4.4 Writing Effective Paragraphs
Unlike punctuation, which can be subjected to specific rules, no ironclad guidelines exist for shaping paragraphs. If you presented a text without paragraphs to a dozen writing instructors and asked them to break the document into logical sections, chances are that you would receive different opinions about the best places to break the paragraph. In part, where paragraphs should be placed is a stylistic choice. Some writers prefer longer paragraphs that compare and contrast several related ideas, whereas others stick to having one point per paragraph. In the workplace, many writers use shorter paragraphs and even use one-line paragraphs since this allows readers to scan the document quickly. If your readers have suggested that you take a hard look at how you organize your ideas, or if you are unsure about when you should begin a paragraph or how you should organize final drafts, then you can benefit by reviewing paragraph structure.
Structuring A Paragraph
We’ve already learned that every piece of workplace communication should have a purpose. That’s also true of paragraphs. In general, you should have one purpose per paragraph, although for the overall flow of the document you might want to combine two points. Let’s take a look at this customer service email in Activity 4.3 below.
Activity 4.3 | Customer Service Email
As you can see, most of the paragraphs have only one point. In short communication, it’s enough to simply understand what role the paragraph plays in your writing. In longer or more important communication, you may choose to use topic sentences to structure your paragraphs.
What is a topic sentence?
A topic sentence summarizes the main idea or the purpose of a paragraph. In business writing, the topic sentence usually comes at the beginning of the paragraph. Then, the rest of the paragraph provides the supporting details. Sometimes, a writer will choose to put the topic sentence at the end of the paragraph in order to break bad news or build the reader up to a point. A topic sentence functions in several important ways:
- It informs the reader of the paragraph’s direction: The topic sentence announces the direction of the paragraph’s conversation. With the help of an effective topic sentence, readers will better understand what the paragraph will be about.
- It guides the reader through the major points that support the writer’s purpose: Clearly worded topic sentences may help readers find the author’s position or argument more convincing.
- It places boundaries on the paragraph’s content: The body of the paragraph provides support for the topic sentence. The paragraph should only include evidence and details that relate directly to the boundary established by the topic sentence.
Topic sentence: This year, our Instagram marketing program outperformed our other social media campaigns.
Details within the paragraph:
-
- We hosted a unicorn-themed party for Instagram influencers in the Vancouver area, w