Sentence Fluency: the flow of consciousness

Find out how to write by reading what others have written. This is good advice.

I read something the other day, though, that gave me pause. Go back in time--way, way back--and the whole process of reading and writing began with...a writer!

Some would say this first Writer was the Creator, the primal force of existence: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

God didn't have any trouble saying anything--speech became creation. In the same way, the writer is also a creator, but first the writer has to have something to say. Words have to flow. This flowing, in the field of education, is labeled the higher order thinking skill called fluency: many and diverse ideas.

Each idea is a flowing of consciousness; each flowing is unique. This leads to sentence fluency, the fifth trait of the 6-Traits + 1 program.

If you are a fluent sentence writer, you write sentences that invite being read out loud; they have an easy flow or rhythm. Sentences vary in structure and length in a way that supports the meaning of what you are writing. Transitions between ideas are effective and creative. Depending on the subject and purpose of the writing, sentence fragments or non-standard grammar may be used to create a particular effect. Dialogue, if used, is natural and believable.

All of this cannot be achieved by following a formula. This stuff comes from within, from the wholeness of the creative vision. How can one improve sentence variety and creativity?

• Enrich your creativity. Expand your consciousness. Easily said...and effortlessly done with the Transcendental Meditation technique. Practice TM twice a day for 15-20 minutes, and then forget about it and get on with your writing. TM is a preparation for activity.
  
• Now that the first Writer has written the Word, read lots of other words. Learn through example.
• Be self-referential. Put writing aside and then come back to it at a later date. Consider the "reader over your shoulder," your audience, as you read your writing again.
  
• Be a part of a writing community. The perspective of a trusted friend (especially a writing friend) is a valuable asset.
• Consider your purpose for writing. Simply saying "Fire!" is appropriate if the blaze is roaring.

All of us, writers or not, are creators with every observation, thought, and action we take. The quality of our writing is dependent upon the comprehensiveness of our consciousness. Writing is cosmic. Let's make the universe we create worthy of our Creator.

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved