How to Write Sentences Sharp Enough to Slice the Shadow Off The Moon

My goal has always been to have someone be able to open a book of mine and immediately recognize it as an Autumn Christian novel. Writers like Bukowski, Faulkner, Pahlanuik, and Poppy Z. Brite are immediately identifiable because of the way they structure their prose. I consider it the mark of a highly-skilled writer to write sentences that are impressed with their DNA. And although it takes years to achieve that mastery, there are definable steps you can take to right now to write better sentences on a structural level.

I’m a writer who enjoys the micro as well as the macro of the writing. I take great pleasure in the small universe that each word contains. I consider myself a stylist, and although I’m a genre writer my prose tends to lean more towards a literary affectation. Although the stories we tell are often universal stories that have been told thousands of times, it’s our words that really make us stand out as individual writers, because it’s our words that show our unique angle and perspective.

Speak the truth

As a writer what you can offer to the world is your unique perspective. A lot of people start off trying to imitate what they think a successful book should be written like, and end up sounding generic. And that’s not necessarily bad, most pianists…