Writing Rhythm

What it is for

Text feels tiring when every sentence has the same length, and confusing when one sentence runs for forty words. Editors talk about rhythm; this tool makes it visible. Paste a draft and it splits the text into sentences, counts the words in each, and draws one column per sentence. You see the average, the median, the longest sentence, how lengths are distributed and an estimated reading time. Add a second draft and you get a measured comparison of the two.

The numbers support editing decisions. They are not a quality score. A long sentence can be exactly right, and abbreviations such as "e.g." can occasionally split a sentence in the wrong place.

Worked example

The default draft is "Short sentence. This sentence takes a little longer to reach its end." The result shows 12 words, 6 words per sentence, a Median sentence length of 6 and 4 seconds of modeled reading at 220 words per minute. The sentence list shows sentence 1 with 2 words and sentence 2 with 10.

A travel anecdote with a revision in Second draft (optional):

• Draft: "We missed the train. The next one was cancelled, so we waited on the cold platform for almost an hour while the announcements kept changing. Then it came."
• Second draft: the middle sentence split into three: "The next one was cancelled. We waited on the cold platform for almost an hour. The announcements kept changing."

The first draft has 28 words in 3 sentences: 4, 21 and 3 words, a mean of 9.333 and a median of 4. The second draft has 26 words in 5 sentences, with a mean of 5.2 and a longest sentence of 10 words instead of 21. The comparison reports −2 words and a mean change of −4.133 words per sentence. In the distribution, the 17–24 word sentence has gone, and four of five sentences now fall into 1–8 words. Both versions read in about 8 seconds. Whether the short, choppy version is better is your call: it is clearer, but the long sentence conveyed the endless wait.

How to read the result

• Words, Words per sentence, Median sentence length and Modeled reading (seconds) summarise the draft shown under Summary for. With two drafts, Compare both drafts and Second minus first show the differences.
• The chart has one column per sentence. Long drafts are grouped into ranges with minimum, maximum and mean; choose a range under Chart range to see single sentences again. The 24-word line is only an orientation mark.
• Explore sentence pacing filters by Sentence contains, Sentence length (for example 25+ words) or Sentence number. Inspect sentence shows a sentence in its paragraph.
• Both drafts: sentence data and CSV exports every sentence with its word count and paragraph.

Tips and common mistakes

• Choose the right Analysis language. Sentence boundaries follow the rules of English, German, French, Spanish, Italian or Portuguese.
• Line breaks always end a sentence, so headings and list items count as short sentences.
• Look at the median as well as the mean. One very long sentence raises the mean while the median stays put.
• Vary on purpose: a few short sentences after a long one create emphasis. A flat chart is the warning sign.
• Set Modeled reading speed to your audience. 220 words per minute is a typical silent reading pace; slides or children's texts need less.

FAQ

Does a lower average mean better writing?

No. It means shorter sentences. Use the chart to find passages that feel monotonous or overloaded, then decide by reading them aloud.

How are words counted?

By Unicode word boundaries in the selected language. Numbers count as words; punctuation does not.

Can I analyse a whole book chapter?

Yes. Long drafts are grouped in the chart, and every sentence remains available in the table and CSV.

Why was an abbreviation treated as a sentence end?

Sentence segmentation follows language rules and can misread rare abbreviations. Check the sentence list when counts look odd.