Flow

"Flow" can be a dangerous word around writers. To some, it is a fluff word used when you have nothing better to say. To others, it is a word without meaning, used only by those foolish enough to think it is useful. I disagree with such assessments. Flow is certainly real and, although it can be used as fluff, does have a valid meaning.

Flow is sentence structure. For as much as people like to think of flow as something intangible and romantic, it is all technical. Flow is about rhythm, melody, movement, and transition.

If you listen to any great speaker, you will hear a particular beat to their speech. It tends to be regular, or at least have certain common cadences. In fact, you can imitate people by the pattern of their speech without saying a word. This is the rhythm of flow. Speak your sentences out loud. When they have a rhythm that is natural, one where you don't trip over your words or are forced to slow down to be able to say what you've written, that is a good flow of rhythm.

When you try to imitate a person's speech without using words, you will probably not be mumbling in monotone. People inflect their voice in certain ways. The ups and downs of pitch and volume make up the melody of flow. Like rhythm, speak your sentences aloud and see if it sounds natural. A good flow is one where the speaker sounds alive. Now, although this depends largely on the speaker of a work, the writing itself can lend itself to strong performances. A consistent style alone makes it easier to get into a piece and it generally doesn't throw you for a loop (though if that's what you want to do, then do the opposite of what I say).

Within a sentence, there should be a natural motion. Some words roll off the tongue. Some words become phrases, which we say so naturally that they might as well be single words. Motion is how we create the flows of melody and rhythm. Smooth words and phrases lead from one to the next, leading us to an aburpt halt. It's like shaping the land in a way that a ball will naturally roll just where you want it to. Sometimes, though, the stop is softer, more of a pause. Leading the eye, ear, and mind from stop to stop makes the rhythm and the path in between those stops is the melody.

When we move beyond a sentence, we are asked how we maintain flow from one to the next. There are no words or sounds between sentences, so what can we do? The best bet is to end one sentence in a way that naturally leads into the next. For example, if I give an idea in principle, it naturally will lead to an explanation in the next sentence. Ending a sentence with certain words naturally make you want to talk more. Those words continue on to make a paragraph. A paragraph can then transition into the next, making a chapter which flows to the next, going as long as you want. However, eventually, you will need a sentence that finishes what you wrote.

Even though flow may be technical, knowing about it should not detract in any way from its beauty.