Paragraphs

Nothing signals difficult faster than a page with no white space. A wall of text tells the reader: this will be hard work. Paragraphs create white space and break that wall.

A paragraph is a single sentence or a group of sentences that deal with one point. When it's done, you stop. Then you start a new paragraph for the next point.

One idea, one paragraph

The reader needs a moment to absorb each idea before moving to the next. A new paragraph gives them that moment.

How long is a paragraph?

There is no minimum or maximum. The shortest paragraph is a single sentence: if you can make your point in one sentence, one sentence is enough.

Paragraphs become too long for two reasons:

1. They contain more than one point. If you find yourself writing a long paragraph, ask: am I still talking about the same thing? If the answer is no, find the moment the topic shifted and break the paragraph there.
2. They are too wordy. A paragraph might have just the content that it needs, but be suffering from wordiness. When a paragraph approaches half a page, treat that as a signal to look critically at its length.

Topic Sentences

In English, paragraphs begin with a topic sentence: a sentence that tells the reader what the entire paragraph will be about. Everything that follows should support that opening statement.

The reader should never have to read to the end of a paragraph to find out what it was about.

First, the sample size was small, which limits the generalizability of our findings. Second, all data were self-reported, introducing the possibility of response bias. Third, the study was cross-sectional, so we cannot establish causality. There are three main limitations to our research.

There are three main limitations to our research. First, the sample size was small, which limits the generalizability of our findings. Second, all data were self-reported, introducing the possibility of response bias. Third, the study was cross-sectional, so we cannot establish causality.

A clear topic sentence is also how readers skim. Readers often read the first sentence of each paragraph to decide whether to read the rest. If your topic sentence is buried at the end, skimmers will miss your point entirely.

Strunk and White on topic sentences

Again, the object is to aid the reader. The practice here recommended enables [them] to discover the purpose of each paragraph as [they] begin to read it, and to retain the purpose in mind as [they] end it. For this reason, the most generally useful kind of paragraph, particularly in exposition and argument, is that in which

• the topic sentence comes at or near the beginning;
• the succeeding sentences explain or establish or develop the statement made in the topic sentence; and
• the final sentence either emphasizes the thought of the topic sentence or states some important consequence.

(The Elements of Style, Strunk & White)

Why does this work?

A shorter paragraph allows readers to focus on smaller bits of information at one time. It lightens the reader's mental burden so they can devote more mental energy to the content.

A clear topic sentence sets the reader's expectations — it's the same principle as old to new applied at the paragraph level. The reader knows what they're about to read, so every sentence that follows lands in context rather than arriving without a home.

How important is it?

On a scale of 1-10, it's a 7: important. Clear topic sentences and shorter paragraphs help your reader find information quickly. Are you having trouble structuring paragraphs? Ask for help!

Related topics

Reader Expectations
Old to new principle
Wordiness