Writing / 17STEP 6: Placing Important Words
Any public speaker, advertiser, or coach will tell you that the last word spoken is
the most important. The last word of a speech lingers on the listener’s ear just a few
seconds longer than those words that came before. The last word on a television or
radio commercial (usually the product name) floats just a bit in the listener’s mind.
And when the coach sends the team out to the playing field, it’s with a command to
give its best.
The most important word in any sentence is the last. So be sure to put your most
important word last! The second most important word is the first. The rest tends to
get buried in the middle.
Don’t write:
I was sure, with the telltale signs throughout the house, that Brian had been
there.
Instead write:
Telltale signs proved Brian had been in the house.Using these steps will help you consciously control your own sentences and build a
solid foundation into everything you write.
WRITING A PARAGRAPH
Writers use paragraphs to group their thoughts and to help the reader follow those
groups of thoughts. While the paragraph can stand alone as a unit of writing, it is
frequently combined with other paragraphs to create a larger work.
A paragraph that stands alone is written somewhat differently than one that is a
building block for a longer piece of writing. [See Writing a Multi-Paragraph Paper
later in this chapter for a discussion of paragraphs as building blocks in a longer paper.]
Certain characteristics almost always appear in a standalone paragraph.
CHARACTERISTICS
The following elements appear in a standalone paragraph:
• a subject narrowed sufficiently to be treated as a single idea,
• a topic sentence that announces the subject of the paragraph (often appearing
as the first sentence, though it may appear later),
• a specific and consistent attitude toward the subject [see Step 3 in Chapter 1,
Prewriting],
• supporting details that explain or illustrate the topic sentence,