by Barbara Whitlock

Created on: February 09, 2007   Last Updated: March 29, 2009

A paragraph is a unit of measure for an article; a sequence of paragraphs forms an article. Taking care of these little parts of your article helps the overall quality of articles. Refresh your knowledge on paragraphs to improve your rank placement and earnings on Helium.

Three considerations should be kept in mind:

1. A paragraph should focus on a part of an explanation or argument. It should form a complete part. An exception would be if completing the part required an over-long paragraph. Spacing considerations outweigh content at times. Ask yourself: Is this paragraph getting too long to hold the reader's attention? Am I moving into a new topic, or should this material stay connected to the previous paragraph? If you have only one more sentence, stick with the previous paragraph. If the previous paragraph is getting long, and you have a few more sentences to add to this, move into another paragraph.

2. A paragraph should begin by introducing that topic and conclude with summarizing that topic. Or, the paragraph may form a transition in the discussion.

3. A paragraph should not be too short or too long. Exceptions for short length involve using dialogue, where each speaker change requires a new paragraph. Related to this is the issue of spacing: The article must be broken into paragraphs to give the reader visual breaks. Over-long texts prove too taxing for readers. Using the guidelines of three to five sentences may prove helpful.

In Strunk and White's "Elements of Style," this summary statement is insightful:
"Moderation and sense of order should be the main considerations in paragraphing."

In terms of order, the paragraphs in an article should provide an orderly march through a topic, whether direct or with clearly marked detours. Some forethought as to the structure of a given piece must guide the writer. They should have a written outline or imagined map before proceeding. Yet, much of writing requires thinking an issue through while one is writing. In this case, use a rough draft first. See if the paragraphs follow a logical order; reorganize as needed.

The principle of moderation suggests keeping paragraphs to a reasonable length. At times, a particular topic within a paragraph needs much more discussion than one paragraph can handle. Break up as needed to keep your paragraphs of moderate length.

Ultimately, the content must not be the only guide in determining paragraph length. One has to view his/her article from the perspective of the reader. Do my paragraphs

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