Let me count the words...

...to say anything. Words matter.

Look, writing is easy. All you have to do is choose the right words and put them in the right order. No problem.

That, of course, requires some choices. How many choices? The English language contains somewhere between 170,000 and 250,000 words. Theoretically, you could write a novel and never use the same word twice. Good luck with that.

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

But how many ways can you arrange those words into sentences? Here you have nearly unlimited options, yet you want to arrange them in the way that will clearly get across your point and engage readers. Or get across your point clearly. Do you want to boldly go or go boldly?

The words you choose and the order you put them in will likely come naturally to you, at least to some degree. How you think determines how you write. That is your natural voice as an author.

But sometimes you want, and need, to stretch that. To describe something in a unique way—in the unique way you see it or feel it. To capture the voice of a character or narrator more than your own personal voice.

Let’s take one straightforward, simple moment, then we’ll break down some options. A decent handful of options. And this is not an all-inclusive list of every possible way this could be written, just a few examples to get the creative juices flowing.

She walked the beach. The sun shone on her face.

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There. Pretty straightforward. Tells the story of this moment. No problem. Why change it?

Lots of reasons to consider changing it. Tone, voice, style, rhythm. How does it blend with the sentences before and after? How would these two sentences affect the pacing and flow of the moment? Is this how you would say it?

Here are a couple of examples of how you could write this with the same words in different orders. Then, we’ll dive into a more complex example, and then take a look at word choice variety.

She walked the beach, the sun shining on her face.

The sun shone on her face as she walked the beach.

And here’s an example of how you do not want to write it: