Writing Lesson: Variety in Sentence Structure

[JangoFox]

"Write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences."

Okay, this is some advice I REALLY could've used. Thanks, Prof! :D

[nononono]

Ok this has been really useful. I just went over the first two paragraphs of a chapter and right away I see how all the sentences are medium-length, every one of them. I knew something was completely wrong but couldn't figure it out, yet now it's so obvious. Subscribed!

[zenithialproductions]

Trying to write my first novel after only having dabbled in short stories for years. My friend proof read it and asked me "are you writing a novel or a movie script?" I appreciate the help Professor. I immediately started seeing what he was talking about.

[eagefrien]

I just know that this is going to be so helpful for me. I feel stuck with my simple sentences and it makes my writing feel so repetitive and boring. Thank you for this video!

[bsharp]

Thanks for this excellent video and your thoughtful insight!

[andrewvenables]

Short sentences can be punchy. But so long as you don't make an army out of them, making them uniform, commonplace and samey.
One great short sentence I read, years ago, was in a book called Quarentine by Jim Crace. It's a fictional account of Jesus's 40 days in the desert. The author uses several long floral sentences to describe the form of Jesus walking barefoot through the sand and then unleashes this short beauty.
'He had learnt the single lesson of the thorn.'
It was one of the first times I noticed damn fine prose.

[SoundEngraver]

Terrific input on sentence structure! I struggle with overusing complex sentences. Thank you for this video. Keep up the excellent work!

[abrahemsamander]

Very nice video! Sentence structures incredibly important.

[DoctorInk]

This was tremendously helpful. Thank you, Prof. 😁 I've been meaning to read Bradbury for a while. I'll see if I can find something of his next time I trek out to the bookshop.
I'm primarily an illustrator, but writing is just as important to me. I feel an image is not as impactful unless there some kind of story behind it. I've been working on some stories for quite a while and absorbing everything to do with structure, words, etc. I'm a firm believer in self-education in such matters, and so far it's paying off.

Perfect example of someone knowing their medium: *James Joyce.* The man wrote some impeccable prose, but then redefined the very nature of the novels with a flowing stream-of-consciousness style. I've read works that attempt to replicate Joyce's style - most recently Jack Kerouac - with errant thoughts and passing musing, but they tend to fail at the flow or coherency aspects.
Anyhoo, I've a backlog of your vids to catch up with. It's weird, I've recently had a big binge of Film Noir with my folks. Looking forward to seeing your thoughts. 😁
Hope you're staying safe.

P.S.- Is your P.O. box still a thing? I may send you something in the coming months. 😉

[bringbackthegooddaysofyoutube]

Thank you very much for this helpful reminder. It's like when someone studies a new language. Learning the grammar rules is just as important as learning the vocabulary.

[An-fiis]

Thank you so much.
Especially for me as a german this is so fucking helpful.

[GuyvArt]

Every time I show my mom a page from my comic she always, Always! Points out the spelling errors. She’s like a hawk with that kind of stuff.

[AL-wsyi]

I tend to tell the story through dialogue. My problem is there’s only so many ways you can say “ask” and “said”.

[velvetbees]

If loving my run on sentences is wrong, I don't wanna be right.... said no great writer, ever.

[austinchambers]

Conjunctions are bad? I’ve seen from Steinbeck and from Gary’s excerpt that conjunctions were okay and help the sentences flow. I think Steinbeck might use complex + compound sentences as a crutch. What do you think? Are conjunctions never okay, or is there a limit?

[HadamRose]

Holy crap! It's his actual face! Usually he just shows his avatar.

[azure]

That's actually my biggest problem. What books would u recommend for sentence structure and descriptions?

[dcle]

Actually June is the month that has no chance for school. July you might have summer school.