While the most important thing in your mind is meeting that word count, being too wordy can make your argument less impactful. Trust me—I know. The first 4,000-word paper I wrote was wordy and redundant, earning me the only D I’ve ever gotten on an essay.

But I’ve learned a lot in the 10 years since then, and now you get to benefit from that knowledge.

Long Sentences vs. Wordy Sentences

Before we get into why and how to avoid wordiness, we should first look at what it actually is. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I write some pretty long sentences. Does that make them wordy?

Not necessarily. In fact, long sentences are important—as long as you vary the length of your sentences. If you wrote a whole essay using nothing but short sentences, it would sound choppy. See this paragraph revamped as short sentences, for example:

Not necessarily. Long sentences are important. But vary the length. Don’t use only short sentences. It sounds choppy.

The original version was much better because it flowed better from one sentence to the next.

On the other side of the spectrum, you can have short and wordy sentences. Wordiness isn’t about length—it’s about content.

Take a look at these sentences:

Her mouth was watering a lot.

Her mouth watered.

While both sentences are short, the first has too many unnecessary words. The second gets the same message across without losing any meaning or context. Many teachers, writers, and readers would say it even sounds stronger than the first.

So what is wordiness? Simply put, it’s filling your sentences with unnecessary words.

Why Should You Avoid Wordy Sentences?

So you have a few unnecessary words in your sentences. What’s the big deal?

It’s true that you probably won’t fail your paper just because you have some wordiness. But it can detract from the impact of your essay. And if there’s too much wordiness, it makes it hard for your readers to find the important information you’ve worked so hard to include.

Concise language also makes you sound more confident as a writer. Take these two thesis statements, for example:

I believe the red A that Hester has to wear on her dress in The Scarlet Letter symbolizes shame at first, but later symbolizes Hester’s own independence.

The red A in The Scarlet Letter symbolizes both Hester’s shame and her independence.

Do you see how much clearer and more assured the second sentence is? It cut out the weasel words and the mention of the writer, leaving only what’s important. The intent is clear.

That’s what you want in your own writing.

How to Avoid Wordy Sentences

It’s one thing to understand why you should avoid wordiness, but you also need to know how. Don’t worry—I have you covered there too.

Take yourself out of the equation

What I’m referring to here are those “I believe,” “I think,” or “I’m going to show” statements. Unless you’re writing a personal essay that specifically requests experiences from your own life, you shouldn’t refer to yourself at all.

In this essay, I’m going to show how Louis Armstrong and other jazz musicians fought racism with their music in the 1930s and 1940s.

In the 1930s and 1940s, Louis Armstrong and other jazz musicians used their music to fight racism.

Writing in the third person not only cuts down on wordy sentences but also makes you sound more credible. It gives your voice more authority too.

Use stronger words

Adjectives and adverbs can be helpful. They often fill in specific details for your readers and give them a clear picture of what you’re describing. However, students and writers sometimes overuse adjectives and adverbs when they could have instead chosen a stronger noun or verb.

Take a look at the following examples. You probably won’t have these specific phrases in your essay, but it gives you a good idea of how you can use stronger words to reduce wordiness.

1. Walked leisurely → sauntered
2. Very tall man → giant
3. Shook violently → convulsed

Stronger nouns and verbs aren’t always going to be at the tip of your tongue, so don’t be afraid to use a thesaurus. Just be careful not to overuse it. After all, you don’t want your readers to have to use a thesaurus just to get through your essay.

Cut out weasel words

Weasel words are words writers use that aren’t necessary at all. They just seem to weasel their way into sentences without writers noticing. They’re not always easy to spot because we tend to use them when we speak. But unless you’re writing a very conversational piece, it’s best to be on the lookout for them.

A quick search online will show you lots of weasel word lists, but here are some of the most common ones:

• That
• Just
• Like
• Very
• Really
• Suddenly
• Began to

Take a look at these examples:

She said that you could use it.

She said you could use it.

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door.

There was a loud knock on the door.

In the first example, “that” is a word that has no meaning and can be deleted without altering the meaning of the sentence.

In the second example, you see a case of a time-related weasel word. Other examples include “then,” “all at once,” etc.

Importantly, weasel words shouldn’t be confused with transitions. Sometimes you need words like “however,” “therefore,” “additionally,” and others to make your thoughts flow logically from one sentence to the next. These transitional words or phrases are helpful and often necessary, unlike the weasel words we discussed.

Edit your work—multiple times, if possible

When you write your first draft, you’re probably not thinking about the perfect words to use or which words are weasel words—and that’s okay. The important thing is to get your ideas organized on the page. It’s the editing stage where you’ll want to look out for wordy sentences.

Different people have different editing methods, but I’ll share mine with you to give you an idea of how to cut out the wordiness.

After the first draft, I put my writing aside for a day. That way, I can edit with fresh eyes.

The first edit is focused on big organizational changes. Are the paragraphs in the right order? Are there whole sentences or paragraphs you can eliminate altogether? You might try a reverse outline at this stage to help get things in order.

Once the organization is good, then comes the smaller, word-level edits. Hit Ctrl+F on your keyboard, and search for the following:

• That
• Really
• Very
• Adverbs ending in -ly
• Any weasel words you know you use too much

If the words are necessary, leave them in. But if you can delete them or change them to cut down on wordiness, do it.

Then, do one last round of edits to catch any other errors and to make sure everything still flows after the changes you’ve made.

I understand if you don’t have time to wait a day and do three rounds of edits after that. So feel free to modify the plan to fit your needs. But never forget the importance of proofreading and editing your work.

Still Think Your Essay Is Too Wordy?

For more ways to avoid wordiness in your essays, read Concise Writing: How to Write a Strong Essay With Fewer Words.

And if you still can’t find the wordy sentences in your essay or you’re not sure how to change them, you can get the help you need by turning to Kibin’s editors.

They’re here to show you potential missteps and help you correct issues with flow, wordiness, grammar, and more. That way, you know what to look out for when you write your next essay.

Why? Because you need variety.

The need for variety doesn’t only apply to meals, though. It’s important in writing too.

Because both spaghetti and writing can get a little messy, let’s grab some napkins and utensils (a fork and a spoon for the spaghetti and your preferred writing utensils for your upcoming essay) and talk about how to improve sentence variety in your essays.

Why Sentence Variety Is Important

Even if you don’t love pasta, you probably know that pasta is full of variety: spaghetti, penne, fusilli, farfalle, rigatoni, linguine… the list seems endless. While each noodle is essentially made of the same ingredients, they’re all unique in shape, texture, and size.

See, pasta is like an effective essay! Each sentence is made up of a string of words, but every sentence should be unique in structure, length, and style.

When you’re writing an essay, mix it up a bit. Include a variety of long and short sentences, and vary sentence structures and openings.

Include a variety of long and short sentences, and vary sentence structures and openings.
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This type of variety is important in your writing because it makes your writing easier to read. It also keeps readers interested. Need some evidence to convince you?

Check out these short sentences:

I went to Pasta Land. I ordered spaghetti. It was delicious.

Using only short, choppy sentences makes your writing sound unsophisticated and boring. No one wants to read a paper written like this.

Check out this long sentence:

Yesterday, I went to Pasta Land for dinner to try their all-you-can-eat spaghetti super-special, and because I’m such a huge pasta lover, you know I had to order the spaghetti, and I did, and it was so over-the-top delicious that I just couldn’t believe it was only $12.99!

Trying to catch your breath after reading that long, rambling sentence? Any reader would be. These long, winding sentences can become overwhelming, and readers can easily get lost trying to figure out the focus of the sentence.

In other words, don’t go for extremes. Using only long, rambling sentences isn’t any better than using only short, choppy sentences.

(Read Why Eliminating Wordiness Is So Important for Your Essay to learn more about writing concisely.)

The trick, as I mentioned above, is to add variety. A few short sentences are great. They add emphasis. A few longer sentences are important to keep writing interesting. (Just be careful not to go too overboard on extremely long sentences.)

Need a little help finding the perfect balance? Check out the strategies below.

How to Improve Sentence Variety

Now that you have a better understanding of why sentence variety is important in your writing, take a look at these two strategies to improve sentence variety in your own essays.

Vary sentence length

If all of your sentences are short, the writing sounds simplistic. If all of your sentences are too long, they become rambling and often unclear. Including a variety of sentence lengths in your essay keeps writing interesting and adds emphasis.

Here are two examples:

Example #1

Yesterday, Pasta Land had all-you-can-eat spaghetti for $12.99. Because I’m such a huge pasta fan, I had to try it at least once. It was delicious. I couldn’t believe the variety of choices and the amazing sauces.

These sentences are varied in length to add interest. Notice that there is one short sentence: “It was delicious.” This sentence is intentionally short to add emphasis to the fact that the main point of the sentences is the taste of the meal.

If you want to emphasize the cost of the meal, you might revise to include the price in a shorter sentence that reads something like this:

Example #2

Yesterday, Pasta Land had all-you-can-eat spaghetti, and because I’m such a huge pasta fan, I had to try it at least once. It was a delicious meal with a large variety of choices and amazing sauces. The best part? It was only $12.99.

Vary sentence openings

If all of your sentences start the same, your writing becomes dull and repetitive. By varying sentence openings, you add rhythm and emphasis to your writing.

Here are two examples to clarify:

Example #1

I love lasagna. I could eat it every day. I would never grow tired of it.

In this example, all of the sentences are short and begin with “I.” To revise, simply combine the ideas.

Revision

I love lasagna so much that I could eat it every day and never grow tired of it.

In this revision, the sentence still begins with “I.” But the ideas have been combined to create a compound sentence that’s much more engaging than the short, choppy sentences.

Example #2

It is important to choose the right sauce to complement your chosen pasta. It is necessary in order to find the perfect balance of flavor and texture.

In this example, the sentences are longer, but they both begin with the “it is” and use the same sentence structure. In order to create more interesting writing and add emphasis, combine ideas and vary openings.

Revision Suggestions

• In order to find the perfect balance of flavor and texture, it is important to choose the right sauce that will complement your pasta.

• Choosing the right sauce will complement your pasta and balance both flavor and texture.

• If you choose the right sauce, it will complement your pasta and will be the perfect balance of flavor and texture.

• To find the perfect complement to your pasta that will balance both flavor and texture, you must choose the right sauce.

Notice that these revision suggestions all express the same general idea but place emphasis on different aspects of the sentence.

Crafting the Perfect Sentence

It takes plenty of practice to become a master chef capable of making the perfect noodle. Likewise, it takes plenty of practice to become an expert writer capable of creating the perfect sentence.

Sentence variety is one way to improve your writing. There are, of course, additional strategies you might use to improve your writing style. Check out these posts for more information:

• 15 Ways to Improve Your Academic Writing
• 3 Ways to Focus on Concrete Language in Your Next Essay
• Passive Voice: 3 Things You Need to Know for a Better Essay
• Avoid These 10 Common Grammar Mistakes in Your Paper

While reading about how to become a better writer can be a huge help, you can also learn a lot about improving your own style by reading someone else’s work. Take a look at a few example essays about writing style, and take note of the sentence variety each writer uses.

Did you also know Kibin has a variety of expert editors to help with your writing style and just about any other aspect of your writing? Send us your paper for helpful feedback.

Maybe you’ve already written an introduction, maybe not. In either case, diving into your body paragraphs, crafting the perfect paragraph structures, is next on the agenda.

You might be wishing for a little pink-winged paragraph fairy to wave his magic wand and transform your outline into beautifully constructed paragraphs…

I had to face that hard reality, too, when writing this blog post. But it’s OK. Writing strong paragraphs with good structures is a process you can tackle. I promise.

The secret is in using “evidence” to support your main ideas and package it all in a fail-safe structure. In this blog post, I’ll break down the anatomy of the perfect paragraph structure. I’ll leave you with a blueprint to tackle all your academic paragraphs—no magic or cute little fairies needed.

Here’s a break down of the anatomy of the perfect paragraph structure.
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First, though, let’s look at why paragraph structure is so important. Ready?

Why Paragraph Structure Matters—A Lot

The right paragraph structure for body paragraphs is important for several reasons.

Thanks, Instructor Obvious, we probably figured that out from your essay prompt. The obvious aside, good paragraph structure allows you to group and organize your main ideas into body paragraphs. These paragraphs, then, “prove” your thesis statement.

They give your essay credibility—regardless of the type of essay you’re writing. They allow readers (and the most important reader—your instructor) to grasp your main ideas. Finally, your body paragraphs flush out the logic and support for your thesis statement.

And, yes, as Instructor Obvious so deftly pointed out, they do account for a major chunk of your essay grade.

To start crafting effective paragraphs, you first need to understand all the pieces that fit together to form a cohesive paragraph structure. Let’s jump in, shall we?

The Components of the Perfect Paragraph Structure

Every academic paragraph structure has three main components:

1. Topic sentence
2. Support sentences
3. Concluding sentence

A paragraph, according to Merriam-Webster.com, is “a part of a piece of writing that usually deals with one subject, that begins on a new line, and that is made up of one or more sentences.”

While that doesn’t help us much in terms of structure, it does highlight one key point: A paragraph deals with one main idea.

A paragraph deals with one main idea.
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Each paragraph in any academic essay should have one—and only one—main point. This highlights the first component of the perfect paragraph structure, the topic sentence.

The second component comprises the support sentences. These sentences establish the proof of, and develop, your main idea.

The third component, the concluding sentence, then brings the first two components together. It synthesizes the main idea with the proof to show why it matters.

I’ve put the three main components in a handy table for you with more detail about what each entails:

Let’s break those down even more and practice with an example paragraph.

Paragraph Structure Component #1: Topic Sentence

The topic sentence presents both the topic and the controlling idea of your paragraph. It also accomplishes three crucial things:

1. It connects to and supports your thesis statement.
2. It establishes what the paragraph is about.
3. It unifies the content of the paragraph.

Think of the topic sentence as a mini-thesis.
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Think of the topic sentence as a mini-thesis. Everything in the rest of the paragraph must relate back to it. A good topic sentence is clear and relevant to your thesis statement.

There’s one caveat here. Make sure the topic sentence is specific enough to connect to your thesis statement and provide a writable blueprint for the paragraph. But also make sure it’s broad enough that the details within it don’t make it hard to write an entire paragraph.

Let’s build an example of the first component of the perfect paragraph structure.

Assume my thesis statement says this:

The “over” position for toilet paper is superior because it is safer due to a shorter reach to unravel and grab tissue, it limits the spread of germs, and it is more visually appealing.

(I don’t know about you, but in my house, the position of toilet paper is a serious point of contention. It’s sparked many debates and heated “discussions.”)

My topic sentence might look something like this:

The “over” position for toilet paper is safer due to the shorter reach to unravel and grab the tissue.

Comparing against the three things a topic sentence should do, my example does the following:

  Connects to and supports the thesis statement.

  Establishes what the paragraph is about.

  Unifies the content of the paragraph (which you’ll see in the next section!).

This topic sentence sets up the lead-in to the details that form the support sentences, the second component of the perfect paragraph structure.

Paragraph Structure Component #2: Support Sentences

Support sentences are vital to supporting both your topic sentence and your thesis statement. These sentences will accomplish three things:

1. They add more detail to and/or explain your topic sentence.
2. They use concrete details as “evidence” to prove, clarify, or illustrate your main point.
3. They give your paragraph meaning.

How you develop the support sentences will depend on the type of essay you’re writing, though. While there are many approaches to paragraph development , answering a few questions can help you figure out what approach is best for your essay topic and structure.

• Will examples, details, or reasons support your point?
• Do you need to analyze information or argue a point?
• Will quoting research help establish your point?
• Do you have relevant statistics or other research data available?
• Can or should you tie in personal experience?

By answering these questions, you can start to shape how you will develop the paragraph to create the perfect paragraph structure. Use at least two concrete details to make your paragraph effective. You can use more—let your topic and the amount of support it needs dictate that for you.

If you need to analyze information from research, for example, your paragraph will likely be longer. While there’s no set number of sentences you need to include, aim for 5-8 sentences. This ensures you don’t make paragraphs too long but still have sufficient details and content to establish the main support for the topic sentence.

You also want to present support sentences logically and systematically. For example, you don’t want to present research first and then further explain your topic sentence. The paragraph development method you select will guide you in this process.

Now, let’s break the support sentences into two steps.

First, I want to further explain my topic sentence and add a little more detail. I might create a sentence that looks something like this:

Even though the distance is a matter of mere inches, research suggests it creates a safer environment.

Then, as the second step, I want to provide the evidence that supports my topic sentence and, by extension, my thesis, too. I’ll use research data and statistics to argue my point—that the “over” position for toilet paper is superior because it’s safer.

I might construct two additional support sentences that look like this:

A 2014 Bathroom Safety (BS) survey found that households using the “over” position had 75% fewer falls off the toilet. Further, according to the Consortium of Research About Paper Products (CRAPP), bathroom goers who use the “under” position are 30% more likely to suffer debilitating rotator cuff damage.

Notice how I’ve put “further” in bold? This highlights the importance of transitioning between your support sentences. Just throwing in a series of rapid-fire sentences hurts the flow of information. So make sure you use transitions well to create continuity and unity, which together will build good flow.

Comparing against what support sentences should do, my sentences do the following:

  Add more detail to the topic sentence.

  Use concrete details as evidence.

  Give the paragraph meaning.

Don’t just stuff facts or details into a paragraph, though. You need to show why the information is important.

Don’t just stuff facts or details into a paragraph, though. You need to show why the info is important.
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The concluding sentence allows you to do this in a nice neat bow to wrap up the paragraph.

Paragraph Structure Component #3: Concluding Sentence

The concluding sentence lets you show the “why.” You provided the “evidence,” but why do the details matter?

The concluding sentence accomplishes three things:

1. It shows the significance of the information.
2. It answers the “so what?” question.
3. It synthesizes your paragraph content with your topic sentence.

In other words, you want to use wording that reinforces the main idea in your topic sentence and draws the information you presented together with that main idea. This means using similar wording (but not just restating) from your topic sentence. It also means reinforcing the relevance of the paragraph to your thesis statement.

My example concluding sentence might look something like this:

Thus, while small, the shorter reach required with toilet paper in the “over” position ensures bathroom safety and prevents injury, making the “over” position superior.

Notice a few key things here that help reinforce the paragraph structure. First, I used a transitional word (“thus”) to shift into the concluding sentence.

Second, I used wording that mirrors my topic sentence (“shorter reach,” “ensures bathroom safety,” and “prevents injury”).

Third, the end of the sentence relates the paragraph back to my thesis statement with “making the ‘over’ position superior.”

Comparing against what a concluding sentence should do, my sentence does the following:

  Explains the significance of the information (answers the “so what?” question).

  Synthesizes the supporting details with the topic sentence.

  Connects to your thesis statement.

Now, let’s put it all together to view the final paragraph to see how the perfect paragraph structure looks with a full example:

That wasn’t so bad, was it? If you follow the simple steps I’ve outlined and choose the right method of paragraph development, you will craft the perfect paragraph structure every time.

See? You don’t need the paragraph fairy after all.

Perfect Paragraph Structure Checklist

Before I send you off into the wild to write perfect paragraphs for your next essay, here’s a checklist you can use to help keep your paragraph structure on track.

Need More Help Creating Perfect Paragraph Structure?

If you’re still feeling a little unsure about creating the perfect paragraph structure, check out this handout from the UNC Writing Center, try the P.I.E. approach, or read this blog on paragraph development.

If you’re feeling adventurous, look at some example essays that are similar to your assigned essay and compare them against the perfect paragraph checklist. This will give you an idea of what you should or shouldn’t do when crafting your own paragraphs for a specific essay type.

If you’ve got your first essay draft done and want reassurance or additional guidance, send your essay to a Kibin editor to check for paragraph structure and development (and a whole lot more!) because that’s how we roll (har har).

And if the Great Toilet Paper Debate is a hotly contested issue in your house, you can quiet those naysayers to the “over” position, too. A look at the image submitted with the patent for the first toilet paper holder clearly shows the “correct” position.

With that, I bid you adieu. Here’s to happy, stress-free writing AND safe bathroom expeditions!

Now think about a time when you saw a really terrible comedian. It may have been the same night; he may have been the opener for the headlining comedian. This experience was probably quite different. The jokes had potential, but fell flat. There were awkward pauses, and the entire bit seemed to be a mishmash of random anecdotes.

This is a pretty typical experience, but most people don’t actually analyze why they loved one comedian, but didn’t care for the other.

The last time I was at Cobb’s Comedy Club, I sat through a very average comedian, but was later blown away by the headliner.

As my friend and I left, we discussed why these two comedians had such different effects on us. It wasn’t the quality of the jokes; we agreed that they both had good material. However, the delivery was completely different.

The headlining comedian masterfully transitioned from one topic to the next. The segments were often seemingly unrelated, but we hardly noticed. What resulted was a fluid show from start to finish that captured our attention the entire time.

And that’s the power of good transition sentences and phrases. They are capable of taking your audience or reader from one idea to the next without sounding disjointed or jerky. Transitions thread together several different ideas to create one cohesive story. But it’s done in a subtle way, and that’s why good transitions are so difficult to master in our everyday writing whether that be an essay, email, or cover letter.

So what are transition sentences exactly?

A transition sentence is any sentence that is designed to move your audience from one idea to another without causing confusion or losing fluidity. You may have been taught that the words “however,” “therefore,” and “furthermore,” among others, are transitional words that, in turn, compose transitional sentences. However, this is the most basic form of transitional sentences. In this blog post, I’ll be talking about more subtle and complex forms of transitional sentences and how they take your essays and writing to the next level.

Unfortunately, many people believe that transitions only happen at the beginning of paragraphs in order to connect their different ideas. That is not true. Transitions should actually happen within paragraphs to move slowly from topics and segments before introducing new ones.

That sounds really vague, how about some examples?

Sure, but before we get into any written examples, let’s look at what world-class comedians teach us about transitions.

Stand-up comedy is much like an oral essay. The comedian tells jokes, usually in the form of a story, and moves from one segment of material to the next by connecting them with good transition sentences.

Take a look at this short clip of Jim Gaffigan.

Throughout this four and a half minute segment, Jim pokes fun at holiday traditions that we all recognize. But he doesn’t focus on just one holiday; he covers Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, the 4th of July, Halloween, and Valentine’s Day.

While all of these holidays are related to Jim’s overarching theme of holiday traditions, he still has to connect each holiday with good transition sentences. Some of these transitions are very apparent and easy to spot, but let’s take a look at one that is particularly great.

At 1:46 in the clip, Jim starts talking about Thanksgiving. He pokes fun at the fact that our tradition is to eat a ton of food. At the 2:10 mark, Jim continues this theme of food and eating to bring his audience to the next holiday via the following the transition sentence:

“Most people use holidays so we can eat more. I normally don’t have a burger, a brat, and a steak. But, it is 4th of July.”

This is an awesome transitional sentence. In the sentence immediately before this, Jim was talking about overeating during Thanksgiving, and he’s able to move his comedy seamlessly to the 4th of July by staying on this same topic. His audience doesn’t even realize they’ve just broached an entirely new topic and an entirely new set of jokes for Jim to tell.

This is just one small clip of Jim Gaffigan’s full stand-up routine. But if this were an essay, we see how we’d use each holiday as a paragraph. On the other hand, we might decide to write an essay about “The Oddities of Our Everyday Life” and use this entire clip as just one paragraph.

In that case, we would have to transition from different ideas that aren’t as closely related as holidays, just as Jim would do throughout his entire routine. As you can imagine, a full one-hour show about holiday traditions is bound to get boring!

So how do I transition between ideas that are not at all related?

Look no further than this blog post!

It isn’t immediately apparent how writing essays, blog posts, and cover letters are related to stand-up comedy. But when I thought about what makes a great stand-up comedy show and what makes great writing, the answer became clearer.

The truth is, just about any two things are somehow related. In fact, you may be familiar with the six degrees of separation. The theory is that anyone or anything is related to another within six introductions or connections. Let’s take a look at this visually:

This is a relatively simple example as comedians and writers are only separated by one degree. But you can imagine how it has the potential to get quite complicated!

The six degrees of separation theory was introduced in the 1960s but was never actually tested until much later. However, it turns out that the theory actually holds true. As a result, no two things are actually completely unrelated; rather, they are seemingly unrelated, and it is up to you to discover that relation.

But relating two seemingly unrelated subjects is only half the battle. The true challenge is doing it in a way that flows naturally with your writing. That’s exactly what I’ve done in this blog post.

I want you to go back to the first six paragraphs of this post. Notice how I was able to transition you, as the reader, slowly from talking about comedians and then moving to my main topic: writing good transition sentences.

Let’s break down how I did this step by step, so you have a reference for trying it in your own writing.

In the first paragraph, my goal was to first introduce stand-up comedy as my stepping stone. However, I also wanted to wean you slowly into my main subject: good transition sentences. The trick here is to do this in a non-abrupt manner. Notice my careful word choices:

I intentionally used the word “storyteller” to solidify the fact that, like a writer, a comedian tells a story to his audience. This way, when I push writing and stand-up comedy closer together, the idea won’t seem completely foreign.

I also dropped in the word “transition” to get you familiar with this word being used in the context of a comedian and stand-up comedy rather than just in the realm of writing.

Lastly, the word “segments” helps me lightly relate a stand-up comedy routine to an essay. After all, an essay is simply a collection of segments, or paragraphs.

The goal of this first paragraph was not a hard sell, trying to say that stand-up comedy is directly related to writing. My plan was to simply begin relating the two, even if only subconsciously.

The second paragraph is quite different. Rather than focusing on particular words, I chose to connect an idea instead: without good transitions, a stand-up comedy routine isn’t all that great.

My goal here, obviously, was to compare good and average stand-up comedy. But remember, I’ve already started relating stand-up comedy to writing. My ultimate goal is to provide you a relatable example to “sell” you on the importance of good transition sentences and their power to make average writing great.

Notice the key sentences I use in paragraphs three and four to solidify further the power of transitions in stand-up comedy:

All I’m doing with these paragraphs is providing further anecdotal support that great stand-up comedy is highly dependent on great transitions.

Once I’ve adequately supported my stance, it’s time to start really bringing it home. The fifth paragraph doesn’t beat around the bush; it comes right out and says what you, as the reader, have already been toying with in your head. Also notice how I reiterate some of the same words I used in the opening paragraph: “segments” and “transitioned”:

At this point, I’ve got you hooked. You’re most likely nodding your head in agreement, and I’m now completely free to move my writing to the main argument:

The first sentence in this sixth paragraph is the clincher. I finally come out and say, “Hey, good transitions take something average and make it truly great.” Also, this is the very first time I ever use the words “transition sentences and phrases” as these terms are largely related to writing, not stand-up comedy.

As soon as I do that, I slyly drop in the word “reader” to begin completing my transition from stand-up comedy to writing. With the phrase in green, I’m finally able to move the conversation completely to a point where I broach the subject of transitions and writing.

I’m now off to the races, free to compare stand-up comedy, writing, and transitions interchangeably. As the reader, by this point, you are completely comfortable making these connections, and it doesn’t seem odd or awkward. The beauty of this is that had I not walked you through this entire process, you may have never realized how I managed to do it. And that is the power and beauty of transitions; they occur without you realizing it.

In your next essay or blog post, try to keep transitions in mind. The way I’ve managed to do it here is quite complex and takes much thought and practice. But start small, and you’ll quickly realize the benefits great transition sentences and phrases have on the power of your writing.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback in the comments!