The Nitty-Gritty:
Tips for Prose
Prose = individual sentences
Creating clear and elegant sentences is the most basic skill of writing. While good writing requires more than just refined sentences, you cannot have truly compelling writing without them.
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These tips are meant to provide direction on some of the most common problems I see in student prose. However, the #1 tool you will need to cultivate is close, mindful attention to your own writing. There are no shortcuts here: you simply have to read slowly and pay attention to what sounds awkward. A healthy willingness to experiment with the different strategies listed here will develop your ability to revise effectively.
The basics
1. The most basic step: make sure all your sentences are grammatically correct!
2. When in doubt, read your writing out loud. It may feel silly, but this is one of the best ways to uncover grammatical errors!
Beware especially of run-on sentences and fragments.
3. Make sure that you consistently use the same tense throughout your paper.
For narratives, it will almost always be past tense. For essays discussing ideas, it will almost always be present tense.
words
4. Use precise language; this will allow you to convey richer and more accurate meaning. Tips 5-10 give further advice about this.
For example, instead of “really interesting”, try “intriguing”, “baffling”, “alluring”, “fascinating”, or “compelling”. Each of these words has a different connotation, and each one is more precise than “really interesting”.
5. Avoid using words like “very”, “really”, and “pretty”. They do not add anything valuable, and they sound informal. Use them as an opportunity to expand your vocabulary!
6. Use active verbs. The verb “to be” is a passive verb: it simply describes what something is or is like. Active verbs describe what something does.
You could say “A grandfather clock was in the corner of the room”, but “A grandfather clock towered in the corner of the room” sounds more exciting.
7. Expand your verb vocabulary. Verbs like “to be” and “to say” are common in everyday life, but a greater variety of verbs will allow you to be more precise when communicating your thoughts.
If you can, combine adjective-verb pairs into a single verb: “angrily said” could be “scolded”; “slowly walked” could be “ambled”.
Here are some of my favorite verbs for argumentative writing: illustrates; demonstrates; represents; conveys; supports; reveals; exhibits; exemplifies; displays; bolsters; highlights; expounds; illuminates; asserts; refutes; affirms; implies; qualifies; solidifies; characterizes
8. Aim for concise phrasing: streamline wordy sentences.
For example, “is representative of” could easily be “represents”; “You may want to think about varying your sentence length” could be “You may want to vary your sentence length”; “impossible to imagine” could be “inconceivable”.
9. Avoid vague and informal words like “whatever”, “sort of”, “kind of”, “anyways”, and “thing” (to name just a few). Such words give the reader the impression that you are a novice writer or are unsure of what you are doing.
10. Avoid using the same word or phrase more than twice in close proximity. Word repetition causes writing to sound clunky and tedious.
Punctuation
11. Don’t hesitate to use varied punctuation! A variety of punctuation gives your sentences richer texture and prevents them from sounding flat and monotonous.
12. Commas: A comma is like a “breath” in the middle of a sentence which breaks it into smaller, more manageable pieces for the reader. They add clarity and smoothness to long sentences.
13. Colons: Colons are used when you are listing items. (“I went to the store for ingredients: carrots, onions, cabbage, and egg noodles.”) They are also used when you are specifying or clarifying what was said before the colon. (“Punctuation is a wonderful thing: it adds interest and clarity to your writing.")
You also must include a comma after an introductory clause. (For instance, “At first, . . .”, “However, . . .”, “For instance,” . . .). Here’s some information about introductory clauses:
14. Dashes: A single dash often serves the same purpose as a colon -- it allows you to clarify what you meant. If you put another dash after the clarifying phrase -- like this -- it becomes an aside, and you can continue with your original thought.
15. Semicolons: A semicolon must have a complete sentence on each side. Semicolons are useful for when you want to emphasize a connection between the two sentences; you can think of them as a screen which allows the two thoughts to blend into and inform one another.
sentences
16. Vary the lengths of your sentences. If all your sentences are approximately the same length, your writing will become monotonous. Intersperse simple, short sentences with longer, more complex sentences.
17. Avoid starting multiple sentences in a row with the same phrase or very similar phrases. Such repetition sounds clunky and awkward. (Tips 18 and 19 will help with this!)
For example: “I felt . . . I was . . . I was . . . I thought . . . ”
18. Vary the kinds of sentence construction you use.
The most basic construction is noun-verb-object: “I went to the store”, “The dog chewed on the newspaper”. While this makes for a solid sentence, try inserting a few more sophisticated sentences. You will often find that you can do this with tip #19:
19. Don’t be afraid to rearrange sentences!
For example, “I began to meet people much better than me and much younger than me. I quickly realized that I was no longer the best” could be transformed into “I began to meet people who were not only more adept than I was, but significantly younger, and I quickly realized that I was no longer the best.”
20. Don’t be afraid to rearrange the ordering of multiple sentences. In particular, make sure that sentences which are about the same topic or idea are placed together.
For example: “I was president of the SBTP. We were going on a field trip. SBTP stands for ‘Student Beekeeper Training Program’,” needs to be re-ordered.
21. Avoid redundant sentences. If you have just said something, you should not say the exact same thing in the next sentence with slightly different words.
There is an exception to this: if you are explaining a particularly difficult concept, you may re- explain it using different words. In this case, you should explicitly cue the reader with a phrase like “Put another way,” or “In other words”.
22. Avoid mixed constructions. These are when you start out with a particular “strategy” for a sentence, and switch in the middle of the sentence to a different strategy.
Some examples: “Soon after a couple of years after I was born . . . ”; “The essay prompt gave you free range to let you write about anything . . .”
23. Avoid starting sentences with phrases like “In addition”, “furthermore”, and “also”; especially avoid using these phrases to start a paragraph.
While these words are meant to provide a transition between ideas, they are vague and imprecise. Such phrases suggest to the reader that you don’t actually know how the ideas are connected.
general tips
24. Limit rhetorical questions. One or two is fine, but more than this overwhelms the reader.
25. Avoid using “you” statements. Many readers feel uncomfortable being addressed directly, and it sounds informal.
Either replace "you" with “one”, or try speaking of “humans” or “people” instead.
26. Strive for clear and specific meaning. Do not “wax philosophically” about a topic: avoid vague and general statements that sound “deep” but lack a concrete point.