Language: emphasis and syllables

Write with emphasis and pronounce words clearly.

Some phrases built on a word change its meaning: 'dream something up' means to invent it; a 'seller's market' is one where demand is high, so sellers can set the price.

Emphasis in a sentence: the end is usually the most emphatic place, the beginning comes next, and the middle is the least emphatic. So put your key idea at the end.

Márquez does exactly this in his opening sentence: he starts with the time and place (nine o'clock, breakfast, the terrace, the bright sun) and saves the shocking fact, the car embedded in the hotel, for the end.

A syllable is the basic unit of pronunciation, and every syllable has a vowel sound. Words can be split into syllables: fool-ish (2), a-gree-ment (3), a-rith-me-tic (4).

Put the key idea at the end; count beats by vowel sounds.

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