A survey of 112 editors from magazines, newspapers, and publishing houses was conducted to obtain their judgments about prose style, the best prose stylists, and representative works by those stylists. Of the 112 editors surveyed, only 22 responded with useful data. The results indicated very little consensus among editors, and almost no correlation between the genre of their work and the writers they cited. In all, 57 authors were mentioned. Some of the most frequently mentioned stylistic qualities were clarity, elegance/grace, establishing a consistent personal voice, and simplicity/spareness. Beyond the basic requirements of clarity, orderliness, grace, and fluency, it appeared that the editors thought the best writers were those who had a clear conception of their audience and who crafted an intimacy with that audience. The findings suggest that, since voice and tone were considered important factors in good, effective writing, teachers will need to discover ways of developing these elusive skills in student writers. (RL)