Writing / 15Don’t write:
He was tall and handsome.
Instead write:
The tall, handsome man caught her eye.Use active voice more frequently than passive voice. [See definitions and examples of
each in the Glossary.]
Don’t write:
The child was bitten by a snake.
Instead write:
A snake bit the child.Use figurative language for creative sentences. [See figure of speech in the Glossary.]
Don’t write:
She ran home as quickly as she could.
Instead write:
She blew in the door like the wind.STEP 3: Varying Sentences
Repeated sentence structures, no matter how good, bore your reader. Variety, as the
cliché goes, is the spice of life; so spice up your writing accordingly. Follow these
suggestions:
Vary sentence beginnings. If every sentence begins with a subject followed by a
verb, you create monotony. Instead, begin sentences with these common variations:
• with a prepositional phrase, such as After dinner last night....
• with a participial phrase, such as Walking home alone....
• with an infinitive phrase, such as To put her best foot forward....
• with an adverb clause, such as After we ate dinner last night....
• with an introductory word, such as Yes....
• with a transitional word, such as Thus....
• with a transitional phrase, such as No matter the results....Commas usually follow these kinds of introductory phrases and clauses. [Check the
rules for commas in Chapter 45.]
[To learn more about phrases and clauses, study Chapter 44.]
Vary sentence structure. Consider these variations:
• If you use predominantly simple sentences, your message seems simple (and if
your audience is young readers, that may be your intent).