Positively Orwellian

A comment to a post on Eric Rescorla's blog reminded me about an important essay by George Orwell, Politics and the English Language, that is as appropriate now as when it was first written, maybe more.

I'm writing up a report for a client (right after I post this okay!), so I want to remember this:

A scrupulous writer, in every sentence that he writes, will ask himself at least four questions, thus: What am I trying to say? What words will express it? What image or idiom will make it clearer? Is this image fresh enough to have an effect? And he will probably ask himself two more: Could I put it more shortly? Have I said anything that is avoidably ugly?

Very important.