Useful Tips On How To Hone Your Paragraph

Publication Date: 18 Mar 2019
Author: Julia Stuart

It is high time you paid attention to the paragraphs you write

You are very much mistaken if you think that nobody will read the paragraphs anyway because there are a lot of people who got used to scanning. In fact, it is the actual content they pay attention to when reading. A well-organized paragraph does wonders to make writing clear and helps to guide a reader through all the important ideas. We have answered the most important question you can come up with while trying to hone your paragraph.

 What does a good paragraph look like?

Most simple paragraphs consist of a topic sentence, several supporting sentences and, sometimes, a concluding sentence. As a writer, these paragraph elements will provide you with an easy-to-follow structure for expressing your ideas clearly and effectively. The topic sentence of a paragraph is its most important point since it is the most general statement the writer makes about the topic. This sentence must make the rest of the paragraph meaningful. It is the one idea that ties all of the other details together. Supporting sentences give information that explains and expands the topic of the paragraph. The concluding sentence wraps up a paragraph and lets the reader know that you have finished talking about the idea introduced by the topic sentence. You should always make sure that you left no sentence behind because each of them really matters.

How to demonstrate your point?

Read the topic question and consider the possible positions that could be argued. Complete a table to list the reasons for choosing that position. Select the position that can best be supported. Provide information to prove, illustrate, clarify or exemplify your point. You can add such kinds of information to your paragraph:

• Personal experience, anecdotes, stories;
• Statistics and data from research studies;
• Facts, details, and reasons.

How to write in a logical way?

One of the most important things to remember is that good paragraphs form a chain of thought. Draw conclusions from evidence or principles to make a logical argument. In order to accept your argument as logical, your reader must find your evidence valid and convincing. If you expect people to accept your own conclusions, then it is your responsibility to give them reasons they can appreciate.

How to compose concise sentences?

Sentences fail to form complete paragraphs without clear organization. According to Dejan Stojanovic, a Serbian writer, ‘to cut and tighten sentences is the secret of mastery’. You should learn to recognize wordiness, repetition, and unnecessary language to ensure your writing expresses your ideas as clearly and concisely as possible. Keep in mind that a paragraph that focuses directly on a point and maximizes meaning with minimum wordiness will keep the interest of your readers.

Is it ok to mix up sentence length?

If all of your sentences within a paragraph are of equal length they might tire readers leaving them uninterested and bored. Adding sentence variety to your paragraph will help you enhance the flow of ideas, intensify points, and sustain the interest of your reader. Vary the length of sentences within the body of a paragraph. Use front loaded, end loaded, and balanced sentences to vary rhythm and create emphasis. You can also vary sentence beginnings by using different parts of speech.