I've attended two critique classes so far and received my first criticism. I can't say that it was easy hearing all the things wrong that they pointed out, but I need this to get an objective opinion about what and how I write. One comment was forthcoming from two or three of the critiquers that I should break up long paragraphs. I grinned to myself about this, because I do get carried away at times, but it is the age of Millenials and others who can't maintain a thought very long and think it is better to not have long paragraphs. The paragraphs in question to my way of thinking were not that long, being at the most three or four inches long only on the page. I may do as they say or leave it like it is. Time will tell as we go through the book.
I happened to be reading a short story by Walter van Thilburg Clark entitled The Wind and the Snow of Winter in which the paragraphs are mostly long, I mean almost full-page or three-quarters of a page or less, and one was about a page-and-a-half long..The critiquers may have had a heart attack if they had seen that. I thought, how times have changed! Clark, the son of a Nevada Governor, wrote some western stories in the first half of the twentieth century, and this story in 1944 for which he received the O. Henry Prize for shorter fiction. He is the author of The Ox-Bow Incident.
In The Wind and Snow of Winter he writes the story of an old prospector who sets out each spring to prospect for gold and returns in the fall. It is a very good description of someone in the first stages of dimentia, to me, and I liked it very much as he slowly starts losing his mind.
Ernest Haycox is another of the great western writers that was prolific in his production. I liked his story (not only this one, but others) entitled When You Carry the Star. It's about a Sheriff who has to hunt down one of his friends for murdering a storekeeper in cold blood while trying to rob the place.
Of course, he hates to go after a friend, but he must fulfill his duty as Sheriff, and he takes out on the trail. The story tells the feelings he has as he goes on the hunt and the psychology of the hunter and the hunted in the situation they are in - friend against friend.
I enjoyed both of these stories even though they both had some long paragraphs.
The trend has definitely been for shorter paragraphs and I've definitely shortened mine since I started writing. I think you need a mixture of short and long paragraphs, though. Shorter during action sequences, longer during calmer moments. But it's not a hard and fast rule.
ReplyDeleteIf it helps to sell books, I guess I'll go along with it. Thanks, Charles
DeleteSeems like I write some long ones myself. I also struggle with too long sentences and have to go back and break them up. Times are changing. I like Charles idea of long an short. Good tip.
ReplyDeleteI think most authors struggle with this to shorten the paras and sentences.
DeleteEarly on I was told to break up paragraphs. I've come to find that's a wise decision.
ReplyDeleteI will write shorter paragraphs! I will write shorter paragraphs! I will write shorter paragraphs!
ReplyDeleteOscar, these are useful writing tips for me. I usually keep my paragraphs short, both in my personal and professional writing. The question is when to keep them short and long, and which paras of the story. I'm always grappling with my syntaxes. I will also check out the Western writers you mentioned, as they are all new to me.
ReplyDeleteShort or long, that is the question. About everyone says short these days, but sometimes a longer one works better. You don't hear too much about these early writers nowadays, but some wrote grat stories.
ReplyDeleteI'm betting you are going to write shorter paragraphs!
ReplyDeleteI think I'll give it a tryout.
ReplyDelete