1.1: Art of Clarity - Sentence Structure and Parts of Speech

Core media writing skills are covered throughout this text in brief sections included at the end of nearly every chapter. These sections collectively form a primer called the "Art of Clarity: Essential Techniques for Media Writers."

Here in Chapter 1, this section covers basics every media writing student should know about crafting sentences.

Words are the building blocks of language. They are how we convey meaning through symbols to one another in real time and how we record events for future reference. Sentences mold words into complete thoughts by adding context. They can provide a great deal of information efficiently. Sentences often tell us who did what to whom with what and in what context.

Media writers should choose their words with care. They should include only one thought per sentence. They should select unambiguous words and should structure sentences such both content and context are easy to understand.

Guidelines for writing clear sentences in the media industry

1. Limit sentences to 20 words, with one exception: News leads may run up to 25.
2. Keep to one thought per sentence.
3. Use the active voice when you have a choice.
4. Use figures of speech rarely, if at all.
5. Eliminate overused words.
6. Eliminate words that serve no purpose.
7. Use parts of speech the way an artist uses shapes to build structures.

At all times when you are writing as a professional you must know the meaning of the words you are using, the role or purpose of each word in each sentence, and the most likely interpretation of each sentence by a reasonable audience member.

The following section introduces lessons in sentence writing that almost every media professional needed to brush up on at some point in their career. The examples are structured to illustrate common writing problems (from a media writing perspective) and strongly suggested solutions.

Examples

1. Here's an example of cutting a long sentence from more than 40 words to fewer than 20 words:

TOO LONG: My morning routine is like most people's because I do basic things like get out of bed, get a drink of water, put my glasses on, head to the kitchen to make coffee, and sit down with my phone at the kitchen table.

BETTER: My morning routine is to get out of bed, drink water, put on my glasses, make coffee and look at my phone.

The second version tells the same story in about half the words.

Please note that the deletion of the Oxford comma in the example above is purposeful in media writing. In this textbook, you will see the Oxford comma used in regular book copy because a textbook is a form of academic writing.

In media writing, the most accepted style is to eliminate the Oxford comma because it takes up space and in most cases is unnecessary.

The limit of 20 words per sentence is an important rule to abide by. When writing lead sentences for hard news, the cap is 25 words because leads usually convey most of the Who, What, When, and Where of a story.

 

2. The following is an example with two ideas crammed into one sentence.

TOO MANY IDEAS: He actually loved white bread, but he drove a Mustang.

BETTER: He loved white bread, but he was not boring. He sped around town in a Mustang most days.

Here, the better example is a bit longer, but it indicates how the two ideas are connected.

 

3. The following example demonstrates why it's better to use the active voice. In grammar, "voice" refers to whether the subject is acting on something or being acted upon.

PASSIVE, WEAK: He was hit in the jaw by the bouncer's right fist.

BETTER: The bouncer hit him in the jaw with a left jab that left him stunned like Jake Paul.

The better example depicts a person actively punching someone else. It is clear from the start of the sentence who punched whom. If you visualize the PASSIVE, WEAK example, it is not clear until the end of the sentence what the action was.

 

4. The following example uses too many figures of speech.

UNNECESSARY METAPHOR: She is a unicorn with great typing skills, an understanding of Microsoft Excel, and the ability to paint fantastic murals.

BETTER: She has all the skills we are looking for. She types fast, knows Excel and can paint fantastic murals.

The mental image of a unicorn is unnecessary in the example sentence. It does nothing to add to the reader's understanding.

 

5. The following is an example of a sentence that includes overused or "dead" words. These words might once have described rare or exceptional things, but their overuse has rendered them stale, boring.

OVERUSED WORDS: Stan loved the awesome flavors of citrus soft drinks.

BETTER: Stan loved crisp and tart citrus soft drinks.

In this case "awesome" does not mean that something inspires awe. Instead, it is a tired replacement for "great" or "distinctive." Replacing the generic term with specific descriptive words works well here.

 

6. The next example indicates sentences with words that should not be replaced but instead should simply be cut.

EXTRANEOUS WORDS: Terra Thompson found her new roommate to be needlessly loud and annoyingly disgusting.

BETTER: Terra Thompson found her new roommate to be disgusting and loud.

In media writing, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositional phrases are often the first to go. Unless they are essential, cut them.

 

7. If you read the previous example regarding someone being "needlessly loud" and "annoyingly disgusting" and did not immediately recognize which words were adverbs and which were adjectives, you would not be so different from many students in introductory media writing courses, but it is essential that you learn all eight common parts of speech immediately.

The parts of speech are as essential to writers as circles, rectangles, squares, triangles, etc. are to artists. These are the building blocks we use to construct sentences.

The eight parts of speech are,

• noun
• pronoun
• adjective
• verb
• adverb
• preposition
• conjunction
• interjection

These terms classify words based on what they do in a sentence.

Noun

A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea. Nouns can be specific, including proper nouns such as "Paris" or general, including common nouns like "city." Examples include "dog," "happiness," and "computer."

Pronoun

A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun to avoid repetition and to simplify sentences and paragraphs. Examples include "he," "she," "it," "they," and "who." For instance, in "Lisa forgot her book," "her" is a pronoun that references "Lisa."

Adjective

An adjective is a word that describes or modifies a noun or pronoun. It provides details about qualities such as size, color, shape, quantity, and/or condition. For example, in the phrase "a blue car," "blue" describes the car.

Verb

A verb is a word that expresses an action, occurrence, or state of being. Verbs deliver the action in sentences. They indicate what the subject does, experiences, or feels. Examples are "run," "is," and "believe."

Adverb

An adverb modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb, often providing information about how, when, where, or to what extent an action happened. For instance, in "She walked briskly," "briskly" indicates that she walked in a quick and focused way.

Preposition

A preposition typically indicates location, direction, or time. Examples include "in," "at," "on," and "under." For instance, "The book is on the table" uses "on" to show location.

Conjunction

A conjunction connects words, phrases, or clauses within a sentence. Conjunctions help to show the relationship between parts. Common conjunctions are "and," "but," "or," and "because." For example, "I wanted to go outside, but it was raining."

Interjection

An interjection is a word or phrase that expresses a strong emotion or reaction. Interjections are often punctuated by an exclamation mark. Interjections usually stand alone and are set off from sentences. Examples include "Wow!" "Oops," "Hey!" and "Omigosh." (The British English pronunciation of "omigosh" is delightful.)

 

Art of Clarity Activities - Sentences and Parts of Speech

This activity has two parts. The purpose of the first part is to work on improving the clarity of your writing. The purpose of the second is to practice recognizing parts of speech, the building blocks of writing.

This activity may be copied, pasted and distributed on paper, or instructors may prefer to paste it directly into an assignment in a learning management system such as Blackboard or Canvas.

The professor developing this activity for a 1000-point course breaks these into two separate assignments worth 10 points each. Students continue to submit this assignment until they have earned all of the points. Instructors may choose to add or delete additional prompts as needed.

Writing clear sentences

1. Cut the following sentence down to 20 words or less.

The fluffy, brown Lagotto Romagnolo ran quickly across the park until he reached a group of dogs, and then he playfully hopped around two of the larger dogs in a circle until he was tuckered out.

2. Separate the following compound sentence into two sentences.

Jamie rushed to finish cleaning up the counter before it was time to clock out, and he took the trash to the back lot while watching for his ride.

3. Change the passive voice to the active voice.

Charlie was hit in the head with a bowling trophy thrown by his brother.

4. Eliminate the figures of speech from this sentence.

My former boss said I was so slow that I was a bag of fries short of a value meal.

5. Eliminate or replace the overused words.

Cheryl Lynn said it was awesome how nice her cousin in Chicago with the pretty hair was.

6. Eliminate the unnecessary adjectives and adverbs.

When Thomas saw his daughter frolicking playfully in the watery ocean waves, he smiled happily.

Identifying parts of speech

1. Identify the nouns in the following sentence, and label them as proper nouns or common nouns.

Félix Trinidad Hernández from Veracruz, Mexico got a tattoo on his arm of sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson to honor her comeback after she made the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team.

2. Identify the pronouns in the following passage.

Sharita developed her baking skills in culinary school. She practiced them week in and week out before she took a job at Chez Claudette.

3. Identify the adjectives in the following sentence.

Stella made a quick video showing off Thursday's haul featuring a pair of classic Mary Jane's, a green T-shirt, and flowy shorts.

4. Identify the verb in the following sentence.

Diving under the stairs, Carrie Anne hid from the charging monster.

5. Identify the adverbs in the following sentence.

Andrea quickly downed half of a delicately seasoned rotisserie chicken.

6. Identify the prepositional phrase in the following sentence.

Harry dropped the screwdriver, and it rolled under the workbench.

7. Identify the conjunction in the following passage.

Emma watched one of her favorite shows on Max, and she scrolled through TikTok and Instagram at the same time.

8. Identify the interjection in the following sentence.

"On God, this kid is third-partying!" yelled Samuel.