BRIDGET WHELAN writer

for writers and readers….

The Importance of Boring Sentences – Lincoln Michel QUOTES FOR WRITERS

I appreciate the value of the boring sentence. Not, I want to stress, a lot of boring sentences. I still roll my eyes at the type of writer (mostly older white men and/or commercial fiction authors) who say things like “If it sounds like writing, I CUT IT!” or “I write simple sentences for the working man on the back of the bus.” (As if working people can’t read complex sentences?).

No, I don’t want boring writing. But what I value is the value of deploying boring sentences alongside “fireworks sentences.” How they can work together, in the context of a paragraph, a scene, a chapter, to create an even more powerful effect.

What would fireworks be without the blank black sky behind them?

Lincoln Michel The Value of Boring Sentences

Photo credit: Max Andrey on Unsplash

6 comments on “The Importance of Boring Sentences – Lincoln Michel QUOTES FOR WRITERS

  1. Sarah Waldock
    January 23, 2022
    Sarah Waldock's avatar

    understatement does the same sort of thing

    • bridget whelan
      January 24, 2022
      bridget whelan's avatar

      Yes, it’s all about the contrast – the light and the dark….

  2. Glen Available
    January 23, 2022
    Glen Donaldson's avatar

    Hooray for true writing wisdom.

    • bridget whelan
      January 24, 2022
      bridget whelan's avatar

      Agree. Not everthing we write has to be a beautifully crafted jewel…

  3. Rae Longest
    January 23, 2022
    Rae Longest's avatar

    Reblogged this on Literacy and Me.

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This entry was posted on January 23, 2022 by in Quotes and tagged , , , .

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