Creating Transitions With Sentences

In the same way that paragraphs need transitions to help the reader understand their relevance, sentences need transitions. Actually, every sentence is a transition from the previous sentence to the next. This means that a sentence will refer to the information in the previous sentence and provide clues about what the next sentence will address.

To create transitions, the words near the beginning of a sentence must relate to the topic or idea of the previous sentence, and the words near the end must relate to the topic or idea discussed in the next sentence. These transitions show the relevance of information in a sentence and help tie multiple ideas together into a cohesive whole idea.

Let’s look at an example.

(1)The operant conditioning chamber was first developed by Skinner while he was a graduate student at Harvard University. (2)He used the chamber to study the effect of inputs on rats. (3)Various devices in the chamber provided inputs that, over time, ‘taught’ the rats to behave in predictable ways.

Consider sentence two. The words chamber and study refer to the operant conditioning chamber and Skinner as a graduate student, respectively, which are discussed in sentence one. The word inputs refers to the topic of inputs in the third sentence.

In this way, sentence two provides a transition from sentence one to sentence three while adding new content.

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This is the strategy for day 25 in 300 Days of Better Writing, available at Hostile Editing in PDF, Kindle, and paperback formats.

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Top writing strategies and expert instruction from each of Precise Edit’s writing guides 1 critical article from Precise Edit Training Manual 8 days of instruction from 300 Days of Better Writing 5 top strategies from Bang! Writing with Impact 2 essential word choices from Which Word Do I Use? 1 major comma use from Zen Comma 1 section on main verbs from Concise Guide to Technical and Academic Writing Get the free e-book (PDF) OR Purchase the Kindle version ($0.99).

Books are present-Authors are past

Quote books in the present tense. Quote authors in the past tense.

When you take a quote from a book, you have to decide whether you are attributing the quoted material to the author or the book.

If you are attributing a quote to a book, use the present tense. Because the information is always present (i.e., always available right now), use present tense verbs, such as states, notes, claims, and describes. For example, you may write the following:

“The book Ten Habits of Unhappy People claims that the main reason for disappointment is a lack of communication.”

On the other hand, if you are attributing a quote to the author, use the past tense. Because the author wrote the information at a specific time in the past, use a past tense verb, such as stated, noted, claimed, described, and wrote. For example, you may write the following:

“James Patterson, author of Ten Habits of Unhappy People, wrote that the main reason for disappointment is a lack of communication.”

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This is the strategy for day 41 in 300 Days of Better Writing, available at Hostile Editing in PDF, Kindle, and paperback formats.

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Top writing strategies and expert instruction from each of Precise Edit’s writing guides 1 critical article from Precise Edit Training Manual 8 days of instruction from 300 Days of Better Writing 5 top strategies from Bang! Writing with Impact 2 essential word choices from Which Word Do I Use? 1 major comma use from Zen Comma 1 section on main verbs from Concise Guide to Technical and Academic Writing Get the free e-book (PDF) OR Purchase the Kindle version ($0.99).

Linking Sentences for Smooth Writing

Each sentence provides new information to readers. How do you connect the information, and how do you make the sentences seem logical and smooth? You use sentence transitions. 300 Days of Better Writing has several strategies for creating sentence transitions, 2 of which are here. The first strategy below discusses reorganizing sentences in paragraphs, and the second strategy discusses reorganizing words in sentences.

Day 151: Organize sentences to create transitions.

In clear, effective writing, each sentence creates a transition from the sentence before to the sentence following, while adding new content. Also, the final sentence or two in a paragraph need to create a transition to the following paragraph. This gives us two principles for how we order sentences.

Consider this paragraph (plus the first sentence from the next paragraph):

(1) The first commercially produced simulator used to train clinicians was available in 1994. (2) The newest simulator is the SimX-4. (3) The SimX-4 is completely wireless and provides vascular access and numerous clinical scenarios, as well as the ability to customize scenarios to accommodate administering intravenous drugs. (4) Clinical simulation is being used increasingly to teach skills to clinicians.

(5) The content of training programs for administering drugs is not changing.

Can you see which sentence is out of place?

Sentence #4 is misplaced. If we move sentence #4 to the beginning of the paragraph, it establishes the context for the entire paragraph, and it provides a transition to sentence #1 with the terms simulator, teach and clinicians. Also, now sentence #3 can make a smooth transition to the next paragraph with the terms administering drugs. Here is the revised version.

(4) Clinical simulation is being used increasingly to teach skills to clinicians. (1) The first commercially produced simulator used to train clinicians was available in 1994. (2) The newest simulator is the SimX-4. (3) The SimX-4 is completely wireless and provides vascular access and numerous clinical scenarios, as well as the ability to customize scenarios to accommodate administering intravenous drugs.

(5) The content of training programs for administering drugs is not changing.

Overall, we have satisfied our two principles. Each sentence creates a transition from the previous to the next sentence, and the final sentence creates a transition to the next paragraph. The revised passage is more coherent, direct, and logical.

Day 289: Use familiar words as subjects

Strong, clear sentences use familiar words as subjects and end with new information. Writers do this for two reasons:

1. This strategy helps the reader answer the basic question of “who did what?” With familiar information at the beginning of the sentence, the reader will be able to find the subject and identify the main verb.
2. New information at the end creates a transition to the next sentence, which may use the now-familiar information at the beginning, resulting in cohesive, organized writing.

Consider these two sentences.

The early 19^th century was marked by class warfare and ideological epiphanies. These epiphanies, in particular, spawned new relationships among the classes.

The first sentence begins with familiar information and ends with new information (epiphanies). That new information, having been introduced, is now familiar and can be used at the beginning of the second sentence. When the reader reads the second sentence, he can easily find the subject and main verb of the sentence.

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These are the strategies for days 151 and 289 in 300 Days of Better Writing, available at Hostile Editing in PDF, Kindle, and paperback formats.

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Top writing strategies and expert instruction from each of Precise Edit’s writing guides 1 critical article from Precise Edit Training Manual 8 days of instruction from 300 Days of Better Writing 5 top strategies from Bang! Writing with Impact 2 essential word choices from Which Word Do I Use? 1 major comma use from Zen Comma 1 section on main verbs from Concise Guide to Technical and Academic Writing Get the free e-book (PDF) OR Purchase the Kindle version ($0.99).

Transitions and transition words

Creating transitions between ideas can be tricky, but it is necessary. A smooth, coherent flow of ideas requires effective transitions. Here are two of eleven strategies from 300 Days of Better Writing to help you.

Day 163: Use transition words and phrases to switch topics.

You are writing about one idea, and now you want to write about a new idea. You could just switch from one to the other, but this may confuse the reader. This is a bad idea. The reader may exclaim, “Wait a minute. I thought I was reading about . . . Why am I now reading about . . . ?”

You can use transition words and phrases to answer this question and make the transition smoothly. These words and phrases inform the reader that you are changing topics. Some examples are below.

“In light of these ideas/concepts/facts, . . . .”
“This raises the idea that . . . .”
“Additionally, . . . .”
“Furthermore, . . . .”
“This brings us to the idea that . . . .”
“Having discussed . . . , we need to turn our attention to . . . .”
“Next, . . . .”

Day 172: Use transition words infrequently.

Day 163 discussed using transition words to inform your reader that you are switching topics. Although this is perfectly acceptable (and sometimes necessary), you should only use this technique sparingly.

In effective writing, you relate new topics to previous topics so that each new idea seems like a logical extension of the previous topic. When you begin writing about the new topic, your first task is to discuss how it relates to the previous topic. If you are switching to a new topic, ask yourself these questions:

1. Why do I need to write about this new topic at this time?
2. How does this new topic relate to the one I just discussed?
3. Will the reader be able to answer the first two questions?

Do this well, and the reader will know you are writing about a new topic and will understand why. You won’t need the transition words.

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These two writing strategies are from  300 Days of Better Writing, available at Hostile Editing in PDF, Kindle, and paperback formats.

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