When you write a creative writing paper, the last thing you want to do is to write a long sentence. After all, you want your audience to keep reading. However, there are times when a long sentence is exactly what you need. Especially if you want to describe a vivid image or event in detail. As a result, you might find yourself writing a sentence that is longer than you would usually write in your everyday life. Hopefully, this is a short-lived phenomenon and you will soon find yourself writing a short sentence. Nevertheless, you should learn to love long sentences in your writing. They can add a sense of majesty and magnificence to your work. Here are a few tips on how to write creatively while avoiding endless sentences.
Start Small
When you write an essay, you are usually asked to write the first draft very quickly. That is because writers usually have to rush to meet the submission deadline. As a result, they might not have the time to go over their work carefully. Since you will have to rewrite the paper multiple times before you can submit it, it is important that each draft is exactly what you wanted it to be. So, rather than starting with a 40-page document, try writing a short story or an article for a magazine. Short sentences are much easier to write and much less tedious than long ones. Of course, you should not shy away from using long sentences when they are needed. A short story written in the first person can be very effective. It will draw the reader into the story and make them feel like they are there. It is also a good idea to write in the third person as it will make the story more objective. Instead of showing the reader what really happened, the person telling the story will make it seem like an ordinary occurrence.
Watch For The Adjective
One of the biggest problems with writing long sentences is that you tend to overuse the adjective. It is a common mistake for new writers to use multiple adjectives to describe a single event or person. You should try to avoid using more than three or four adjectives in a row. It makes your writing very wordy and tiresome to read. When you write, you should always have a few adjective alternatives in mind. For example, if you want to describe someone as intelligent, you can say that she is intellectually capable or she possesses a bright mind. Not only will this reduce the adjective inflation, but it will also make your writing more interesting. Readers will be able to connect with your work more easily if you vary your wording a little bit. This is one of the most effective strategies you can use to reduce sentence length.
Use Active And Impersonal Verbs
The worst thing you can do as a writer is to use a passive verb in your sentence. A passive verb is a verb that describes an action that was performed on you or something that happened to you. An example of a passive verb is: “I was read the poem aloud to me.” Notice how the verb in this sentence (was read) is a passive verb. When you use a passive verb, you are telling the reader that you did not participate in the action described by the verb. For instance, if you want to write about a scary movie you watched, you can say: “I was scared to death while watching the movie.” This is not the sort of information you want the reader to know. Ideally, you should try to avoid using any kind of passive verb in your writing. Instead, you can use active verbs. An active verb is a verb that describes an action performed by you or something that happened to you. For example, if you want to write about the movie you just watched, you can say: “I was screaming at the top of my lungs while watching the movie.” When you use an active verb, you are clearly involved in the action described by the verb. This makes your writing seem more realistic and adds a personal touch to your story. In most cases, you should try to avoid using any verb other than the active ones in your writing. This will help you write interesting and engaging stories. And, in case you are wondering, a passive verb is an adjective that modifies a noun, while an active verb is a verb that accepts no modifiers.
Avoid Overuse Of Common Words
If you want to write creatively, you have to be willing to use different words. This means you will have to go through a phase where you overuse certain words and then move out of your comfort zone. If you want to write an interesting story that will engage your readers, you should avoid using words that everyone understands. It is a good idea to look up the most common words in the dictionary and make a note of them. Then, you can use what you learned to make your work more original.
Once you started writing, you will realize that you use a lot of words that you usually do not use in your everyday life. You can use this as a good thing because it will give you a fresh perspective on what words mean. However, you have to be aware of the fact that these are just words and they mean very little on their own. This is why you should avoid overusing them. If you want to use a word that is not in the common lexicon, you can always look it up in a thesaurus or a dictionary. You should avoid going beyond the letter Ñ in a word.
Overuse of certain words can also make your work seem very predictable. For example, if you want to write about a science fiction story, you know that you will have to use a lot of futuristic words. These are words that do not exist in the present day and, as a result, they will make your writing seem very dated. If you want to write an interesting story, avoid clunky phrases and outdated words. Instead, look for alternative ways to describe things. This will help you make your writing sound more elegant while keeping it fresh.
At the end of the day, the only real measure of a creative writing student is not how many pages they write in a certain amount of time but how engaged the reader is in the story. As a result, you will not always want to write a short story. Sometimes, you might want to write something epic that takes place over several chapters. When you follow the advice in this article, you will be able to write an interesting story in the most effective way possible. Even if you do not always want to, you will have no problem finding the right tone for the sort of story you want to write. So, do not be afraid to experiment and try new things. This is the only way you will be able to find your own unique voice and give your work an individual touch.