Thursday, March 1, 2012

Basic Paragraph Structure


Basic Paragraph Structure
Hello Asad,

Here is the first edition of the EzineArticles.com Article Writing: Paragraph and Grammar Structure Training Series.

Merriam-Webster Definition of "Paragraph": A paragraph is a subdivision of a written composition that consists of one or more sentences and deals with one point or gives the words of one speaker.

Topic Sentence: A topic sentence is the first sentence of your paragraph. It should be the most general sentence in a paragraph and should introduce the overall idea that you want to discuss later in the paragraph. Indentation of the first word in your topic sentence is no longer needed.
  • Example: Suppose that you want to write a paragraph about article marketing. The topic sentence leading your paragraph might look like this:

    "Writing dozens, hundreds or even thousands of articles and making
    them available for distribution is one of the best ways to ensure that
    your website gets surges in traffic over the long-haul."

    - Christopher Knight, CEO, EzineArticles.com

    Note: The topic sentence introduces the topic in a general manner and sets up the rest of the paragraph for detail-oriented sentences. When a reader reads a topic sentence, a question should usually appear in the reader's mind. In this case, the question should be "Why" and the reader should expect that the rest of the paragraph will give an answer to this question.

Supporting Sentences: Supporting sentences must "support" or explain the idea expressed in the topic sentence. Details are important to help your reader understand exactly what you are writing about. It should answer the question posed by your topic sentence.
  • Example: Your supporting sentences for your paragraph about article marketing might look like this:

    "When you put your articles into distribution (meaning you submit
    them to ezine publishers and the article sites that ezine publishers
    visit for fresh content), you increase your chances of getting
    picked up as supplemental content by ezine publishers. They take
    your article and send it to their email newsletter membership or
    add it to their website."

    - Christopher Knight, CEO, EzineArticles.com

    Note: Most paragraphs have 5-7 supporting sentences. If writing about a strategy or giving tips or list items, bulleted or numbered lists can be helpful here instead of full supporting sentences.

Concluding Sentence: The concluding sentence usually occurs at the end of a paragraph and summarizes the information presented in the paragraph. It is similar to, but not exactly the same as the topic sentence.
  • Example: Your concluding sentence for your paragraph about article writing might look like this:

    "The article writing labor investment and distribution submission can
    pay off with surges in traffic to your website for many years to
    come without having to buy the traffic. Consider it an investment
    in building your website's traffic-future."

    - Christopher Knight, CEO, EzineArticles.com

    Note: Concluding sentences are primarily used in the formal writing of long paragraphs with multiple details in the supporting sentences. Short paragraphs (2-3 supporting sentences) do not require a concluding sentence.

The next edition of the EzineArticles.com Article Writing: Paragraph and Grammar Structure Training Series will explore paragraph coherence and unity.

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