Chapter 7 Making the Text Talk

Bullets Versus Sentences

In the previous chapter, we saw that all text slides come in only two options: bullets and sentences. Each of these options is quite different, with separate forms and functions. Keep them distinct.

A bullet is used to express a core idea. It takes the form of a headline. Look at any newspaper and you'll see that a headline is not a complete sentence. Basic English grammar tells us that a sentence must contain a subject and a verb. Many headlines don't contain a subject and a verb. Generally, headlines don't use all the parts of speech that complete sentences contain: articles (the, an, a), conjunctions (and, but, or), and prepositions (of, for, by, through).

Why are headlines written in ...

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