Ever wonder how some authors create flowing prose? They do it with a variety of sentences having different beginnings, different constructions and different lengths. This does not come naturally to all authors, but the techniques can be learned. Begin by collecting data from your own writing — take a page and make a list of sentence beginnings, length and narrative type. Edit your work as needed: the key is to avoid repetition and introduce variation.
Beginnings
In the book Blade Runner by Phillip K. Dick the author demonstrates a huge variety of sentence beginnings. Do you have this much variety? These examples come from his first page:
- A merry…
- Surprised…
- “You set your…
- “I’ll reset it…
- He sealed…
- “If you…
- At setting…
- Friendly, …
- His irritability…
- Iran said, “…
Sentence Lengths
The easiest way to obtain a variety of length is to employ more types of sentences (as follows).
Sentence Types
Use a variety different sentence types: Simple, compound, complex and complex-compound.
Narrative Types
Mix dialog, interior monologue, exposition, description and action. Use different colored highlighters to mark the types in your work to confirm you have a balance.
R. C. Beckett was given a collection of Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazines as a teenager and read hundreds of the stories — he was hooked and started writing fiction in 2013. He loves to write hard science fiction, but can’t help adding a bit of humor. Publications: “Exit Mars” and “Exit Earth” (available on Amazon). “Exit Pluto”, the third in the Exit series, should be published in the near future. He is finishing up a new novel, Legacy of Earth. He lives in Golden Colorado and is a member of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. Walking his dog is key to his writing since that’s when he imagines plots for his stories. He also volunteers as a webmaster for non-profit companies including SpecFicWriters.
R. C. Beckett was given a collection of Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazines as a teenager and read hundreds of the stories — he was hooked and started writing fiction in 2013. He loves to write hard science fiction, but can’t help adding a bit of humor. Publications: “Exit Mars” and “Exit Earth” (available on Amazon). “Exit Pluto”, the third in the Exit series, should be published in the near future. He is finishing up a new novel, Legacy of Earth. He lives in Golden Colorado and is a member of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. Walking his dog is key to his writing since that’s when he imagines plots for his stories. He also volunteers as a webmaster for non-profit companies including SpecFicWriters.
This is great advice that I’ll try to incorporate into my own writing. Thanks, Ralph.
Gread advice, Ralph.