How can I learn sentence level craft?

I've been writing in some capacity nearly all my adult life, but only recently have begun to explore writing with a goal in mind like a short story, or *God Forbid* the GNA!

A couple resources I discovered quickly were:

Stephen King: On Writing - A Memoir of the Craft: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1439156816/?tag=absowrit-20
Howard Strunk: The Elements of Style: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1469955903/?tag=absowrit-20

I've found the best way to hammer out writing quirks is to let someone with more experience get their hands on my writing and point them out. Craft and style guides can be good, but having someone show where those guidelines apply to my work was far more helpful.

As for -ing, there is nothing wrong with it as a whole. They become problematic when they lead to loose writing and the overuse of participle phrases. If you know these are weaknesses, looking for -ing can help tighten your writing.

Critique is really important. Look for a really wide variety of critique. I know a few people who became attached to crit partners with similar weaknesses. Remember the point is not to make every suggested change, but to see what resonates with you or does not. Remember, though, if people across a wide variety of settings don't like something, it's probably wrong.

I took a college course on poetry. I wish I remembered the textbook, but critique of poetry stresses word choice and grammar in a way books on narratives usually do not. It might be worth it to find a used poetry textbook on the cheap.

Read novels from published authors you want to emulate. Find a paragraph you love. Break it down. What is each sentence doing? What is each word in each sentence doing? What would changing out a word for a similar word do? How does it read aloud?

Find a novel you detest. Do the same. What really doesn't work for you?

Well, first, think of it more like the Pirate Code. There aren't "rules" so much as guidelines. At least when it comes to style. (There are, of course, some pretty hard and fast grammar rules.)

Reading is your best friend here, which you've been doing, but maybe pull out a favorite book and take a look at it through the lens of sentence-level construction. What works for you? Why does it appeal? It's also helpful to read some stuff you know you don't like so you can identify that as well. What bugs you about it? How might you write it better?

Then it's just write, have some critique, learn from it, write more, more critique, tweak, refine, learn, grow. It's a pretty organic process that takes time, but the more you put in, the more you get out. And don't be afraid to critique, either. Often seeing mistakes on other peoples' work (where you don't have an emotional tie to it) makes lightbulbs go off for your own work. You don't have to critique as an expert writer; you can always critique as a reader.

Axiomae said:

Hi all,

I'm a fairly new writer and after submitting a chapter in the YA SYW it's obvious that there are "rules" of writing that I don't know. I'm not a trained author, but an avid reader, and I tend to judge whether I like my writing based on its rhythm and cadence. One critter, for example, pointed out my use of "ing" words. After a quick Google I realise that they are frowned upon.

Does anyone have any resources, books or links, that focus specifically on this sentence level? Everything I read seems to be about plot and character and business etc, but where do I find out these "rules?"

Many thanks!

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My critique group taught me how to write. My homework was to take what they said and learn more about it with a variety of writing guides and blog/web page searches.

I'm not sure "sentence level craft" is what you are looking for. When I hear 'rules', I think of things like show more/tell less, use adverbs sparingly, said/asked/answered usually suffice as dialogue tags, learn the proper use of present participles, avoid opening with a character waking up or the weather, and so on. These are common characteristics of new writers' work.

If someone points out a 'rule' in your SYW posts, tackle that rule. What are some of the comments you got? It's easier to address them one at a time.

As for books on how to write, they seem to be individual. For example, Stephen King's and Orson Scott Card's books on writing did nothing for me but they are popular with other writers. I went to the library and checked out a dozen books on writing, came home and perused them to find the ones I thought were the most useful and took the rest back. A couple were good enough I bought my own copies.

How Not to Write a Novel is pretty good for looking at the 'rules'.

Axiomae said:

Does anyone have any resources, books or links, that focus specifically on this sentence level? Everything I read seems to be about plot and character and business etc, but where do I find out these "rules?"

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Sure do. Having attended several university workshops, I've been made to read a lot of writing how-to books. The two I'd most recommend are The Truth That Tells a Lie by John Dufresne and Narrative Design by Madison Smartt Bell (although the latter focuses less on sentence structure).

But really, as others have suggested, the only way I know how to learn to write better is to read better (i.e., more carefully).

Everyone's already given excellent advice, so I will just add it's not the -ing that's the problem, but I'm guessing your overuse of it. A good book will have variety.

Axiomae said:

it's obvious that there are "rules" of writing that I don't know. I'm not a trained author, but an avid reader, and I tend to judge whether I like my writing based on its rhythm and cadence. One critter, for example, pointed out my use of "ing" words.
...
Everything I read seems to be about plot and character and business etc, but where do I find out these "rules?"

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"Sentence level" is about the usage of grammar and it may be of some benefit to acquire an "English Grammar" book. There are websites about grammar but it's much easier to flip between pages of a book if you need to compare different grammatical constructions and usage. Need to write about something happening right now, this moment? Well, there is, actually, more than one way of doing this and the -ing is not really obligatory. In your SYW thread you say you don't even know what to replace the -ing with. If you are aware of the existence of different grammatical constructions and usages, then you will have more things to choose from.

It's not so much about "rules" as it is about "choice". Your -ing sentences are fine, they don't break any rules. But the readers don't like them because they sound repetitive. You use the same construction over and over and over, because, as you say, you don't know what to replace it with, i.e. you have no choice at the moment.

So, expand your choices. You can also use different phrasing altogether. Learn about new ways to express the same thing. You also say you are an avid reader, so next time you read, do it slowly and try to notice how the other writers do it. What constructions they use, what sentence structure, what are their choices. This is best done if you pick a book by an author whose style is a bit more complex, somebody who is praised for their writing, not just for churning out bestsellers. Literary reviews can help with that.

Here's something from your excerpt:

"I’m standing in the clearing, my heart pounding in my chest. Turns out the source of the melody isn’t an apparition, but a girl. She’s standing on a fallen log beyond rows of rippling leaves, her long-sleeved white dress billowing about her in the wind. "

So, you think about an action in the present, and you go for the "-ing" verb straightaway. But have you tried to come up with different phrasing? Writing is a creative activity. There are many ways to express the same thing. "I stand in the middle of the clearing with the whole world quiet around me, except for the loud pounding of my heart. She is just a few feet away, perched on a fallen log, her white dress billowed by the wind. " Same image, less -ing.

Axiomae said:

/.../ After a quick Google I realise that they are frowned upon.
/.../

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Not necessarily in this case, but in general, it pays to remember that "frowned upon" tends to apply to certain "circles" and certain tastes. Sometimes there can be a great difference between "appeasing peer tastes" and "impressing the acquisitions editor". Even different genres have different "rules"--what is completely acceptable in one is almost unacceptable in another as a way of writing. Of course, people keep trying to evaluate Lovecraft through a Hemingwean filter or Daniel Steele through a Stephen Kingean filter, but that's a pretty moronic hobby which shouldn't mislead you.
Readers of artsy stuff scoff at the use of "breeks" for pants or "decimation" for slaughter in sword and sorcery--but fans of sword and sorcery lap it up. Compare your stuff to your actual genre, not to some random book.

VoireyLinger said:

I've found the best way to hammer out writing quirks is to let someone with more experience get their hands on my writing and point them out. Craft and style guides can be good, but having someone show where those guidelines apply to my work was far more helpful /.../

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Too true. If you find a good mentor it can shave years off your journey to reach a certain level.

Mrs-Q said:

/.../

Read novels from published authors you want to emulate. Find a paragraph you love. Break it down. What is each sentence doing? What is each word in each sentence doing? What would changing out a word for a similar word do? How does it read aloud?

Find a novel you detest. Do the same. What really doesn't work for you?

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Very good advice. Zoom in super close to the writing of some writer. Open a book on your computer and start chopping it up, taking stuff out of context and slapping it onto an empty document to see how it works in a self-contained way.

ElaineA said:

/.../Reading is your best friend here, which you've been doing, but maybe pull out a favorite book and take a look at it through the lens of sentence-level construction. What works for you? Why does it appeal? It's also helpful to read some stuff you know you don't like so you can identify that as well. What bugs you about it? How might you write it better?

Then it's just write, have some critique, learn from it, write more, more critique, tweak, refine, learn, grow. It's a pretty organic process that takes time, but the more you put in, the more you get out. And don't be afraid to critique, either. Often seeing mistakes on other peoples' work (where you don't have an emotional tie to it) makes lightbulbs go off for your own work. You don't have to critique as an expert writer; you can always critique as a reader.

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Absolutely. The lens thing and also the emotional freedom to see mistakes in other people's writing. And, as I mentioned above, cutting out a chunk out of an actual book also severs the emotional attachment to the context of the story and lets you see the pure mechanics instead.

MaeZe said:

/.../
As for books on how to write, they seem to be individual. For example, Stephen King's and Orson Scott Card's books on writing did nothing for me but they are popular with other writers. /.../

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Oh they can be terrific anti-insomnia remedies

Curlz said:

"Sentence level" is about the usage of grammar and it may be of some benefit to acquire an "English Grammar" book. There are websites about grammar but it's much easier to flip between pages of a book if you need to compare different grammatical constructions and usage. Need to write about something happening right now, this moment? Well, there is, actually, more than one way of doing this and the -ing is not really obligatory. In your SYW thread you say you don't even know what to replace the -ing with. If you are aware of the existence of different grammatical constructions and usages, then you will have more things to choose from.

It's not so much about "rules" as it is about "choice". Your -ing sentences are fine, they don't break any rules. But the readers don't like them because they sound repetitive. You use the same construction over and over and over, because, as you say, you don't know what to replace it with, i.e. you have no choice at the moment.

So, expand your choices. You can also use different phrasing altogether. Learn about new ways to express the same thing. /.../

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Very much so. Learn to expand your choices of anything. By the time you can write the same scene in at least half a dozen convincing different ways--then you're in control. When everything is written the same it can be flat. When you jiggle stuff around, the prose can become more 3D. Read some poetry, for example Philip Larkin. Poets can be very good at using language is such surprising ways that it suddenly blows away your brain cobwebs and shows you stuff can be written in super different ways.

**

Axiomae said:

Hi all,

I'm a fairly new writer and after submitting a chapter in the YA SYW it's obvious that there are "rules" of writing that I don't know. I'm not a trained author, but an avid reader, and I tend to judge whether I like my writing based on its rhythm and cadence. One critter, for example, pointed out my use of "ing" words. After a quick Google I realise that they are frowned upon.

Click to expand...

words that end with "ing" aren't frowned upon, though overuse of them (or using them inappropriately) can be problematic.

The Purdue OWL is a good site for basic grammar and punctuation rules.

This site is pretty good for answering fiction-related craft questions, everything from punctuating dialog to narrative viewpoint.

http://theeditorsblog.net/fularchives/

Just saw this thread.

Since I'm the one who did that crit, I feel like I should chime in here. Avoiding "ing"s completely isn't a "rule". They definitely have their place and sometimes they're even needed (as are adverbs and passive phrasing etc).

The problem, as others have noted, is when they're overused and/or when they make your sentence construction repetitive. One or two in a paragraph is fine. Nine or ten becomes problematic. The main reason I pointed it out in your SYW piece is because it's such a common trap in first person present, which is a tough POV to write.

Consider the difference between "He is looming over me" and "He looms over me". There's no need for the "ing" construction there. It adds an extra word you don't need (is) and distances the writing somewhat (almost like a filter). FPP is an immediate POV, so you want the writing to be close and intimate (JMHO).

As for what you can do to learn sentence-level craft, the best thing I've found (apart from close reading FPP books) is read through lots and lots of crits in SYW in all genres (esp those in FPP to get a feel for it) and also crit others. I can't recommend this enough. Breaking down someone else's writing line-by-line is a great way to pick up what works and what doesn't.

eta:

Axiomae said:

I will flexing that creative muscle to come up with alternatives.

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LOL. That's the most on-point typo I've ever seen.

Read. Read a lot.

Don't speed-read. When you are reading something you really enjoy, stop, take a deep breath, and think about why you are enjoying what you are reading. Look at how the words are assembled.

If you want to read as a writer, you need to slow down. Don't read like you're desperate to finish that novel you bought at the airport in Dallas before the plane lands in Houston.

Study how the writers you like are doing it. Frankly, that's the only way to get a grip on effective sentence construction.

caw

Grammar has rules. Style has *preferences*. Logic is also very important in writing. Know what a word means before playing with it.

The Purdue OWL online resource is often cited as a useful and easy resource for getting clarity about the rules of grammar.

About style - reading is the #1 thing that will help you there. But I'll offer a thought, too. Clarity. Clarity is king. Above all you want someone who is reading your writing to get your meaning without struggling. Myself, I like the kind of prose that 'disappears' so that you forget that you are reading. But others like a bit of play with the language. However, those writers who play well also maintain clarity.

Axiomae said:

Hi all,

I'm a fairly new writer and after submitting a chapter in the YA SYW it's obvious that there are "rules" of writing that I don't know. I'm not a trained author, but an avid reader, and I tend to judge whether I like my writing based on its rhythm and cadence. One critter, for example, pointed out my use of "ing" words. After a quick Google I realise that they are frowned upon.

Does anyone have any resources, books or links, that focus specifically on this sentence level? Everything I read seems to be about plot and character and business etc, but where do I find out these "rules?"

Many thanks!

Click to expand...

This is a great question, and you've already received some great responses. As other folks have pointed out, it's less about rules, and more about knowledge. It's about seeing and understanding the possibilities and then making choices based on genre and your own style.

You asked for book recommendations, so here are four that helped me tremendously. YMMV.

A Grammar Book for You and I...Oops, Me! - C. Edward Good - This is the most useful book on grammar I've found. Accessible, but covers all the bases. Once you have a better handle on language nuts and bolts, on the different roles words can play, you will start to see more clearly what is going on when you study other writers' prose, and you'll be able to explain to yourself why some writing seems to work better than others. Which will in turn will give you things to apply to your own writing.

Self-Editing for Fiction Writers - Renni Browne - This is an important book, in that it will likely open your eyes to things you can do to improve your fiction overall. It is way more than just sentence level craft, but the chapter on Sophistication helped me recognize things I could do to improve how I was structuring certain types of sentences.

Style: Ten Lessons In Clarity and Grace - Joseph M. Williams - Williams' believes that great prose is all about clarity and concision. Choosing the exact word. Structuring your sentences so that they flow clearly and powerfully, and placing those sentences in the best place in a paragraph, for maximum effect. This book really helped me to recognize and start thinking about sentence construction choices.

Building Great Sentences - Brooks Landon - In some ways this is the antithesis of the Style book. In Landon's view, "Great" = "Long"! He loves long flowing cumulative sentences, and he loves talking about how to structure and build them. He pulls in a ton of examples of big beautiful sentences from novels and analyzes why they work. For him it is all about balance and expansion, about taking the initial kernel of a sentence and building it out and even twisting it around in on itself. This is a controversial proposition to some people, judging from the Amazon reviews of the book – there is a "everyone should write like Hemingway" crowd – but the way I see it, some prose situations call for a long flowing sentence. This book put another tool in my tool box.

While the Style and Building Great Sentences books attack the problem of "how should I write this sentence" in completely different ways, ultimately I found them complementary. The idea isn't to slavishly follow what they say, but to understand their approaches, figure out what your choices are in a given situation, and then pick what works best for you.


Other posters have already mentioned the importance of reading and studying prose in novels, so you can figure out what works and what doesn't work. In the end, that is what will move your sentences and your writing forward.

Be intentional about it. If a musician listens to music and hears a really cool riff, he may sit down and learn it, analyze it, and then play with it and tweak it, until it becomes his own. Pick a novel by a favorite writer, find a sentence or section in it that you feel is really well done, and type or write it yourself. (Doing this makes a difference for me, it's like when my fingers type the words, I absorb the structure better, especially when it's structured in a way that I wouldn't have done myself.) Then play around with it. Try rewriting it, to see what the author's options were. Seeing the other options, that probably weren't as good, will perhaps help you see why the author's way was better. How did they structure the sentence? How else could they have structured it? What other choices did they have? Where is this sentence in the paragraph? Why does it work best where it is in the paragraph? How else could they have structured it? Also, look at word choice. What verbs did they choose? Etc.

One thing to keep in mind is that this is an iterative process. A journey. You will find other "how to" books or someone will post something here that will open your eyes with new things to think about. Or you'll read something in a novel that's really cool, and dig into it to see why. As you grow as a writer, you will start to see things the less experienced you would have missed. I hope that when I read great writing ten years from now I will appreciate it more than I currently do. I wish the same for you.

Sorry for the long post!
Jim

Axiomae said:

One critter, for example, pointed out my use of "ing" words. After a quick Google I realise that they are frowned upon.

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There's nothing wrong with "ing" words in themselves (and besides, there's more than one kind of "ing" word). It's all in how they're used.

If I have time later, I'll mosey over to SYW and take a look at your work.

An exercise that many writers have found helpful is:

1) Identify some writers whose style you really like, and/or whose style is highly praised by knowledgable people
2) Pick some passages of that writer's work
3) Copy those passages out, word for word, in LONGHAND (i.e. write it out on paper, exercising your handwriting, not your typing)
4) As you write out the good writer's passage, think about what each word and phrase in each sentence is doing, and what each sentence contributes to the whole of the passage
5) Repeat until you think you may have learned something
6) Throw out everything you just copied. Go write your own stuff & apply what you have learned.

Writing isn't like passing your driving test. It's not an either/or. Either you have passed your test or you haven't. Either you can write or you can't.

Instead, we add on technique a bit at a time. Each time we practise or read a book about writing or give/receive critting, we learn a little bit more - as long as we have our ears open, of course! The advice everyone has given is golden. Read a lot. Write a lot. Learn a lot.

Hang around here and listen to the conversations. Read the stickies. Get the books that people recommend.

So don't beat yourself up for being where you are. We all had to start at the beginning. And please don't think that you're going to learn it all in a day. It doesn't work that way.

Thanks JimRac. I ordered 3 of those books you listed. I can't wait to read them.

Phrenic said:

Thanks JimRac. I ordered 3 of those books you listed. I can't wait to read them.

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Enjoy! I hope you get as much out of them as I did!