To create parallel structure in this sentence, which phrase would best replace the words "to prepare the pieces"?
whenever he built a model ship, he would spend more time researching the ship and photographing the model than he spent to prepare the pieces or assembling the model.

a. whenever he prepared the pieces

b. time preparing the pieces

c. would prepare the pieces

d. preparing the pieces

Parallel structure is using the same pattern of words or using the same grammatical form. In this passage, "researching," "photographing," and "assembling" are all similar because of the -ing. So to make the phrase "to prepare the pieces" flow nicely, the best way to rewrite it is D, preparing the pieces. The -ing in "preparing" is similar to the pattern of the other words.

Me, I got cheated on :)