Tip 18 - twist *then* pull
This tip is inspired by one of my favourite clips from the television show “Frasier” in which Frasier defends his difficulties in a night school class for basic car mechanic skills:
So you twist… then pull? You see, I was twisting and pulling simultaneously as per your instructions: ‘Twist and pull.’
You could argue I am being “that guy” when I make a PR suggestion to replace conjunctions with adverbs to more explicitly describe a sequence of actions. You might not be wrong! But, have you taught students like Frasier? The best defence is a good offence!
Need your reader to do two things simultaneously? Consider using while, as, or at the same time. Try reserving “and” for your lists for the next little while. Then, judge for yourself whether this is a tip for you.
Additionally, I find that I tend to use “and” in the middle of a sentence more often than at the beginning. The reverse seems to be true when using “then.” Reminding myself of “twist then pull” has the added benefit of subtly nudging me to start a new sentence where I might have otherwise just kept on going… and that is almost never a bad thing!
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