How To Energize Your Exhibit Text in Five Steps Or Fewer
By Sari Boren
1.
Use active verbs rather than passive (is, are) verbs.
A decision was reached to postpone the vote.
The legislators decided to postpone the vote.
2.
Any time you start a sentence with “There is” or “There are” try to rewrite the sentence to specify the subject.
There were many arguments in favor of this law.
Newspaper editors throughout the state argued in favor of this law.
3.
Cut energy-sucking prepositional phrases. Don’t cut them all; prepositional phrases can help you vary your sentence structure. Cut when you need to tighten and energize a sentence.
Newspaper editors throughout the state argued in favor of this law.
Newspaper editors statewide favored this law.
4.
Replace wordy phrases.
Replace With . . .
As a consequence of ..........because
Assuming that ...................if
Comply with.......................follow, obey
During the period from .....while, during, for, in, over, throughout, when, with
Has the ability to ................can
Here’s a longer list: http://home.comcast.net/~garbl/stylemanual/phrases.htm
5.
Vary your sentence structure.
In a paragraph of text, don’t construct every sentence as: Subject–Verb–Object. This repeating form grows tedious to the ear. Start some sentences with phrases (here’s where a prepositional phrase can work for you), or revise two sentences so that one becomes a subordinate clause to the other.
Sari Boren is an independent exhibit developer and writer. Learn more at: sariboren.com.
