Oh, grammar. The annoying thorn in our sides.
(My personal arch-nemesis. I mean...why do we need 100 different ways to signal that there is a pause in a sentence?)
While Grammar is not necessarily the most enjoyable thing about writing, it definitely plays a huge role. Although there is a plethora of online software for editing, I am afraid that a computer is just not able to catch all the mistakes. So I have made a shortlist of the basic rules I believe every writer should know.
Commas: The most common and the most misused.
Commas can be tricky but if you remember the basic rules, you should be okay.
-Use a comma when listing things in a series. Pretty basic.
ex: The cat, the dog, and the mouse went to the movies.
-Use a comma when adding in that fluffy unnecessary stuff
ex: Lizza's sweater, the one with the hole in the sleeve, was grey.
-Use a comma before coordinating conjunctions when separating two independent clauses. (CC: andy, yet, but, so, or, nor, yet )
Ex:
He skipped past the river, and he leaped over the frog.
She punched him with her vibrance and killed him with her smile.
You can shut up, or you can get out.
-Use commas when adding words or phrases to the beginning or end of a sentence
Ex: Cynthia, who was the residential snitch, told Martha that Bill lost his job.
2. Make sure that your tense is consistent.
If you are writing in past tense only write in the past tense. If you are writing in the present tense only write in the present tense.
3. Know your adjective from your adverbs.
Adjectives: Describe a noun.
Adverbs: Describe an action (It is usually followed by the letters -ly at the end)
Ex: People run quickly. They do not run quick.
4. Know your homophones.
Just because it sounds the same does not mean that it is spelled the same or means the same thing
ex: -Dessert and Desert, Carrot and Caret, Ball and Bawl, Duel and Dual.
5) Ellipsis.
They come in threes and only threes!
They can be great for adding depth to things your character says and even help with conveying emotions like shock, confusion, and disbelief.
6) Your subject and verbs must match.
ex:
She/he has cats.
It would be awkward to say... "She have cats."
7) Only capitalize proper nouns.
Names, titles, and places.
8) Know the words that make up a contraction and when to use them
Would've = 'would have' not 'would of'
It's = It is
Let's = Let us
9) This is more of a structure thing but ... paragraph breaks....
No one wants to read a really long paragraph no matter how great your writing is. So remember these things when trying to determine when you should start a new paragraph...
-Start a new paragraph each time that:
-The person who is talking changes
-When time or locations change
- When you want to put emphasis on something
-When dialogue is pretty lengthy.
YOU ARE READING
And The Plot Thickens...
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