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The last time I used this book, Writing Tools, I talked about how you should begin sentences with Subjects and Verbs. Today we’ll be talking about how you organize your words. One should order words for emphasis.
Why is this important?
In any sentence, the final punctuation acts as a stop. The slight pause in reading adds emphasis to the final word in the sentence, so minding where you place words in a sentence adds additional emphasis. For instance, let’s say there was a bombing at the school. Which would be better: Parents arrived at the school dressed in housecoats and business suits. OR Parents hurried to the school, arriving in their business suits and housecoats. Being left with the image of housecoats imparts the sense of urgency those parents would feel wouldn’t it?
When you start and end a sentence with stronger words, it allows you hide weaker or supportive words in the middle. This is especially useful when quoting someone, allowing you to list the attribution in the middle of the quote “I have having the flu,” said the lad, “it makes my throat sore.”
Sometimes people call this the 2-3-1 tool of emphasis (here’s an interesting article on that). The most important sentence comes at the end, the second most at the beginning, and the least important in the middle. Or simply put the best first and last, the rest in the middle. Follow this for sentences and for paragraphs, it will make your writing better overall.
Printable:
To download click here.
Practice your skills at using this principle.
If you would like to follow along in writing tools, you can find it here on Amazon.
Linked up at Encouraging hearts. Homeschool review crew.
I was just emphasizing to my 10 year old today that how we use words really matters. I’ll have to show her some examples that pertain to word order!
I hope my printable helped you with that. But word order and choice matters.
Omigoodness, I have been writing professionally for almost 10 years but never heard of this! I love it and will be trying this tactic out and teaching it to my kids. Thanks!
Oh great, it’s lovely to learn new things eh?
More good thoughts on writing. I went through this with my girl the other day in an article she was writing. Didn’t even realize there was a specific thought process I was using.
Oh good! Glad I added to your knowledge base.
That was fascinating! More please! I am in the middle of a writing seminar with Donald Miller through SchoolhouseTeachers.com/RightNow Media and he talks about how to tell a story. I love the idea of putting conscious care in word placement within a piece of writing! Thank You! (BTW your post is going to be featured in this Friday’s Friday Funnies, Flops, and Fails link up.) 🙂
oh thank you! 🙂 Very cool. I am trying to provide helpful stuff!