《Write Better: Tips and tricks》Apples and Oranges and Grammar, oh my!
Advertisement
I don't really have a lot to say about editing for grammar. If you want to do it, you're probably going to have to read up on how. It's the basic sort of thing that you just need to know, or you can have just about anyone do it for you. You don't have to be a professional, but at the very least the average writer should have some grasp of the language they're using to write.
If you want to know your grammar really well EDIT YOUR OWN WRITING AND GIVE CRITIQUES TO OTHERS. If you just stare at it and say to yourself (I see the error), you are more likely to forget how to correct it than if you take the time to change it.
Likewise, if you find the error in someone else's story, take a moment to [politely] correct them, possibly even explain it, and you'll be reminding yourself, too! This is a learning technique, and it really does work.
Part of being able to, say, recognize a Granny Smith apple turnover from a Macintosh one, comes from being around the two. Once you know what to look for, it really isn't any harder than picking out the orange in a barrel of apples.
There are some basics that you should know, and those I'll mention here.
Don't worry about buying a fancy book. Often, the best thing you can do is go to google and type in what you want and read a few of the top results. With variety, you'll learn pretty quick what's correct and what isn't.
I've found it's easy to learn one step at a time based on what I need. If I need help with commas, I only search for commas. If on Monday I need to brush up on my semicolons, I search for semicolons on Monday.
Advertisement
(IE: consider googling these terms if you want to make your life easier):
Independent clause vs dependent clause
Commas
Commas and conjunctions
Comma splices
Semicolons
Hyphens and Dashes
Gerunds
Making sure your modifiers modify the right thing
Prepositions
Punctuation in dialogue
Ellipses
Colon
Whose/who/whom
Affect vs effect
Lay vs lie
:
This sentence is overapitalize the first letter of the next one.
"How do I punctuate a question in dialogue Bruce asked.
"I don't know how Sally said.
RUN ON SENTENCES. I CAN'T EVEN.
All the time. As you go. As the words are coming out of your head and appearing on the paper, screen, used napkin, whatever it is you're writing on.
Seriously, don't make more work for yourself later. Punctuate. Use your commas. Don't say "Ah, I'll go back in later." Make it a habit and sooner or later using grammar won't even be a conscious decision!
Advertisement
- In Serial40 Chapters
World Magic: I Awakened Light And Dark Magic Attributes
“Hughes was reincarnated into a modern magical world.
8 602 - In Serial15 Chapters
Let's Invade A Fantasy World!
What happens when you slap Sci-fi and tentacles with Fantasy and LitRPG? You get this. Our poor alien just wanted to invade a planet. But of course, the pesky humans wouldn't have any of it, and crushed him before he can even land his ship. Now almost all of his survival supplies are gone, and he doesn't know where he is. Maybe he should have picked a different planet to invade. Other tag/s: Evolution (and more incoming) Written for fun. 1300 - 1500 words chapters. Lazy writer, lazy writing. 2 chapters per week. Very lazy indeed. [Author's Current Work]>Writing the next chapter>Lazing around in RR Discord Spoiler: If I forgot this story exist, come ping me [@Ani] in RR discord and rat me out. Signs that I've forgotten about this story would be... -No update for 5 or 7 days (or worse, longer) -it got tagged HIATUS -Etc. [Next Plans]>World Map (Fantasy Style)>New cover for new Arc
8 202 - In Serial9 Chapters
I Must Find Light, Or I Will F-ing Die!
A horror LitRPG story. A man awakens to a pitch-black void within a vast network of subterranean tunnels. With only a blade, a candle, and a handful of matches, he will need to travel through the passages and survive against the hellish beasts that pursue him in the dark. --------------------------------- Grimdark. Profanity and Gore are present in this story. LISTEN TO THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS IN AUDIO FORM. NARRATED BY AWARD WINNING VOICE ARTIST JACK VORACES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpB5_AFst_M
8 164 - In Serial9 Chapters
Gods and Men: A litRPG Adventure
Hi, my name's Bart but you can call me whatever you want. Anyway, I don't want you to click away from this. Yeah, that's right, follow the sound of my voice and continue reading. Bet you want to know how I got stuck inside of the internet don't you. Well, it is a long and tragic tale that starts very simply. With the release of a game. Not just any game mind you, it was the release of the first ever full dive VRMMORPG, cliche sounding I know but bear with me as I thought the same thing. Any explanation on how it was released is beside the point just know that it was and I, just as any self-respecting gamer would be was extremely fucking hyped for it. The game was called 'Legend Has It' and the allure was that you would get to play as a god or spirit and interact with a vibrant world of NPC's. So I began to play, eager to experience this for myself, little did I know my life would change forever. So sit back, relax and let me regale you on how I got myself stuck in this predicament, for it starts with a boy, a game and a battle between gods. Ominous I know, let's get started.
8 140 - In Serial10 Chapters
The Ultimate Combo
Tristan or known as “Garyx” is a very skilled player and in every online game he played he always made it to the top and became the strongest with his sister Cathy/Jade who is his partner in every online game they played and they became known as “The Ultimate Combo”, one day they woke up in a entirely different world called “Arnos”.
8 211 - In Serial42 Chapters
Astraphobia❀|NALU✓
as-tra-pho-bi-a [as-truh-foh-bee-uh] Spell Syllables Word Origin noun, Psychiatry. 1. an abnormal fear of thunder and lightning. ______________________________________Started: 5/24/16Status: CompletedEnded: 7/22/16
8 247

