Words come before looks in web design is a very short article from Gerry McGovern.
When people come to your website, you have already got their attention.
Bingo! Maybe it takes more, graphically, to get them there (still debatable), but once they are there, visually shouting is both an annoyance and a design hindrance. I think most websites could stand to use fewer images, so that those that are used will be more distinguishable, be they navigational, informational, or for advertising. I like advertising that doesn’t insult me, even if the product or service isn’t something I need. Too much advertising on the web (everywhere?) is still a race for attention… a race to the bottom, really. Write well, shout less.
One of the reasons I post words here as often as I can is to hone my own writing. My words often need boiling down, a precipitating out of the catalyst material into refined nuggets. I don’t rewrite my words very often… it’s hard enough to write them the first time. So I attempt to make up for the lack of editing with practice. It won’t make perfect, and it’s not truly important that it be perfect, but I do feel like creating, rather than just consuming (reading), stretches my brain in the right ways.