Have you ever paused, fingers hovering over your keyboard, wondering whether you should use a comma or a semicolon?

Truthfully, it doesn’t matter—and worrying about grammar rules like these can hold you back from writing sentences that capture your readers’ attention and imagination.

In this post, you’ll discover why obsessing over grammar rules actually harms your writing, what you should be focusing on instead, and three practical exercises you can start today to write better sentences, no matter your style—academic, creative, social, or professional.

The Real Secret to Writing: Sentence Obsession

The novelist Don DeLillo said something profound about writing:

“The basic work of being a writer is built around the sentence. This is what I mean when I call myself a writer. I construct sentences. There’s a rhythm I hear that drives me through a sentence. And the words typed have a sculptural quality.”

DeLillo’s secret isn’t grammar—it’s obsession with sentences themselves.

But to truly grasp why this matters, let me share a quick story from a professional painter friend of mine.

One day, I asked him: “How did you become a painter? Did you always dream of having your art in a gallery?” He simply replied:

“I just like the smell of the paint.”

It clicked immediately: Great artists don’t start with grand ambitions; they start with a love of their basic material. For painters, that’s paint. For writers, it’s not words—it’s sentences.

Why not words?

Because words alone mean nothing without relationships. You can’t simply pile up words and hope for meaning. Sentences shape the meaning.

If you want to become a better writer, don’t collect lists of impressive words—collect great sentences. Notice sentences that startle or excite you, and study their patterns.

Do This

Why Grammar Won’t Make Your Sentences Great

I know what you’re thinking: “Isn’t this just another sneaky way to talk about grammar?”

Actually, no. Grammar is beside the point when it comes to crafting sentences readers love. Here’s why:

Imagine the best meal you’ve ever had. What made it memorable? Was it the cooking techniques, the precise measurements, or the specific ingredients?

Probably not. You likely remember who you were with, the location, or the moment itself—not the recipe. Sure, those ingredients were necessary, but they’re not what made the meal unforgettable.

Great sentences work similarly. Grammar and vocabulary are essential ingredients—but by themselves, they’re not what makes sentences stand out.

Consider the famous linguist Noam Chomsky’s nonsense sentence:

“Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.”

It’s grammatically perfect, yet meaningless. Grammar alone can’t ensure greatness. Conversely, a grammatically “bad” sentence can still be powerful in the right context, like intentionally off-key music that achieves comedic effect.

Great sentences are great because they achieve their intended effect—matching or subverting readers’ expectations, opening windows onto new insights.

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Practice Your Sentence “Scales” (Like a Musician)

Have you ever heard the old joke about the musician in New York who asks a passerby, “How do I get to Carnegie Hall?” The response is always the same: “Practice, practice, practice.”

Musicians have scales to practice daily, while writers often sit anxiously in front of blank pages, waiting for inspiration.

But what if writers also had their own “scales” to practice? Actually, they do—and it will transform your writing practice.

Let’s revisit Chomsky’s nonsensical sentence again:

• Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.

This sentence has perfect grammatical form, though no meaning. Contrast it with a grammatically broken sentence:

• Furiously sleep ideas green colorless.

Here, words are meaningful individually, but lack structure. Practicing such chaotic word placement won’t help your writing at all.

Instead, you need structured practice that builds intuitive command over sentence forms—exactly like musical scales.

Do This

Improve Your Sentences with Mad Libs

Remember playing Mad Libs as a kid?

Someone would ask for random words—an animal, verb, or color—and plug them into blanks of a story. The result was always fun, often absurd, but secretly instructive.

Let’s apply this to sentence practice, using Lewis Carroll’s famous nonsense poem Jabberwocky as an example:

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe.

We can easily swap out words:

• ’Twas cold, and the misty mountains…
• ’Twas early, and the hungry wolves…

Notice how naturally some replacements fit while others do not:

• ‘Twas would, and the color balloons… (doesn’t work)

You instinctively know the difference—even without grammar rules. This intuitive understanding is what you’re building by playing “Sentence Mad Libs.”

This exercise strengthens your command over sentence structure and rhythm. Like musical scales, sentence Mad Libs prepares you to write sentences that feel natural and powerful.

Actionable Tip

In Sum

• Forget grammar rules: Great sentences achieve their intended effect, regardless of strict grammar.
• Obsess over sentences, not words: Keep a collection of sentences you love, and study their patterns.
• Practice sentence “scales” regularly: Use Sentence Mad Libs to intuitively master sentence structures and rhythms.

When you shift your focus from grammar rules to sentence obsession, your writing will naturally improve—capturing readers’ attention effortlessly.