You think you know how to write a sentence?
“Call me Ishmael.” “Where ignorance is bliss, ’tis folly to be wise.” “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.”
Some sentences strike us psychologically, spark ideas and emotions in our hearts, or stay in our minds long after we’ve finished reading them.
What makes them special?
Taking notes from How to Write a Sentence: And How to Read One (Stanley Fish), The Elements of Style (William Strunk Jr.), literature, the world of advertising and copywriting, and artificial intelligence (ChatGPT and GPT-4), we’d explore how a sentence is formed, how it communicates an idea, and how you can create sentences worth reading (and actually enjoy writing).
Each week of this 3-week email workshop contains four daily in-depth lessons on topics outlined below. The lessons come with their own required response assignment that helps you read, understand, analyze, and engage with sentences in nuanced, thoughtful ways. Each weekend, you’d get to work on a project that further stretches your understanding and application of things you’re learning.
“This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals-sounds that say listen to this, it is important. So write with a combination of short, medium and long sentences. Create a sound that pleases the ear. Don’t just write words. Write music.”
Begin writing
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The Course Flow:
Week 1:
- Why sentences?
- What a sentence IS (and what it is not)
- The relationship between words
- Which is more important—thought or form?
Week 2:
- How to write a sentence (A brief overview of styles)
- The subordinating style
- The additive style
- Satirical styles: The return of content
Week 3:
- First sentences
- When bots can write, what makes your words human?
- To sell is human: The architecture of marketing through words
- Last sentences
Take the course
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Reviews from Past Students:
Andrew B. – Summer 2023: “The workshop teaches writing not as a means to something else, but as valuable in and of itself. One of my main takeaways was that communication is innately a human pursuit. So, if you’re a human, and communication is valuable to you, and you want to practice imitating some brilliant minds, then this is for you!”
Philip O. – Summer 2023: “Ms. Odelia Chan’s class gave me the tools to both analyze and create deep, meaningful, and impactful sentences. Her comments and instruction were very insightful. She helped me to become a better writer and to analyze creative forms and styles of sentence structure that form important elements of writing – what a great class!”
Rachel M. – Summer 2023 “This was a really fun and engaging class. I feel like I have learned a lot more about how to build an interesting sentence, and I found that working on my writing skills during the summer prepared me for my other writing classes in the school year. I am really glad that I took this class and I would recommend it to any student who enjoys writing and is willing to”
Sarah C. – Summer 2024: This class was an amazing experience! It really dives deep into the intricacies of sentences and displays them in a new light. Ms. Chan is a great teacher! She gives very clear instructions and helps you view writing in a new way. Overall, I really recommend this class as it helped me improve my writing greatly!
Nafisa M. – Summer 2024: If you’d asked what sort of summer English class I needed, I probably would have said something like a class on how to craft a strong argument, analyze a passage deeply, or even write cohesive paragraphs. I would never have said, I want to learn how to write sentences. However, when I came across the description of this course, I was intrigued and decided to sign up–and I’m so happy that I did. After all, what is an effective argument or paragraph but well-written sentences strung together?No matter why you write, this class will help you become a better communicator and give you a deeper appreciation for the nuances of language. You’ll learn about different sentence styles and how they affect readers differently. You’ll also study different types of sentences, like advertising slogans or first and last sentences in books. The assignments are a mixture of both analyzing sentences and crafting your own. Ms. Chan was also an amazing teacher. She gave wonderful, prompt feedback and was always so helpful whenever I had a question–even when it wasn’t directly related to completing the assignment. I had so much fun and would definitely recommend this workshop!
Adeline K. – Summer 2024: The Writing Sentence Workshop with Ms. Odelia Chan was a great experience. The course focused on teaching advanced sentence structures, and I am amazed by the variety of sentence types I never knew existed. One of the aspects I appreciated most about this course was how it expanded my understanding of sentence construction. I learned about sentence types and styles that have enriched my writing toolkit. Ms. Chan’s teaching method was clear, engaging, and highly informative. The course was well-organized and thorough, covering all the promised content in a way that was easy to follow and apply. I grew a lot as a writer and feel more confident in crafting varied and sophisticated sentences. I highly recommend this workshop to anyone looking to enhance their writing skills. Ms. Chan is an excellent instructor!