THREE BIGGEST GRAMMAR ERRORS: PASSIVE VOICE,
HYPHENATED WORDS, MISPLACED COMMAS
Quotation mark punctuation:
-Periods, commas,
question marks and exclamation points always go inside the closing quotation
marks (in American English). “You better watch out.”
-Semicolons,
colons, and dashes always go outside the closing quotation marks.
-Single quotes are
ONLY used inside quotations for dialogue. “I told her, ‘You better watch out,’
but she didn’t listen.” If the quote inside the quote ends the quote, use a
single quotation mark and double quotation marks together. “I told her, ‘You
better watch out.’”
“Are you ready?” she asked. (A question needs a question
mark, and, if tagging, has a lower case pronoun after it.)
Numbers:
Twenty-one through
ninety-nine are hyphenated; others are open. Two hundred fifty miles.
Twenty-two miles.
Two hundred
fifty-two miles per hour.
"Miles per hour" is not hyphenated.
PASSIVE VOICE:
started running =
ran was sitting = sat began crying = cried were playing = played
How else can you
say “began crying?” SHOW the person starting to cry. The moonlight glimmered from the tear falling gently down her cheek. OR The baby’s chin quivered and his face
turned bright red just before he let out a blaring wail.
Further vs.
Farther:
-It’s easy to remember because
“farther” has the word “far” in it, and “far” obviously relates to “physical”
distance. “My car traveled farther than yours.”
-Use “further” for figurative
distance. “If you complain further, you’ll go to bed without supper.”
From vs. Than (different from vs. different than)
ALWAYS SIGNALS A COMPARISON Different From is
always preferred over Different Than. When in doubt, use “from.”
-“From” Harry knew he was different from the rest of the class. He differs from his class. Use differ and see that from sounds better. (“From” is usually followed by an object/noun
or Pronoun.)
-“Than” example: Grammar is no
different for men than it is for women. (“Than” is usually followed by a verb
AND noun.) https://www.shmoop.com/grammar/spelling/different-from-vs-different-than.html
Hyphens:
-When
combining two or more words to form a compound adjective before a noun, put hyphens between the words:
five-pound hammer twelve-hour shifts forty-year-old
man fifty-foot tall trees (but fifty feet tall)
-Don’t use hyphens when the
compound number comes after the noun:
The hammer weighed five
pounds. The shifts lasted twelve hours. The man said he is forty
years old.
-Here’s another: two- or
three-ring binders (add a space after the first hyphen, if plural) http://www.whitesmoke.com/janestraus_17
-Although it’s okay to use hyphens with
adjectives, hyphens and adverbs don’t get along as well. You shouldn’t use
hyphens with adverbs such as “happily” and “individually.” e.g., “happily married man” or “individually
wrapped cheese.” http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/how-to-use-a-hyphen?page=3
-Hyphens
for time: according to The Chicago Manual of Style, don’t hyphenate
unless followed by a noun:
three thirty three-thirty bus three thirty-five (only hyphenate
between the minutes)
Semicolon:
Use sparingly in fiction writing. A semicolon links two independent clauses with no connecting words:
I’m
going home; I intend to stay there.
It rained heavily; we had our picnic anyway.
DEPENDENT CLAUSE:
A dependent clause has to be completed by
an independent clause. IT CANNOT STAND ON ITS OWN.
Before the food gets cold
As the light dimmed
Why the movie was a flop
An INDEPENDENT CLAUSE stands on its own and
expresses a complete thought: subject/action verb/(object)
We should all sit down and eat before the
food gets cold.
It got harder to read as the light dimmed.
I asked my friend why the movie was a flop.
·
Colons: Use colons to introduce a list or a
quotation. Colons aren’t used too often in fiction, so be sure yours are well
placed and necessary.
·
Dashes: There is more than one kind of dash. A hyphen is the shortest
and is used to connect words. An en dash (called that because it’s the
width of an “n” in the original hot-lead typesetting process) is used to separate
numbers: 1– 4. An em dash (you guessed it—it’s the width of the letter “m”) can
be used like a colon or to offset a tangent. Em dashes are fun—they draw
attention to themselves—but don’t use them too much.
·
Ellipses: Ellipses (ellipsis is singular) are used to indicate that
there’s something missing from a quote. Fiction writers like to use them .
. . in dialogue . . . to show hesitation . . . or
pauses . . . in the conversation. But using too many gets distracting.
Use them sparingly and they will be more effective. [KNIGHTLINES edit: an ellipses should be constructed thus: word, space, period, space, period, space, period, space, word. It might be different if you're proofing an eBook.]
·
Parentheses: parentheses are quieter than other punctuation
marks. They can be used to give important (but side) information. They’re
generally not to be used in fiction
unless you’re going for an overt literary feel where the narrator is more
present. And don’t forget that closing parenthesis!
·
Exclamation Points: Don’t use exclamation points just to make a simple
statement seem important or urgent! Only use them for true excitement or
yelling. There is a difference between a character in your book saying “Fire”
and saying “Fire!” Exclamation points do have their place, but they are
often overused.
·
Contractions: Using contractions sounds natural because it is natural. Prose without contractions sounds stiff and formal.
[KNIGHTLINES edit: depends on time period, or if someone is speaking in a
foreign language and you’re using English to translate it for the readers.
Regency English rarely used contractions in the upper classes. Lower classes contracted their speech. Contractions
went out of fashion in the 1700s and contractions in the U.S. didn’t become
common or popular again until well into the 20th century.]
·
Commas:
o
Two independent phrases are always separated by a comma (Jim filed
his taxes, and he got a refund).
§
Don’t use a comma between an independent and dependent phrase
(usually a conjunction is used) Jim filed
his taxes and breathed easy. Jim filed his taxes because he didn’t want to be
late.
o The
comma before the word too.
If two different subjects are doing an action, there’s no comma Leslie used
a comma. Bob used a comma too. (ßinclusive) If the same subject is doing two
things, add a comma. Bob used a comma and end
quotes, too. (ßin addition)
o The
comma and the speech tag.
If the character is laughing, sighing, or groaning, etc., use a period between
that action and the character’s actual words.
[“That’s so funny,” Carol laughed. ßincorrect vs. “That’s so
funny.” Carol laughed at Jim. OR “That’s so funny,” Carol said and laughed at
Jim.
o The comma splice. This happens when two independent sentences
(that might feel like they could be one connected thought) are incorrectly
connected with a comma.
§ Incorrect: “These two ideas have something in
common, pay attention to them.”
¨ Quick fixes would be to replace the comma with
a period, em dash, or semicolon.
¨ Or this: “These two ideas have something in
common, so pay attention to them.”
More About the Comma Splice:
Incorrect: He used
to be a lazy bum, now he’s a hard worker.
Correct: He used to
be a lazy bum, but now he’s a hard worker.
Or . . . He used to
be a lazy bum. Now he’s a hard worker.
Or . . . He used to
be a lazy bum; now he’s a hard worker. (But try to avoid semi-colons in novels.)
Or . . . He used to
be a lazy bum—now he’s a hard worker.
More Comma before “too”:
From Tristi Pinkston, author and editor, former CEO of Trifecta Books:
-Add a comma if it’s an addition to
a list: “I’m going to the store, the
library, and the dry cleaners, too.”
-Add
a comma if it’s in addition to
something: “It’s not just unfortunate, but miserable, too.” (The second idea
pertains to the first idea, so a comma is used.)
-No comma if it’s inclusive: “I think that’s unfortunate
too.”
[KNIGHTLINES edits]
However, some
grammarians say to use a comma if “too” is at the end of a sentence. “I think that’s unfortunate, too.”
Use a comma before and after “too” if it’s in the middle of a
sentence: “I know, too, that chocolate is addicting.”
Using or not using
a comma before “too” can be a stylistic
choice. If you want the sentence to read smoothly, leave out the comma. If
you want a pause, use the comma to slow down the sentence. If no emphasis is
needed, no comma is needed.
As you can see, a comma
before “too” is controversial. Some
die-hard grammarians say to use the comma before “too” no matter what. But overall, grammarians will instruct you to “be consistent.”
More Comma Problems: non-essential and essential appositives
An appositive provides more information for the noun. If it's essential, it needs a comma. If the information is not essential, no comma is needed.
Correct: I watched
the show “Star Trek” with my brother Henry.
-If Henry is clarified as your only brother,
there should be a comma before his name. Or if either noun is clarified, use commas.
Correct: I watched
Gene Roddenberry’s show, “Star Trek,” with my only brother, Henry.
Comma Before “Then”:
1. If “then” indicates sequence, you can see if it needs a
comma by replacing it with a more common conjunction.
"Students
will read a passage and answer a
question." You see that a comma
isn’t needed, unless it helps clarity, or the sequence of phrases is structured as a list: Students will read a
passage, then do a dance, and then give a report on their experience.
2. A comma before then is often used to separate an independent clause and a dependent clause.
“Students will read a passage” is the independent clause, and
“Answer a question” is the dependent clause.
3. If a sentence isn’t long, a comma wouldn’t be needed. But if
the sentence is long, a comma would be used to indicate a pause.
“If you go then I will too.”
Commas to separate coordinate adjectives:
-If you can flip
the adjectives around, use a comma: “He’s a little, black poodle.” [You can
flip this to black, little poodle, so use a comma.]
-If you can’t flip
the adjectives, don’t use a comma: “She loved warm chocolate chip cookies.” [She
loved chocolate chip warm cookies? No.]
BUT SEE BELOW . . .
Top 10 Grammar Mistakes according to Eschler Editing: http://www.eschlerediting.com/top-10-grammar-mistakes-to-avoid/)
1. it’s/its (and possessives)
It’s=a contraction of it and is.
Its=possession (his, hers, its).
2. than/then
Than=comparison. Then=what happens next
or at that time.
3. everyday/every day
Everyday=what kind of shoes, synonymous
with “ordinary” [adjective]. Every day=describes how/when she wears her shoes
[adverb].
4. there/their/they’re
There=a place or direction. Their=possession.
They’re=contraction of they and are.
5. your/you’re
Your=possessive of you. You’re=contraction
of you and are.
6. sit/set
Sit=when there isn’t something that
“takes” the action, but rather something is doing the action. Set=when
something takes the action [the book], or something acts upon the item.
7. any more/anymore
Any more = A quantity. Anymore = Any
longer; a period of time.
8. to/two/too
To=a movement toward. Two=the number.
Too=in addition
9. lie/lay
Lie=like sit, when there isn’t something
that “takes” the action, but rather something is doing the action. Lay=like set, when something takes the action
[the coat]. [Objects lay but people
lie.]
