Years ago when I was living in London.
Every Friday we’d have what we like to call a Drink and Draw.
Very long story short. We’d go to the local Wetherspoons (back when it wasn’t completely ass) cause we knew the owner.
When the time came to kick everyone else out. A bunch of us would be invited to stay over for a few more hours, go upstairs and push a couple of tables together.
Then we’d roll out this massive piece of industrial sized roll-y paper across the table. We’d grab our drinks and then for then next few hours we’d chat some shit, draw penises and write poetry on this massive wad of paper and have a good old time.
In between that. I’d be balancing a whiskey sour in my hand, after getting up and huddling over the sticky bar top to grab another round, on top of tapping out hints of an email while balanced precariously on a rickety barstool.
(I could swear it was about to collapse, but hey, that’s was half the fun during that night)
Some of us worked in advertising. Some of us were artists and some of us were students. It was one of the best times we had as we all had this thing we were doing. There was chaos and there was shenanigans…
So one night, after we’d thrown back one too many tequila shots. I mentioned Gary Provost’s quote about creating music with your sentences…
The quote went something like this:
“This sentence has five words. … So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. … Write music.”
And a couple of the younger lads in who were fresh in the advertising game were like:
“Why can’t we just do that modern copywriting thing? One line. Then another. Then another. Forever.” Because it’s easy?
Sure I said but it just sounded robotic and the same and because everyone else was doing it. It all blended in.
I suggested a bit of variety.
Don’t get me wrong. Single sentence paragraphs have their place. But it’s sure as hell not everywhere. Jump from short to long. Slip in a mid length drift. Make your reader’s brain cells stand up and do the cha cha instead of lulling them into a trance.
There needs to be a little bit of rhythm.
Sentences can punch like a boxer or roll like an orchestral swell. You get to decide which vibe each paragraph unleashes. One liners are the perfect jab. But follow with a flourish that draws out the tension, letting your words ring in the reader’s ears, building up to that big, satisfying knockout.
And I’ve always been about music, dammit…
If you stick to one repetitive beat, your “song” (a.k.a. your writing) is just a funeral dirge of blandness. You want a soundtrack with cymbals, strings, maybe a moody synth or two. Think of each sentence as a note and you’re the DJ mixing them into a banger.
Now, look, I’m not saying never use single sentence paragraphs. Hell, they can be as cinematically thrilling as an action movie’s final showdown. But like Gary Provost says, you gotta keep things fresh. Turn those words into music, not white noise.
All I’m saying is give this writing approach a shot. Vary your sentence length.
Embrace the short, the medium, and the extravagant. Make the prose sing, dance, and occasionally cackle with unhinged glee.
We’re not about sounding boring unless that’s the way you want to be…
Now if you excuse me. I have to go grab a pint and watch grown men kick a football around for 90 mins…
Stephen Walker
And if you wanted to see Gary P’s famous little quote. Go here: https://stphnwlkr.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/garyp.jpg