Jesus wept. The shortest sentence in the Bible. As a pastor’s kid, this is the type of trivia that I know. Although I know I’m not alone, and that one doesn’t have to be a Bibliophile to know this.
The short sentence has power. You couldn’t guess that I know this from my writing though. The readability analysis of my writing is forever telling me that more than 25% of my sentences contain more than 20 words. Like that last one had 22 so I’ve gone long in just the sentence about going long.
The declarative format. No room for ambiguity. Direct and pointed.
War sucks.
Let’s go.
Love wins.
I’m ready.
Children should laugh.
Say more.
Hope rises.
I recently had the honor of talking with Todd Fulginiti on the Sharing the Heart of the Matter podcast about his new album, Jazz on King, volume 1. As he wrote about so well in a recent Wise & Shine post, he’s worked his way to his style. He described it to my co-host, Vicki Atkinson, and me, as “less is more.”
I suspect the power of the declarative sentence is similar. Thanks for reading. Peace out.
Speaking of short sentences, “I’m sorry” is one of the most effective when used well. I’ve posted The Art of Apology on my personal blog.
I also post on Mondays at the Heart of the Matter blog, a great shared blog of personal storytelling with a podcast that highlights inspirational creatives. My book about my journey to find what fueled my dad’s indelible spark and twinkle can be found on Amazon: Finding My Father’s Faith.
You can find me on Instagram and Twitter @wynneleon
(featured photo from Pexels)
Two things I love- two dollar bills and good two word sentences! I know the two dollar bill thing is random but a good two word sentence feels like the writer’s equivalent of a perfect strikeout pitch or a quick, goal scoring wrist shot in hockey- powerful, to the point and effective. 😎. Thanks very much for the shout-out about the album🙂🙏 You rock!
Thanks, Todd.
I was just going to leave it as that, but I simply can’t do this reply in two words. I love two dollar bills as well. And your analogy with great pitches – so good!
Wonderful read 😉
You’re awesome! 🙂
Todd’s point about “less” struck me as a cornerstone of his artistry and musicianship. Knowing when to pare down. Talent…right there…whether with musical notes, words, paint. So good! 🥰
Knowing when to pare down – so perfectly put. Not that I often remember but when I do…. 🙂
Thanks, friend!
😉❤️😉
I enjoy how long sentences can weave around. But when several long sentences are in a row, the reading can get tricky and I might lose my place. I also enjoy the impact of short sentences. They can really grab you while reading. Raymond Chandler did that well. Especially in the action scenes, the short sentences make the action easy to follow.
And I agree with you that “I’m sorry,” as you went into more discussion in your other post, is a powerful sentence. Blaming another person when something goes wrong can be a quick reaction. But it takes an opening up, an honesty, to apologize.
What an insightful comment about the opening up necessary for an apology. I’ve just finished reading “Don’t Lose Your Head” which I enjoyed greatly and it’s funny to consider the art of apology in that context!
Thank you for reading the novella — I appreciate it!
Oh, this is good Wynne. Great stuff. First, I did know that “Jesus wept” is the shortest sentence in the Bible. It’s always brought a strong response inside of me. With that information, I guess I should add the John the Apostle to the list of great writers that I should try to mimic. Ha, ha. Secondly, I think we all struggle with longish sentences. It’s so hard to cut. We want to, we try to, but shorter sentences open things up to the reader’s impression. As you mention, though, shorter sentences carry a powerful knock-out punch. Every one of the examples you mention hits home. Wow. Thanks so much for this post. I needed this reminder. Less is more.
Great post. I often trim off words from my sentences and like the result.
Great comment! Combined with your profile info that I get when I hover on your name, it even more resonant! Love it, Chris!
Ha thank you! My profile is accurate I guess
I think it is best to vary sentence length; all long or all short can be equally problematic. Love your short sentence examples, Wynne!
Ah, a great perspective from an experienced writer. Thanks, Cheryl!
Short sentences are effective but sometimes look like statements, don’t they?
Great observation, Cristiana. I think you are right!
“Keep it simple” –
as one of my counselling therapists frequently told me –
She was right!
Thanks for the reminder of ‘short and sweet’ Wynne 😊
Oh, what a perfect wrap-up, Margaret! Yes!
Good stuff Wynne! I tend to ramble on and on about things. This is a great reminder to keep it simple and short. But oh how I love to ramble…hugs, C
When I was studying journalism and had to learn to write Norwegian from scratch as a foreigner I was told to read Donald Duck, because it would teach me how to write short sentences. That became the key for me to learn Norwegian. Great post Wynne.