Orwellian rules to writing better prose

i just finished reading a great essay by George Orwell on the death of effective and beautiful prose in the English language.

The essay culminates in a list of five rules for prose writing:

1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

if you've ever read anything by Orwell, you know he is one of the all-time great writers, and a master at non-fiction, biographical/historical works (Homage to Catalonia and Down and Out in Paris and London are masterpieces).

i think most (if not all) of these rules apply just as well to poetry. and are often the main reasons bad poetry is bad. Rules 2, 3, 4 and 5 seem the most important to me. Simplicity, beauty and originality is the name of the game.

and i suppose Rule 6 is what we call "poetic license." just don't make use of that license too much or it could end up being revoked.