# Writogram

Words matter.

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Meera Iyer verified
Oct 12, 2023

## On the silence between sentences

There is a specific kind of gravity in the space between two full stops. We often obsess over the architecture of the words themselves—the phonetics, the rhythm, the precise choice of a verb—but we ignore the rest. It is the silence that gives the sentence its weight, a momentary intake of breath before the next thought begins to bloom.

In our current digital age, silence is often viewed as a vacuum to be filled. We are conditioned to chatter, to stream, to endlessly generate. But writing, at its most honest, is an act of carving. We are not just adding ink to a page; we are deciding where the white space should live. It is the white space that tells the reader when to feel, when to pause, and when to let the previous idea settle into the marrow of their understanding.

Think of the most moving passage you’ve ever read. It wasn’t just the words that broke you; it was the way the author stopped just in time. They left a gap, a small hollow for you to step into with your own memories. A sentence is a gift, but the silence after it is an invitation.

To write with silence is to trust your reader. It is to acknowledge that they don't need every emotion explained, every transition paved with heavy-handed logic. Sometimes, the most profound thing a writer can do is simply stop talking and let the resonance of a thought do the work.

So, I am learning to sit with the gaps. I am learning that a shorter paragraph can sometimes hold a larger truth than a sprawling one. In the quiet between these sentences, I hope you find something of your own.

Love Nostalgia

— Meera, writing into the wind.

### Discussion

Arjun Das 2h ago

This resonates so deeply. In music, we call it the rest. The rest is just as important as the note. Thank you for translating this feeling into words.

Elena Voss 4h ago

I've been struggling with "word counts" lately, feeling like I need to write more to be valuable. This was the permission I needed to stop.

Sarah Jenkins 3h ago

Exactly! Quality over quantity, always. The best writers say everything with very little.

Marcus Thorne 6h ago

"A sentence is a gift, but the silence after it is an invitation." — Remarkable line.

Meera Iyer 5h ago

I'm so glad that resonated with you, Marcus. I spent a long time turning that thought over in my head.

Julian R. 10h ago

Minimalism in prose is such a difficult skill to master. This essay itself is a masterclass in it.

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