Query Shark: #220

Just to be cruel, I toted up the word count in your first eight sentences:

33
37
12
21
34
19
42
37

Before you get hot under the collar about this, let me just tell you that I learned about counting words in sentences from a guy who is damn fine writer: T. Jefferson Parker. He’s got a couple of Edgar Awards that show I’m not the only one who thinks so.

Jeff Parker once told me that he counted sentences in paragraphs and words in sentences as a way to increase tension. At the climax, the sentences and the paragraphs got shorter; the words fewer. In other words: short crisp sentences are more energetic and keep the reader moving along at that rapid clip you want to claim.

via Query Shark: #220.

I never understand why providing an education is cruel, especially when the people who submit queries to the Query Shark are looking for just that… but… let’s leave that topic aside.

T. Jefferson Parker’s advice is useful for those who want to evaluate the rules of prose construction: Count the words in your sentence to increase tension. As your story comes closer to the climax, shorten the sentences. Short crisp sentences are energetic and keep the reader moving along at a rapid clip.