting and not required to communicate a simple concept.
"It's too much to hope that writing could ever be pure ideas. You might not even want it to be. But for most writers, most of the time, that's the goal to aim for. The gap between most writing and pure ideas is not filled with poetry."
^Just delete this. What are you trying to say here?
"It's like trailing a long train behind you that readers have to carry."
^I don't understand this analogy. Long train I am trying to carry behind me? That is a ridiculous and distracting image you have put into the readers mind.
"If the friction of reading is low enough, more keep going till the end."
^This is an obtuse and awkward way of saying: "People are more likely to read things they easily understand"
"Indeed, lasting is not merely an accidental quality of chairs, or writing. It's a sign you did a good job."
^ Where did chairs come from?
But although these are all real advantages of writing simply, none of them are why I do it. The main reason I write simply is that it offends me not to."
^ Delete, doesn't add any value tbh