Prompt Proofing Blog Post: Improve Your Writing, Part 2

VANCOUVER, BC, April 15, 2011 (Press-News.org) This is the second of a six-part series on improving your writing style. Whether you write for business or academic purposes, there are a few golden rules that will help you sharpen up your prose.

Part 2: Vary your sentence lengths

Back in the day, when I was teaching high school English, the phrase 'varied sentence length' was one of a few key criteria for earning top grades in writing assignments. University students and business writers can likewise attain the same 'top grades' for their writing by remembering this simple ploy. Put simply, sentences that are all of similar length and construction make for tedious reading. Variety adds interest!

Short sentences (used consistently) have one main purpose: to create tension, or a sense of immediacy.

Consider:
Dan crept forward cautiously. A shadow fell across the sidewalk. Suddenly the night sky was ablaze. Shots rang out. Dan ducked down. He held his breath. Moments passed. A car started up. The driver steered directly at him.

This may work well if you are writing a crime thriller, though even then variety will be needed. Generally speaking, however, short sentences create a disjointed, choppy effect and make for tedious reading.

Now compare the following sentence (90 words in length) taken from The Golden Bowl by Henry James:
"What he accordingly saw, for some seconds, with intensity, was a tall, strong, charming girl who wore for him, at first, exactly the look of her adventurous situation, a suggestion, in all her person, in motion and gesture, in free, vivid, yet altogether happy indications of dress, from the becoming compactness of her hat to the shade of tan in her shoes, of winds and waves and custom-houses, of far countries and long journeys, the knowledge of how and where and the habit, founded on experience, of not being afraid."

Certainly this provides us with a wonderfully evocative description, but can you remember - as you approach the end - how the sentence began? Overly long sentences, with subordinate clause after subordinate clause, need to be used sparingly, if at all, since the reader has a tendency to get lost in the middle of them.

So is there a happy medium? An 'average' sentence might contain between 12 and 25 words; however, writing sentences all of medium length would also quickly become tedious for the reader. Variety is the spice of life - and writing.

Interspersing short sentences with longer, complex sentences and medium-length sentences will give your writing a pleasing rhythm, and - most importantly - retain your reader's attention.

Consider the following re-write of our first example:
As Dan crept cautiously forward, a shadow fell across the sidewalk and suddenly the night sky was ablaze. Shots rang out. Dan ducked down low, holding his breath. Several moments passed as he crouched there when, suddenly, a car started up. The driver steered directly at him.

This may not be perfect, but it is far less choppy than the first example, and the varied sentence length definitely makes it easier to read, or listen to.

Check back next Friday for another Prompt Proofing blog post!

About the Author

Pat Wootton is originally from England and is a former high school English teacher. Having spent many years in the Caribbean, where she raised her family, she now lives in Vancouver, BC. In addition, she has taught English as a Second Language (ESL) for several years after earning a diploma in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from the University of British Columbia. She now owns and runs Prompt Proofing, a copy editing and writing service that caters to both individuals and businesses.

About Prompt Proofing

Prompt Proofing is based in Vancouver, BC, Canada and was officially launched in 2010 by a team of editing and writing professionals who have over 40 years of experience in the education, news media, public relations and recruitment fields. Prompt Proofing prides itself on affordable services delivered with fast turnaround times, without sacrificing quality or accuracy.

Offering content writing, editing and proofreading services, Prompt Proofing takes care of your individual or business content needs. Visit our website for more information at http://www.PromptProofing.com.

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