Paragraphs and Sentence Structure
Standards for organizing paragraphs and sentence structure in transcripts.
Paragraphs and Sentence Structure
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Paragraph Guidelines
Keep paragraphs relatively short – start a new paragraph where there is change of thought, or change of direction. For example, thoughts such as "Secondly," "On the other hand," or "Whereas."
Ideally, paragraphs should be no longer than 8-10 lines at most.
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Sentence Structure
Make sure sentences are short and intelligently punctuated. Unfortunately people rarely speak in perfectly formed and punctuated sentences (perhaps in lectures and other public speeches), so use your judgement to keep sentences short and intelligible where possible.
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Comma Usage
Please make good use of commas, as leaving these out can make the meaning of a sentence unclear.
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Handling 'And' Overuse
Some speakers overuse the word 'and' when speaking, seemingly indicating a continuation of a sentence where actually it may be a filler while they think of what they want to say next.
Passing words such as 'and', 'but' and 'however' can serve as verbal punctuation to signify a new sentence or paragraph. It's fine to retain these. But watch out for long sentences, strung together with 'ands' and 'buts'. Combine with written punctuation, using a full stop to double up.
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Examples of When to Retain 'And' or 'But'
- 'Simon wants to go shopping on Monday as he prefers it when the shops are quieter. But I like the buzz of the place at the weekends.'
- She was just glad to be home and happy to have the evening on her own reading a good book, I think. And she was fine with the peace and quiet, despite the fact it was one of the rare times that the kids were out.
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Example of Excessive 'And' Usage
Before editing:
'And I loved that one on Radio 1 last week. And not only that, but Jill's really into the whole scene too. She's always going on about the festivals. And don't even get me started about how many she's been to this year.'
After editing:
'I loved that one on Radio 1 last week. Not only that, but Jill's really into the whole scene too. She's always going on about the festivals. Don't even get me started about how many she's been to this year.'