Summary of Principles of Sentences and Paragraphs

                General Principles
Sentence structure:
Fixed           Subject         |      Verb     |   Complement  
Variable        Characters      |      Action   |        -

1. Express actions and conditions in specific verbs, adverbs or adjectives.

2. When appropriate, make subjects of your verbs characters involved
    in those actions.

Sentence pattern:
Fixed                   Topic           |       Stress
Variable                Old/Familiar    |       New/Unfamiliar

1. Readers need familiar information at the beginning of sentences

2. Readers will take the main characters of the story as the most
    consistently familiar pieces of information.

Paragraph development:
Fixed                   Issue           |       Discussion
Variable                        Point   |               (Point)

1. A cohesive paragraph has consistent topic strings.

2. A cohesive paragraph has another set of strings running through them -- 
    call them thematic strings

3. A cohesive paragraph introduces new topic and thematic strings in a predict-
    able location: at the end of the sentence(s) that introduce the paragraph.

4. A coherent paragraph will usually have a single sentence that
    clearly articulates its point.

5. A coherent paragraph will typically locate that point sentence in one of 
    two places: at the end of the issue or the end of the paragraph.

Other topics

Nominalization

Emphasis

active vs. passive voice