#sentence flow

Good news! You’re not alone! In fact, there are whole guides out there that teachers use to try to help their students kick this exact habit. (This one is very useful if you feel like you don’t have a great grip on the different ways a sentence CAN be structured, although it will also make you feel like you are taking a 9th grade standardized test.) It’s not as generative as a creative person like me prefers, but it does get me thinking very concretely about what makes a sentence, why I’m choosing the structures I’m choosing, and how I might change that).

Unfortunately, that is my first advice. Some people have a natural feel for sentence rhythm and don’t need to know all the technicalities in order to structure a gorgeous, varied paragraph, but the rest of us tend to benefit from sitting down and doing sentence diagrams.

After you’ve done that, my next big recommendation is this: set your paragraph aside. Stick it in your desk drawer, hide it under your pillow, give it to your cat, minimize the window, whatever you have to do to not be looking at it. Open up a new blank page. Write the paragraph again, from memory. Now that you have gotten the ideas down once, I’ll bet you anything that your sentences come out more natural and less stilted.