We were all taught the fundamentals of writing well in school. But how do we write effectively in today's hyper-interactive world? When The Elements of Style and On Writing Well were published in 1959 and 1976, the internet hadn't been invented. Since then, there has been a radical transformation in how we communicate. The average American adult receives over 120 emails and over 100 text messages each day. With all this correspondence, gaining a busy reader's attention is now a competition. Todd Rogers and Jessica Lasky-Fink, both behavioral scientists, offer practical writing advice you can use today. They begin by outlining cognitive facts about how busy people read, then detail six research-backed principles for effective writing: Use fewer words, lower the reading level, use formatting judiciously, make the purpose clear for skimmers, emphasize value for readers, make responding as easy as possible.