Words & style · Tip 55 of 82 · 3 min read
Short Sentences, Long Sentences
Mix short and long sentences to make your writing rush, relax and sound like music.
Sentences come in all sizes. Some are tiny. Others stretch on and on, winding through the page like a river looking for the sea. How long you make them changes how your story feels.
Short sentences are fast
Short sentences are punchy. They're great for action, shocks and scary moments, because they make the reader's eyes jump quickly from one to the next.
The door creaked. Kai froze. Something was breathing. Close. Very close.
Long sentences are slow
Long sentences slow things down. They're perfect for describing a beautiful place, a lazy afternoon or a dreamy feeling.
The afternoon drifted by as slowly as the clouds, and Kai lay in the long grass with a buttercup tucked behind his ear, listening to the bees humming their busy little songs.
Mix them up
If every sentence is the same length, your writing sounds like a robot. Mixing short and long gives it a rhythm, like music.
Okay 😐
We walked to the shop. We bought some sweets. We walked to the park. We sat on the bench.
Wow! 🤩
We wandered to the corner shop, spent every coin we had on fizzy cola bottles and strawberry laces, and carried our treasure to the park. Then we sat on the bench. Bliss.