Are long sentences a crime?

Short answer: no. The Grammar Police won’t throw you in the Grammar Klink just because you wrote a sentence too long. But while it’s okay to think long sentences are bad style (and some people do), many people also believe that long sentences violate a grammar rule against “run-on sentences.” The problem with that view, though, is it’s based on a misunderstanding of what a “run-on sentence” is. A run-on sentence is a sentence where two independent clauses (each capable of forming its own sentence) are improperly connected, usually with a comma. For example:

I walked the dog, we played in the park.

This is an actual run-on sentence, but it isn’t particularly long; it’s just incorrect. If you look back three words from the end of the last sentence, you can see one way to fix this error is by using a semicolon ( ; ) to connect the sentences. Both the example sentence and the sentence that starts “this is an actual run-on sentence” are doing something that is totally natural when we write or talk, and that is Connecting Sentences that Feel Related to Each Other. When you do it with just a comma, it is a grammar error called a run-on sentence (or, alternatively, a grammar splice.) When you connect it, on the other hand, with a semi-colon or a conjunction like “and, but, because, while, after,” etc., then at least from a grammar standpoint it is perfectly fine.

Okay, you’re asking, but what about sentences that really are too long? What’s that grammar error called? Well, I have some disturbing news for you: It turns out there’s no law against long sentences. (WHAT!?) No, really. If we’re only talking about grammar, there is pretty much no limit on how long a sentence can be. There are some books with sentences that go on for multiple pages. There have even been books written that consist of nothing more than one long sentence. (Is your mind blown yet?)

Wait wait wait! you’re saying, someone needs to put a stop to this madness! Otherwise, we’ll have sentence anarchy!

Okay, let’s lay down some caveats. Just because you can write extremely long sentences, doesn’t mean you should. (And in most cases, you probably shouldn’t.) Think of a sentence like the act of juggling, and each ball is it’s own clause. (Clauses are the units of thought that sentences are made out of.) If you try juggling one ball, that’s pretty easy. Two is a little harder but not really a problem, even for beginners. Three balls, and now we’re really juggling–and the problem is, the more balls you add to the mix, the more objects you need to keep in motion and catch when they come down; and if you drop one, you’ve failed to successfully juggle. If you succeed though, the results can be pretty spectacular.

Writing a lengthy sentence is like asking the reader to juggle multiple balls at once. Sure, it’s impressive, challenging, and (from a certain perspective) even beautiful to be able to juggle four flaming torches while riding a unicycle, but it’s not for everyone. Some writers and readers prefer short sentences: The American short story writer Raymond Carver became famous for his short, no-frills sentences. When judging writing styles, though, it’s helpful to keep in mind that a writer’s style is partly a product of his or her time and place, just like our reactions to it are influenced by the environments that we come from. The point is: there is a way of seeing writing that can find beauty in a short sentence, just as there is a way of seeing writing that can find a different sort of beauty in a long one. You can think one is better than the other, but that’s not a grammar rule; it’s just somebody’s opinion.