writing styles

Greetings folks. I have a simple question about writing styles. When I read novels, they tend to have long paragraphs expressing some complex ideas, actions, and dialogue. But I notice many fanfic stories have very short "paragraphs" if they could be called paragraphs at all, containing very short and few sentences. I don't know whether I am generalizing too much.

My question is, what are the advantages and disadvantages of long and short paragraph styles? If I were to write a fanfic (say Starwars), should I use the short paragraph style?

Thanks much for your help!

-TinTin

 

The reason we tend to use shorter paragraphs is because they're easier to read on a computer. For some reason, the text tends to bunch together more than on paper. The reader will eventually begin to have trouble reading if the text exceeds six or so lines.

Hope that helps.

 

pallas athena makes a valid point, but i think this all depends more on the individual style of the author. myself, i tend to use short paragraphs in fast-paced scenes, and dwell a bit longer on description and character emotions in slower scenes, which makes for longer paragraphs. technically, every sentence in a paragraph should be relevant to each other, and a new paragraph should denote a new action, another moment, or just any general change in pace (moving from description to action, one action to the next, so on). of course, all this can be difficult to pinpoint, especially when you're trying to get the story out before you forget it, so i tend to just do what feels right during the process.

there are many guides on writing out there, but not all of them are good. just do what you think works.

 

Very good, zeekveerko. That's the element which rhetoric teachers call "pacing," and you've described it in about the best way I've ever heard. Also, that's true that it clumps together onscreen. Always think of the audience, eh?

In a few cases, it might be that the author has slightly less experience with those long descriptions, but let's not think of it that way, huh? Just pay attention to the other reasons, and you'll be alright.

 

It doesn't mean some authors of fanfic don't use long parags - check out mine, or Amidala_Skywalker's... Am's are long parags and bautifully written...

 

Well, I would say mine fall under the long-paras category. But that's not because I sit down and say "Okay, I'm not going to hit 'ENTER' until I have at least ten lines."

It all comes down to that I usually write a lot of description (and not THAT MUCH dialogue), and all the description about a particular thing (like how the planet is looking, physcial appearnce of Anakin, etc.) makes up a paragraph (unless it's too long, and I have to split it up into two or three paras).

Also, I do tend to think that short paras are sort of like short chapters. If you've read Rogue Planet, you know what I'm talking about.

::Shrugs:: But that's just me.

Aunecah_Skywalker

 

"Very good, zeekveerko. That's the element which rhetoric teachers call "pacing," and you've described it in about the best way I've ever heard."



thank you. seriously, i don't even remember where i learned that. i also wanted to add that no amount of simple sentences can add up to a good long paragraph. generally, when a paragraph is long, it's because it's made up of a variety of sentence structures, ranging from simple to compound to complex and long. again, this is something that should be learned and practiced, but not something you should be overly conscious of during the writing process.

 

Not all published authors have long complex paraghraphs. I've been reading Traveling Vampire Show by Richard Lymon and he has simple to the point paraghraphs.

I think many fanfics don't have complex paragraphs bacuase it's lesiure reading. And too much complexity distracts one from the story but I am being somewhat hypocritical since my newest has much detail too it.

 

FernWithy (JediGaladriel) has a new article on pacing over at the fanfiction archives. It's definitely worth checking out.

For yourself, experiment. See which you prefer, long or short, and always remember to throw paragraphs of all lengths into your story.

 

Well, in a book, usually the pages aren't as wide as a pooter screen, so the paragraphs also APPEAR longer to the human eye. Not that they aren't more descriptive, but that's just one suggestion of many. Also, sentences can vary in length. I have done some that are made up on one or two sentences, which just barely escape being labeled as "run-ons" and there are only two or three in a long paragraph. Hey, whatever works.

In fast-paced scenes, chop it up, and dialogue, too, because each new speaker gets his own paragraph.

In slower scenes, let your "inner muse" describe a bit, fun fun FuN! Really...seriously...urg!

But don't sit there and count your lines. If you let it flow naturally, it should work out well. When you're editing, THEN start looking at stuff like that. You might just find that it's perfect, or nearly.

 

I love that long, full, well developed sort of paragraph and always try to make mine longer. However all paragrpaphs look shorter on computer than they do handwritten. (I like to handwrite stuff first because I'm low tech.)

 

I usually hand-write (just because, that way, I don't keep deleting words and sentences every other second) my stories too, and I agree with Obi-wannabe_1138 - handwritten paragraphs are longer than computer-typed.

Aunecah_Skywalker

 

I haven't red that many fanfics, so I can't say...

But my style has changed alot since I began writing my own fanfics.

 

The best explanation I've heard for the short/long style (which pops up a lot in newer novels and short-fic, not just fan-fic) is becasue of movies/TV. The article I read-- and I can't remember where I saw it-- said that the current generation of writers grew up with Television and movies for entertainment. And that influenced their styles, because they're were attempting to mimic with words the same sort of jump-cut pacing that you find in movies and TV shows.

<shrug> Don't know if it's true or not.

 

I think it really just depends on individual style. I certainly never adjusted my writing for the boards; however, I do believe varied paragraphs are more interesting than homogeneous ones. Short paragraphs are just as fulfilling as long, on the condition that an author doesn't base an entire piece on them (see JG's article for an in-depth analysis of this). Really, however, it depends on genre and how an author is trying to get their point across.

Lyart_Triath also makes a valid point; I don't entirely agree with the generalization, but I see where it's coming from.

 

Really, it depends. Usually, my first paragraph in a scene is pretty long, since I'm using it to set the stage, or if my characters get introspective I'll have some longer ones.

However, when I'm writing a battle scene, for example, I like the paragraphs shorter and usually there's dialogue in between, since I think ideally a battle scene should be fast paced adn shouldn't leave the reader dwelling too long on painstaking descriptions.

I guess it boils down to the flow, or pacing, or whatever you call it.

-Tim

 

I'm not a fan of stories without a lot of dialogue, and my writing reflects that... you'll find a lot of dialogue and to-the-point description. It doesn't make my writing style any less valid than anyone else's, it's just the way I enjoy writing and I'm told that it also seems to flow a little easier too. When I see large paragraphs that are full of useless descriptions or seemed to be stretched out on purpose, I tend to lose interest... that's just how I am. Not to say that all large paragraphs are full of useless descriptions... there are plenty that are wonderful.