This document provides tips for varying sentence structure to improve writing. It recommends varying sentence lengths by using conjunctions to join short sentences together. Both short and long sentences should be used. Sentence type, such as simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences, should also be varied. Additionally, sentence beginnings can be varied by using prepositional phrases, adverbs, and -ing phrases. Resources for further information on sentence variation are also included.

1. Varying Sentence Structure
Stop producing boring writing!

2. Great writing and speaking are
attractive! ;-)

3. Varying sentence structure is
easy and keeps your reader
interested.

4. …but how?
Good question!

5. Vary Sentence Lengths
Read the example below.
Too many short sentences can hurt an essay. It
can make the writing seem choppy. The writing
may seem like it is elementary. Readers may
lose interest. They may not want to continue
reading.
All of these sentences are short—about the
same length.

6. GOOD WRITING CONTAINS SENTENCES OF
DIFFERENT LENGTHS! THIS IS MUCH BETTER:
Too many short sentences can hurt an
essay, for it can make the writing seem
choppy and seem like it is elementary. Because
of this, readers may lose interest and may not
want to continue reading.
In this example, conjunctions are used to join
sentences together.

7. How to Vary Sentence Lengths
• Use coordinating conjunctions: for, and, nor,
but, or, yet. (The FANBOYS)
• Use subordinating conjunctions: after, although,
as, as if, as though, because, before, even if, even though, if, if
only, now that, once, rather than, since, than, that, though,
unless, until, when, where, whereas, wherever, whereas,
whether, which, while
• You may not remember the terms
coordinating and subordinating. That’s okay!
Just use the words!

8. Examples:
• Kaila packed her lunch.
– Before she left for work, Kaila packed her lunch.
• We can go biking this afternoon.
– If the weather is nice, we can go biking this
afternoon..
• Thousands of Emily Dickinson poems were
published.
– After her death, thousands of Emily Dickinson
poems were published.

9. REMEMBER!
Some sentences should be short
AND
Some sentences should be long!

10. More Ways…
• Vary sentence type.
– Simple: Hilary got a dog.
– Compound: Hilary got a dog, and Sara named
him.
– Complex: Because she didn’t like cats, Sara got a
dog.
– Compound-Complex: Because she didn’t like cats,
Hilary got a dog, and Sara, who loves dogs, named
him.

11. Also…
• Vary sentence beginnings.
– Begin with a prepositional phrase: Before school,
Hilary took fed her dog and took him for a walk.
– Begin with an adverb (usually –ly words): Usually,
she takes him for a walk after school.
– Begin with an –ing phrase: Being a good dog
owner, Sara

12. Resources
• http://www.aims.edu/student/online-writing-
lab/process/sentence-length
• http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/Documents
/Scholarly-
Writing/Varying_Sentence_Structure.pdf