How Long Should a Paragraph Be?
Posted: December 08, 2012
© pmhphoto - Fotolia.com[/caption]What is the perfect length for a paragraph? The answer can be as varying as the sources for advice on the length of paragraphs. A paragraph can actually be one word, or can go on for pages. Before you start making your paragraphs marathon length, though, keep in mind that you want to keep them easy to read and understand. Otherwise, your reader may decide they just don't want to invest the time to read any further.
© pmhphoto - Fotolia.com[/caption]What is the perfect length for a paragraph? The answer can be as varying as the sources for advice on the length of paragraphs. A paragraph can actually be one word, or can go on for pages. Before you start making your paragraphs marathon length, though, keep in mind that you want to keep them easy to read and understand. Otherwise, your reader may decide they just don't want to invest the time to read any further.
A paragraph should consist of six to seven sentences. No, it should be no longer than three sentences long. Actually, it should include a topic sentence, several supporting sentences, and possibly a concluding sentence. Sigh. Can I end this paragraph yet?
All three of the declarations in the previous paragraph (the first pair of which come, respectively, from sources within Purdue University and Stanford University, two of the most prestigious institutions of higher learning in the United States), and any similarly quantitative statements, are wrong. The correct answer is that a paragraph has to be long enough to reach its end.
Like this one.
A paragraph can be as long or as short as you want it to be. It can unfold for countless pages or consist of one word — even one letter.
W-
(I meant to write, “Wait!” but was interrupted.)
The determination to make in composing a given paragraph is not the number of sentences or words or letters, but the number of ideas. The rule of thumb — in nonfiction, at least — is that each paragraph should focus on one idea or concept; when you shift to a new idea, shift to a new paragraph. (In fiction, its function is more nebulous: A paragraph is a unit of writing that further develops a story through exposition.)
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