- A paragraph is a theme made up of related ideas.
- A sentence is an idea.
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- Is the paragraph only one sentence?
- One-sentence paragraphs imply defects of organization.
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- Is the paragraph too long?
- A paragraph over twenty lines or so will bore the reader
and will be covering too large a theme.
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- Is the topic merely a report of data?
- The topic sentence in analysis should be the conclusion
that the paragraph develops with data and logic.
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- So put the bottom line on top.
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- Is the topic too narrow for the paragraph that follows?
- The topic sentence should cover all of the ideas that
follow in the paragraph.
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- Is the same topic continued in the next paragraph?
- The topic sentence should cover only those ideas within
the paragraph, not those of the next paragraph as well.
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