Keynes's principles of writing (innovative) economics

In recent years, discourse and rhetoric in economics have received increasing discussion among economists. This paper contributes to the general debate by investigating the hitherto neglected topic of Keynes's views on the writing of economics, especially the writing of innovative or ground-breaking works. Five underlying principles are distilled from the ideas he presented in the 1920s and 1930s in essays on other economists and in reflections on his own experiences. These principles are replete with implications for all writing, reading and conversation in economics, regardless of time, place, type or participant.