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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Part IV: Chapter 20 The Sound of Your Voice.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What stops Americans from writing memoirs?
(a) People don't like reading memoires.
(b) Memoires don't sell well enough.
(c) Editors hate reading memoirs therefore don't pick them up.
(d) An attitude to please teachers and not readers.

2. What is Zinsser's preferred method for interviewing?
(a) He likes to use pencils and paper.
(b) He doesn't use anything. He just listens.
(c) He likes to use pens and markers.
(d) He likes audio recorders.

3. What is the problem with American writing?
(a) It is too complex.
(b) The writing is too sloppy.
(c) It isn't complex enough.
(d) Americans are bad at fact checking.

4. Who is the author talking to at the beginning of the book?
(a) He is talking with his editor.
(b) He is talking to his mother.
(c) He is talking to his wife.
(d) He is presenting to student writers at a Connecticut school.

5. What could cause a writer to write unclear?
(a) Not having brainstormed enough.
(b) Not having enough experience.
(c) Not taking any writing classes.
(d) Not knowing what they want to say.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why is the English language so easy to use when writing?

2. Should a writer use different voices for different types of writing?

3. What is the main thing required to being a good writer?

4. Why does Zissner advise his clients to worry about the marketplace last?

5. What other group of people uses euphemisms or fad terms?

(see the answer key)

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