Tips for Writing Paragraphs
Use paragraphs to group related ideas and break up your writing into manageable “chunks.” Paragraphs give your writing structure and make it easier to read and understand. Each paragraph should discuss only one subtopic or point.
Most paragraphs are at least 4 to 6 sentences long. Some may be longer if you are discussing a complex topic. However, you might want to consider breaking very long paragraphs (more than 10-12 sentences) into more than one paragraph. The guidelines below can help you organize your writing into paragraphs.
Organize your sentences or ideas into groups.
- Group sentences based on the main idea or point that they relate to.
- Order each group of sentences logically. Make sure they are all about the same subject or subtopic and the connections between them are clear.
- Use these groups of sentences as the bodies (middle part) of your paragraphs.
State the main point that you will discuss in each paragraph in its first sentence.
- Identify exactly what you are writing about in this paragraph. What are you telling the reader about? What is your point?
- Tell the reader what you will discuss in your paragraph. Try to be specific.
- Start with a simple sentence if you need help. For example, I am writing about different kinds of cheese you can buy in this paragraph.
- Work on your sentence to make it flow into your writing. For example, There are many different kinds of cheese you can buy.This simple sentence tells the reader exactly what you are going to discuss in this paragraph. You do not need to state that you will tell them this; it is assumed from the paragraph structure.
Present your ideas, facts, or evidence in a logical order.
- Put the groups of sentences from step 1 in a logical order to build your paragraphs.
- Build connections between sentences with transitions.
- When providing examples, quotations, or supporting statistics, frame the evidence so the reader knows what to expect.
- Tell what the piece of evidence or example is about, where you found it, or who supplied it.
- Provide the evidence or example. Cite your source if necessary, as when writing an academic paper.
- Sum up, or restate, the example’s importance to what you are writing about.
Order your sentences, evidence, and paragraphs in a similar way, such as by importance, validity, or chronology.
Conclude each paragraph by summing up its contribution to your main point, purpose, or thesis.
- Sum up each paragraph in the final sentence. Your final sentence should be similar to your first (topic) sentence but wrap up the information you have provided in the paragraph.
- If you can, lead the reader into your next paragraph by “bridging” your concluding sentence with the topic sentence of the next paragraph. Include the main point of the paragraph you are concluding and provide a hint of what you are about to discuss next and how it relates to your current point.