Increasing the flow in descriptions of a sequence of events

The name of the pictureThe name of the pictureThe name of the pictureClash Royale CLAN TAG#URR8PPP












3
















Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought
him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun
that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him
any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the
ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a
puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel
would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




I decided to write a little paragraph to really show the problem I am having. As it turns out I really have an issue with the flow in descriptions of a sequence of events. How can you increase the flow between the sentences?










share|improve this question
























  • You seem to have confused your two characters halfway through. I'd suggested editing unless that's actually part of what you wanted help on.

    – Chris Sunami
    Feb 27 at 20:44











  • Ah, yes, sorry for that. I literally took 30 seconds to write this down on a notepad.

    – yocu
    Feb 27 at 20:49















3
















Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought
him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun
that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him
any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the
ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a
puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel
would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




I decided to write a little paragraph to really show the problem I am having. As it turns out I really have an issue with the flow in descriptions of a sequence of events. How can you increase the flow between the sentences?










share|improve this question
























  • You seem to have confused your two characters halfway through. I'd suggested editing unless that's actually part of what you wanted help on.

    – Chris Sunami
    Feb 27 at 20:44











  • Ah, yes, sorry for that. I literally took 30 seconds to write this down on a notepad.

    – yocu
    Feb 27 at 20:49













3












3








3









Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought
him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun
that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him
any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the
ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a
puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel
would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




I decided to write a little paragraph to really show the problem I am having. As it turns out I really have an issue with the flow in descriptions of a sequence of events. How can you increase the flow between the sentences?










share|improve this question

















Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought
him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun
that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him
any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the
ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a
puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel
would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




I decided to write a little paragraph to really show the problem I am having. As it turns out I really have an issue with the flow in descriptions of a sequence of events. How can you increase the flow between the sentences?







creative-writing flow sentence-structure






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Feb 27 at 23:39









Cyn

15.1k13272




15.1k13272










asked Feb 27 at 20:34









yocuyocu

169112




169112












  • You seem to have confused your two characters halfway through. I'd suggested editing unless that's actually part of what you wanted help on.

    – Chris Sunami
    Feb 27 at 20:44











  • Ah, yes, sorry for that. I literally took 30 seconds to write this down on a notepad.

    – yocu
    Feb 27 at 20:49

















  • You seem to have confused your two characters halfway through. I'd suggested editing unless that's actually part of what you wanted help on.

    – Chris Sunami
    Feb 27 at 20:44











  • Ah, yes, sorry for that. I literally took 30 seconds to write this down on a notepad.

    – yocu
    Feb 27 at 20:49
















You seem to have confused your two characters halfway through. I'd suggested editing unless that's actually part of what you wanted help on.

– Chris Sunami
Feb 27 at 20:44





You seem to have confused your two characters halfway through. I'd suggested editing unless that's actually part of what you wanted help on.

– Chris Sunami
Feb 27 at 20:44













Ah, yes, sorry for that. I literally took 30 seconds to write this down on a notepad.

– yocu
Feb 27 at 20:49





Ah, yes, sorry for that. I literally took 30 seconds to write this down on a notepad.

– yocu
Feb 27 at 20:49










3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes


















6














Welcome to the exchange.



To my way of thinking, you need to expand the sequence out because as it stands you are listing a series of events and symptoms of the characters. There is no reaction, no interplay, no emotion.



Add in a snatch of dialog and some emotional cues, also internal thoughts and a few actions. These things will draw the reader in to engage them.



A quick example:




Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck. Daniel
sputtered, choked, grabbed at Thomas's hands about his throat but
couldn't pry them loose. He was on his knees now, unable to breathe.



"Doesn't feel great, does it?" Thomas said, before kicking Daniel in
the small of the back.



Daniel was losing consciousness, almost welcomed it, the pain was too
intense and a blackout would be better. He saw Thomas kick the gun
away, but Daniel had no strength to grab it anyway. That smile on
Thomas's face. The man was vile, pure evil, the devil incarnate.
Daniel squirmed, using his last bit of strength, pleading with his
eyes.



Thomas let go and Daniel took a long shuddering breath, seeing stars
at the rush of oxygen back to his system. Thomas took a cigar out of
his pocket, lit it and took a puff.



"That's for Beatrice. You don't treat my girls that way, punk."



Daniel couldn't speak, his throat still crushed from the assault, air
rasped through.







share|improve this answer
































    5














    There's no point of view here, which makes it difficult to care about, or even follow. (That's also probably why you initially confused the characters.) It's just a series of events. You don't have to have a point of view character, but you need to have a point of view.



    I'd try writing three versions of this. One from Thomas' POV, one from Daniel's, and one from a third person watching from inside the room (they can all be written in third person, but they should follow one person's perspective, thoughts, mood, and so forth). I think you'll find it has a lot more flow.






    share|improve this answer






























      1














      Your Sentences all have a very similar structure, which makes them stagnant to read together.




      Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




      You can see each sentence starts as:




      Thomas appeared...Thomas kicked...He smiled...He took...He took




      You can see that the structure is bland, writing a bit of variety can help the flow. I try in my own writing as well to identify when a following sentence continues a character's action, in these cases I look at if the sentences can be combined.




      Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, kicking him as Daniel tried to draw his gun and swiftly pulling him to his knees before sweeping the gun well out of reach.




      No doubt the above suggestion could be improved further but I believe it does illustrate my idea combining similar sentences.






      share|improve this answer






















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        3 Answers
        3






        active

        oldest

        votes








        3 Answers
        3






        active

        oldest

        votes









        active

        oldest

        votes






        active

        oldest

        votes









        6














        Welcome to the exchange.



        To my way of thinking, you need to expand the sequence out because as it stands you are listing a series of events and symptoms of the characters. There is no reaction, no interplay, no emotion.



        Add in a snatch of dialog and some emotional cues, also internal thoughts and a few actions. These things will draw the reader in to engage them.



        A quick example:




        Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck. Daniel
        sputtered, choked, grabbed at Thomas's hands about his throat but
        couldn't pry them loose. He was on his knees now, unable to breathe.



        "Doesn't feel great, does it?" Thomas said, before kicking Daniel in
        the small of the back.



        Daniel was losing consciousness, almost welcomed it, the pain was too
        intense and a blackout would be better. He saw Thomas kick the gun
        away, but Daniel had no strength to grab it anyway. That smile on
        Thomas's face. The man was vile, pure evil, the devil incarnate.
        Daniel squirmed, using his last bit of strength, pleading with his
        eyes.



        Thomas let go and Daniel took a long shuddering breath, seeing stars
        at the rush of oxygen back to his system. Thomas took a cigar out of
        his pocket, lit it and took a puff.



        "That's for Beatrice. You don't treat my girls that way, punk."



        Daniel couldn't speak, his throat still crushed from the assault, air
        rasped through.







        share|improve this answer





























          6














          Welcome to the exchange.



          To my way of thinking, you need to expand the sequence out because as it stands you are listing a series of events and symptoms of the characters. There is no reaction, no interplay, no emotion.



          Add in a snatch of dialog and some emotional cues, also internal thoughts and a few actions. These things will draw the reader in to engage them.



          A quick example:




          Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck. Daniel
          sputtered, choked, grabbed at Thomas's hands about his throat but
          couldn't pry them loose. He was on his knees now, unable to breathe.



          "Doesn't feel great, does it?" Thomas said, before kicking Daniel in
          the small of the back.



          Daniel was losing consciousness, almost welcomed it, the pain was too
          intense and a blackout would be better. He saw Thomas kick the gun
          away, but Daniel had no strength to grab it anyway. That smile on
          Thomas's face. The man was vile, pure evil, the devil incarnate.
          Daniel squirmed, using his last bit of strength, pleading with his
          eyes.



          Thomas let go and Daniel took a long shuddering breath, seeing stars
          at the rush of oxygen back to his system. Thomas took a cigar out of
          his pocket, lit it and took a puff.



          "That's for Beatrice. You don't treat my girls that way, punk."



          Daniel couldn't speak, his throat still crushed from the assault, air
          rasped through.







          share|improve this answer



























            6












            6








            6







            Welcome to the exchange.



            To my way of thinking, you need to expand the sequence out because as it stands you are listing a series of events and symptoms of the characters. There is no reaction, no interplay, no emotion.



            Add in a snatch of dialog and some emotional cues, also internal thoughts and a few actions. These things will draw the reader in to engage them.



            A quick example:




            Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck. Daniel
            sputtered, choked, grabbed at Thomas's hands about his throat but
            couldn't pry them loose. He was on his knees now, unable to breathe.



            "Doesn't feel great, does it?" Thomas said, before kicking Daniel in
            the small of the back.



            Daniel was losing consciousness, almost welcomed it, the pain was too
            intense and a blackout would be better. He saw Thomas kick the gun
            away, but Daniel had no strength to grab it anyway. That smile on
            Thomas's face. The man was vile, pure evil, the devil incarnate.
            Daniel squirmed, using his last bit of strength, pleading with his
            eyes.



            Thomas let go and Daniel took a long shuddering breath, seeing stars
            at the rush of oxygen back to his system. Thomas took a cigar out of
            his pocket, lit it and took a puff.



            "That's for Beatrice. You don't treat my girls that way, punk."



            Daniel couldn't speak, his throat still crushed from the assault, air
            rasped through.







            share|improve this answer















            Welcome to the exchange.



            To my way of thinking, you need to expand the sequence out because as it stands you are listing a series of events and symptoms of the characters. There is no reaction, no interplay, no emotion.



            Add in a snatch of dialog and some emotional cues, also internal thoughts and a few actions. These things will draw the reader in to engage them.



            A quick example:




            Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck. Daniel
            sputtered, choked, grabbed at Thomas's hands about his throat but
            couldn't pry them loose. He was on his knees now, unable to breathe.



            "Doesn't feel great, does it?" Thomas said, before kicking Daniel in
            the small of the back.



            Daniel was losing consciousness, almost welcomed it, the pain was too
            intense and a blackout would be better. He saw Thomas kick the gun
            away, but Daniel had no strength to grab it anyway. That smile on
            Thomas's face. The man was vile, pure evil, the devil incarnate.
            Daniel squirmed, using his last bit of strength, pleading with his
            eyes.



            Thomas let go and Daniel took a long shuddering breath, seeing stars
            at the rush of oxygen back to his system. Thomas took a cigar out of
            his pocket, lit it and took a puff.



            "That's for Beatrice. You don't treat my girls that way, punk."



            Daniel couldn't speak, his throat still crushed from the assault, air
            rasped through.








            share|improve this answer














            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer








            edited Feb 28 at 0:17

























            answered Feb 27 at 21:35









            DPTDPT

            15.6k23287




            15.6k23287





















                5














                There's no point of view here, which makes it difficult to care about, or even follow. (That's also probably why you initially confused the characters.) It's just a series of events. You don't have to have a point of view character, but you need to have a point of view.



                I'd try writing three versions of this. One from Thomas' POV, one from Daniel's, and one from a third person watching from inside the room (they can all be written in third person, but they should follow one person's perspective, thoughts, mood, and so forth). I think you'll find it has a lot more flow.






                share|improve this answer



























                  5














                  There's no point of view here, which makes it difficult to care about, or even follow. (That's also probably why you initially confused the characters.) It's just a series of events. You don't have to have a point of view character, but you need to have a point of view.



                  I'd try writing three versions of this. One from Thomas' POV, one from Daniel's, and one from a third person watching from inside the room (they can all be written in third person, but they should follow one person's perspective, thoughts, mood, and so forth). I think you'll find it has a lot more flow.






                  share|improve this answer

























                    5












                    5








                    5







                    There's no point of view here, which makes it difficult to care about, or even follow. (That's also probably why you initially confused the characters.) It's just a series of events. You don't have to have a point of view character, but you need to have a point of view.



                    I'd try writing three versions of this. One from Thomas' POV, one from Daniel's, and one from a third person watching from inside the room (they can all be written in third person, but they should follow one person's perspective, thoughts, mood, and so forth). I think you'll find it has a lot more flow.






                    share|improve this answer













                    There's no point of view here, which makes it difficult to care about, or even follow. (That's also probably why you initially confused the characters.) It's just a series of events. You don't have to have a point of view character, but you need to have a point of view.



                    I'd try writing three versions of this. One from Thomas' POV, one from Daniel's, and one from a third person watching from inside the room (they can all be written in third person, but they should follow one person's perspective, thoughts, mood, and so forth). I think you'll find it has a lot more flow.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered Feb 27 at 21:19









                    Chris SunamiChris Sunami

                    32.3k341117




                    32.3k341117





















                        1














                        Your Sentences all have a very similar structure, which makes them stagnant to read together.




                        Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




                        You can see each sentence starts as:




                        Thomas appeared...Thomas kicked...He smiled...He took...He took




                        You can see that the structure is bland, writing a bit of variety can help the flow. I try in my own writing as well to identify when a following sentence continues a character's action, in these cases I look at if the sentences can be combined.




                        Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, kicking him as Daniel tried to draw his gun and swiftly pulling him to his knees before sweeping the gun well out of reach.




                        No doubt the above suggestion could be improved further but I believe it does illustrate my idea combining similar sentences.






                        share|improve this answer



























                          1














                          Your Sentences all have a very similar structure, which makes them stagnant to read together.




                          Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




                          You can see each sentence starts as:




                          Thomas appeared...Thomas kicked...He smiled...He took...He took




                          You can see that the structure is bland, writing a bit of variety can help the flow. I try in my own writing as well to identify when a following sentence continues a character's action, in these cases I look at if the sentences can be combined.




                          Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, kicking him as Daniel tried to draw his gun and swiftly pulling him to his knees before sweeping the gun well out of reach.




                          No doubt the above suggestion could be improved further but I believe it does illustrate my idea combining similar sentences.






                          share|improve this answer

























                            1












                            1








                            1







                            Your Sentences all have a very similar structure, which makes them stagnant to read together.




                            Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




                            You can see each sentence starts as:




                            Thomas appeared...Thomas kicked...He smiled...He took...He took




                            You can see that the structure is bland, writing a bit of variety can help the flow. I try in my own writing as well to identify when a following sentence continues a character's action, in these cases I look at if the sentences can be combined.




                            Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, kicking him as Daniel tried to draw his gun and swiftly pulling him to his knees before sweeping the gun well out of reach.




                            No doubt the above suggestion could be improved further but I believe it does illustrate my idea combining similar sentences.






                            share|improve this answer













                            Your Sentences all have a very similar structure, which makes them stagnant to read together.




                            Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, which brought him down to his knees. Thomas kicked him and then kicked away the gun that Daniel dropped making sure he wouldn't be able to surprise him any longer. He smiled seeing Daniel helplessly squirming on the ground. He took out a cigar out of his pocket and lit it. He took a puff and then another while waiting for Daniel to talk knowing Daniel would plead for his life as soon as possible if given the chance.




                            You can see each sentence starts as:




                            Thomas appeared...Thomas kicked...He smiled...He took...He took




                            You can see that the structure is bland, writing a bit of variety can help the flow. I try in my own writing as well to identify when a following sentence continues a character's action, in these cases I look at if the sentences can be combined.




                            Thomas appeared behind Daniel and shook him by the neck, kicking him as Daniel tried to draw his gun and swiftly pulling him to his knees before sweeping the gun well out of reach.




                            No doubt the above suggestion could be improved further but I believe it does illustrate my idea combining similar sentences.







                            share|improve this answer












                            share|improve this answer



                            share|improve this answer










                            answered Feb 28 at 18:12









                            BKlassenBKlassen

                            2865




                            2865



























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