W. Brian Arthur had cracked one of the biggest puzzles in economics. He'd figured out why companies like Microsoft and Google don't just win—they dominate so completely that competitors can barely survive. His theory of "increasing returns" would eventually explain how the entire internet economy works.
But there was one problem: nobody could understand what he was trying to say.
Arthur's breakthrough was buried under layers of mysterious jargon and muddy prose. The idea that would later become foundational to understanding digital markets was about to die in obscurity—until Arthur made an unusual decision.
He sent his paper to his friend Cormac McCarthy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist behind The Road and No Country for Old Men. After weeks of silence, McCarthy called with a simple question: "Would you be interested in some editing help?"
What happened next would transform not just Arthur's paper, but his entire career.
Over four intense days, McCarthy stripped away the academic clutter and rebuilt the article using the same principles that made his novels impossible to put down. The result became one of Harvard Business Review's most popular articles of all time.
In this video, I'll teach you the exact writing principles Cormac McCarthy used to make this transformation possible. These aren't typical writing tips—they're communication strategies that turn complex ideas into clear, compelling messages that people actually want to read.
I'll show you how to strip away unnecessary complexity without losing meaning, craft paragraphs that guide readers effortlessly through your logic, choose concrete examples that make abstract concepts instantly understandable, and use grammar and style choices that create natural flow and engagement.
Your expertise is too valuable to be misunderstood.
Learn to write clearly from one of the greatest writers of the 21st century.