So one of the things that I got to do in Texas was talk about writing.  Before being a writer, I taught university lit & lang.  As part of that job, I taught a bunch of stuff including basic writing, short story, and the very bare bones basic english (one of my FAVOURITE classes).

People in Texas last weekend (& in my email) have asked a few writing questions, so I'm going to try to tackle some.  I'll start with the easy ones.

Q: Sentence types??? Help, pls.

Ok, one theory--and it's one I like often--is that a variety of sentence types (much like a variety of diction) is a Useful Thing.

Simple: Subject + verb
Complex: Simple with "dressing" in the form of a clause
Compound: 2 simple sentences connected
Compound-complex: Compound (ie 2 fused) and at least one of the 2 is complex.

QUICK CHART
SIMPLE: He ran.
COMPLEX: When the zombies chased his girlfriend, he ran.
COMPOUND-COMPLEX: When the zombies chased his girlfriend, he ran, but they caught him too.
COMPOUND: He ran, but the zombies caught him.

MORE EXAMPLES (in a paragraph and with a "why mix it up" answer):

{C}He walked only a block before he saw Gabriel leaning against his steed, which was currently in the form of a deep green classic Mustang.  If Irial asked, Gabriel could spout off the year, engine, and modifications his steed was currently adopting, and for a moment, Irial considered doing just that.  It would be more entertaining than a lecture.
{C}
Sentence #1: He walked only a block before he saw Gabriel leaning against his steed, which was currently in the form of a deep green classic Mustang. <--This is a COMPLEX sentence. This means it has the requisit subject and verb (ie "independent clause") and "dependent clauses" for modification purposes. 
Dep Clause #1:  "before he saw Gabriel leaning against his steed"  This is an adverbial clause. It answers when (ie it's acting like an adverb).

Dep Clause #2: "which was in the form . . . Mustang." This is an adjectival clause. It tells us about the steed (ie it's acting like an adj).

Sentence 2:  If Irial asked, Gabriel could spout off the year, engine, and modifications his steed was currently adopting, and for a moment, Irial considered doing just that. <-- This is a compound complex sentence. It has ALL the stuff the complex sentence does, and it is a compound sentence (two sentences connected by a comma-conjunction, a semicolon, or a colon). 

If Irial asked,  <--Clause. That's the thing that makes it complex.

",and" <-- Comma & conjunction. That's the thing that makes it compound  for a moment.

Sentence #3: It would be more entertaining than a lecture.<-- Simple sentence (ie just a subject & verb)

I use the simple sentence after various more wordy constructions bc it stands out. . . It's like the cuss word in the middle of the teacher's intro to the class.  It stands out bc it's different and more concise.

Run-On Sentences:
A run-on is different than using a modifying clause (ie those dep clauses we were just discussing).  People get that wrong regularly. A run-on is when you fuse two sentences WITHOUT the conjunction.

{C}NOT A RUN-ON: Gabriel joined him, walking in the direction Irial had already been going. 

A RUN-ON: {C}He’d promised her choices, he wouldn’t take them from her.

CORRECTED: {C}He’d promised her choices, and he wouldn’t take them from her.
{C}CORRECTED 2: He’d promised her choices; he wouldn’t take them from her.
{C}CORRECTED 3: He’d promised her choices: he wouldn’t take them from her.
CORRECTED VERSION 4: {C}He’d promised her choices. He wouldn’t take them from her.

All I did was add the conjunction ("and") or punctuation. 

In this case, I wouldn't use the colon bc I think stylistically it isn't as strong here.  The colon is like the equals sign in algebraic equations.  They are ALL correct, but the choice of which works best is up to the writer.

But I don't think I need to know any of this, it's not how I speak!

Here's the thing--and like most everything else I say, it's a biased opinion--what we say in conversations, blogs, & dialogue in novels is different than the rules.  To be honest, one reason I struggle with first person is that in first person we either have to write the way we think/tell the tale OR we're claiming first person, but REALLY not writing as we think, but still claiming we are.  In person & on the blog, I abbreviate; I cuss; and I use shorthand. In person, I use fragments, ellipses, repeated phrases mid-way through a sentence.  In my texts, I have a VERY hard time writing that way.  It took me almost two years to be willing to start a sentence with a conjunction.

NOTE: Technically, we are to start with a transition word (however, also, furthermore, moreover), but sometimes that sounds archaic. I break that rule for style purposes (and sometimes fear that there is a ring of hell for grammar/mech violations).  

NOTE 2: Ditto the ending a sentence with a preposition.  By law, those things require a freaking object. It's the RULE. One doesn't end with "of."  No no no . . . except I do.  Why? It's a style choice to keep from sounding stilted. 

And that's the underlying point, we can break the rules for style, but it's really good to know the rules and CHOOSE to break them, rather than do it bc we're wanting the easier path.  I get it: they're a pain. However, if you want to make a career of anything, it's going to take effort. 

I'm far from a brilliant writer, but I know that my familiarity with grammar & mech has been as much (more?) of an asset to me than anything else so far.  These are not what most folks consider exciting to learn. I hear that they aren't as exciting as networking (truth be told, I like mech more than might be healthy).  It's not as fun as conferences, and honestly, it's not as QUICK as some people want. Some of it simply requires reading, study, and wondering why most of the books are so tedious in the examples. (I, obviously, made up my own examples for class bc weird sticks better.)

I firmly believe that it's a necessity.  I KNOW that you don't need to network (I certainly didn't) or go to "what hot in the market" panels. You can do that stuff, but it's not required.  What IS required is knowing how to play with words. I think this stuff is essential.

So . . . therein ends the post.  I'll try to tackle a few more of the requests.