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Angie
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 Posted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 5:03 pm Post subject: General Writing Tips |
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I wrote these ages ago (when I was like 12) and haven't really edited them since, so please forgive me if some of them sound silly or are incorrect. However, they can probably be used as a useful checklist of the standard things. I had a webpage with all of these on it, but it's really old, so I'm just going to copy and paste them all here.
Do a CTRL + F for "Tips:" if you want to skip past a lot of the grammar/punctuation stuff.
~*~
Common Mistakes:
* Using commas in the place of semicolons.
__o Incorrect: She ran to the store, she needed milk.
__o Correct: She ran to the store; she needed milk.
* Run-on sentences.
__o Incorrect: She ran to the store she needed milk.
__o Correct: She ran to the store. She needed milk.
__o Correct: She ran to the store because she needed milk.
* New! Sentence Fragments.
__o Incorrect: While she was reading.
__o Correct: She sneezed while she was reading.
* New! A general break in a chain (to understand this more, take a look at my grammar lessons).
__o Incorrect: Joan went to the store but she forgot the butter.
__o Correct: Joan went to the store, but she forgot the butter.
* Staying in one paragraph when the speaker changes.
__o Incorrect:
"Why are you here?" Mandy said as she opened the door. Bob replied, "I just needed to get my books." She smiled, "Would you like to come in? You're soaking wet from the rain."
__o Correct:
"Why are you here?" Mandy said as she opened the door.
Bob replied, "I just needed to get my books."
She smiled, "Would you like to come in? You're soaking wet from the rain."
* Misusing question marks. Note: Don't begin a sentence with a question and add a statement to the end.
__o Incorrect: How can I tell her, this will break her heart?
__o Correct: How can I tell her? This will break her heart!
* Misusing homonyms.
__o Incorrect: Of coarse, she'd never tell them about it. It was to embarrassing.
__o Incorrect: Of course, she'd never tell them about it. It was too embarrassing.
* Using paragraphs incorrectly. Note: Only change paragraphs when the subject or speaker changes. Try to stay away from one-sentence paragraphs. One thing that can help is to go into more detail.
__o Incorrect:
She drew a picture of her cat on her break after doing the dishes. Mike was talking on the phone when he got a sudden urge to write a story.
__o Correct:
When she was done with her busy chore of doing the dishes, she took a seat. That was when she decided to draw her cat.
Meanwhile, next door, Mike was talking on the phone with his girlfriend. He then had a sudden urge to write a story.
*Not using apostrophes correctly.
__o Incorrect: That is the childs book.
__o Correct: That is the child's book.
__o Incorrect: Those are the childrens' books.
__o Correct: Those are the children's books.
__o Incorrect: My boss' word is final.
__o Correct: My boss's word is final.
__o Incorrect: "Whatre you thinkin?"
__o Correct: "What're you thinkin'?"
*Not properly spelling plural words that end in 'S'.
__o Incorrect: The bus's are parked over there.
__o Incorrect: The bus' are parked over there.
__o Incorrect: The buss are parked over there.
__o Correct: The buses are parked over there.
*Not knowing when to use "who" and when to use "that". Note: It's very simple to figure out which to use. Person="who" and everything else="that". Please note that you might sometimes need to use "whom" instead of "who" ("who" is for subjects, and "whom" is for objects).
__o Incorrect: She was always a person that I could trust.
__o Correct: She was always a person whom I could trust.
__o Incorrect: Hand me the paper who says how to do the math problem.
__o Correct: Hand me the paper that says how to do the math problem.
__o Correct: Hand me the paper which says how to do the math problem.
*Beginning a sentence with a conjunction. Note: you may have seen this done in published works, but that doesn't make it right. Even in those cases, the author probably just used it to draw attention to that sentence. Amateur writers haven't earned the privilege of breaking the rules (which there are almost always exceptions to). If you are being published, then go ahead, but you must have a good reason and not overdo it.
__o Incorrect: I'm very happy. And you'll never guess why.
__o Correct: I'm very happy, and you'll never guess why.
*Changing point of view with no good reason or explanation. Note: One second you're writing in second person, and the next you're tossing in forms of "you" or "I". This is one of my major pet peeves.
__o Incorrect: He walked down the hall toward the door. He felt nauseous, but not the bad flu kind, more like the nervous kind, you know?
__o Correct: He walked down the hall toward the door. He felt a nervous nauseousness in the pit of his stomach.
* Avoid using "This" or "It" or "These" as a subject of a sentence often. This goes back to being redundant, and it can tend to sound childish.
__o Example 1 (Incorrect): This is an exciting story. It's very creative.
"This" and "It" are the subjects of these sentences. They are't a very strong for words like "exciting" and "very creative". They just don't really draw in the interest of the reader. Always try to fix this error when proofreading.
__o Correction: This exciting story is very creative.
"This" was still the first word, but in this case, it's all right because it is being used as an adjective to the subject "story". Though this correction does usually work, try not to overdo it and just be creative with fixing these sentences.
__o Example 2 (Incorrect): The exciting story is very creative. It caught my attention at the beginning.
__o Correction: The exciting story, which caught my attention at the beginning, is very creative.
__o Example 3 (Incorrect): There are many kinds of music that can speak to your heart.
__o Correction: Many kinds of music can speak to your heart.
* Always place modifiers near the word they modify. This is a very common mistake which can easily be fixed, but it's sometimes hard to catch.
__o Example 1 (Incorrect): I lured the cat with a twinkie yelling at him.
You see no error? All right. Now tell me exactly what the twinkie was yelling. ^_^
__o Correction: Yelling at him, I lured the cat with a twinkie.
__o Example 2 (Incorrect): I saw a deer driving my jeep.
I don't know about you, but I don't really want an animal to drive my car...
__o Correction: While driving my jeep, I saw a deer.
~*~
Tips:
* When you think of an idea, grab a pencil and paper and write it down. Think about it and elaborate, making sure you write everyhing that pops in your head, even if it seems silly. I've written up to five pages of that kind of rambling for stories before.
* Always keep a notebook and writing utensil with you for sudden inspirations.
* Pay attention to any grammar, spelling, or punctuation rules you hear so you don't seem like an idiot.
* Even if something sounds totally ridiculous, go with it. It probably means it is a creative idea.
* Don't ask people close to you how your work sounds as they will probably lie and be no help whatsoever, or they will be brutally honest and ruin your friendship. Instead, ask an experienced person who isn't very close to you because they are more likely to give you tips and tell the truth, and it won't matter how mean they are about it.
* Always proofread as you go, not just after you complete something. I usually do it every two paragraphs or so if I'm taking my time.
* After writing something, don't reread it right away. After it's been on paper (or your hard drive) for a month or so, go over it. That way it's not fresh on your mind, and you are more likely to correct things that don't sound quite right.
* Never erase. Always lightly mark things out and rewrite them, just in case you want to change it back to the way it was or explore your options. If you type in on a computer instead of writing on paper, save a new copy every time you change something.
* Read. You heard me. If you read on a regular basis, your writing is more likely to improve because you will consciously and subconsiously pick up good (hopefully not bad) skills.
* Use conjunctions, but slightly in moderation. I know we've all heard that you should never use them, but they do come in handy and make stories flow better. See? I'm using them right now, and it's not so bad, now is it? Just don't overdo it like I sometimes do, and always remember to use them correctly. ^_^
* After you proofread, read your work aloud (or have someone read it to you). It really helps get the flow going better, expecially with poetry.
* Everyone, say it with me, "Write what you know." Yeah, a bit cliché, but true. Many times, I write about teenage girls from Oklahoma with annoying friends. I exaggerate my friends' qualities so they don't figure out who it is. If you're only skilled in engineering, I suggest you don't write a story that's mainly about art, unless you're willing to take a risk, do hours of research, and possably be criticized greatly. Note: Don't base characters on family members. They have more opportunities to kill you. -_^ I usually try to keep the family in my stories the opposite of mine because they usually end up dying a gruesome death like everyone else in my plots. I love my family, and I want them to be alright. I just imagine the story family as the people you see on the show Cops.
* Be creative. A couple ways I do that is to use unique names and add a lot of twists. Foreshadowing is great if you don't make it too obvious.
* When foreshadowing, read your story up to the parts with it to someone, and ask them to predict what may happen. If they are too close to the truth, lighten up on it.
* Don't be afraid to ask for help. If you think you are too good to get critisism or help, you shouldn't be writing. A good beta reader or two comes in very handy.
* Don't confuse or bore people. If you make your sentences and wording too elaborate, the 99.9% of the world that is made up of imbeciles won't understand what you're talking about. Also, don't make it too simple. Some wordplay can make things more interesting, and if you keep it to the right level, your range of readers can expand.
* Be realistic, yet imaginative. It's okay to have flying donkeys and hats that tell you how to bake cocoa puffs into a lemon cake, but you have to make things fit. If something happens, it has to be able to happen in the world you create.
* Stick to character. If someone starts out really depressed and shy in the beginning of your story, they can't turn happy and brave without very good reason.
* Constantly mold and change small aspects of characters to make them lifelike and evolving, but always give explanations for the changes.
* Always have a bright side to things. Even if your story is really angsty, there must be something to give a tiny glimpse of cheer. One way I do that is to have the angsty person(s) make sarcastic remarks. You can also have an always-look-on-the-bright-side person or add jokes every chapter or so.
* Don't be stupid. If it's supposed to be comedic, don't make it a totally random rip-off of Spongebob. Make sure you always have a plot, and probably some more serious scenes. Keep it nice and balanced.
* Be clear. Don't write a story and just assume that everyone knows what a glorgfutoodler is. One way to explain things is to have a clueless character (maybe from a different world or part of the country) that everyone has to explain things to. If you don't want to be that obvious, put the glorgfutoodler into various situations so that almost any reader can figure out what it is.
* Sound educated. No one likes to read stories littered with mistakes. Besides, do you really want to flaunt your ignorance? Look at some websites (and books) with tips, and pay attention in school. If you're done with school, take a night class or something. No one wants to read third grade-level stories, especially if they were written by someone much older. If you're too lazy to study, and you won't quit writing, have someone you trust to be intelligent proofread it for you.
* Try to have a theme to your work. Don't just write whatever comes into your head and expect it to be a wonderful prize-winning peice. It really helps to make an outline in your notebook (which I know you have) when you get an idea. It doesn't have to be a good outline, but one that can help you keep track of where you're going with the work and not lose sight of what you want to be accomplished with it. Even if you want to write just to entertain, it is still good to have a moral to your story (or whatever you happen to be writing). Good publishers don't usually buy random crap so give it all a point.
* Try not to be too choppy (I know I am very guilty of this, but I'm working on it!). It might help to add some transitional expressions to make one sentence or paragraph flow into the next. You've heard me say this before, but you really should read your work aloud to make sure it sounds all right. |
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I'm covered in pixie dust and flying without a care.
Please don't make me fall; the ground's too hard for me to bear.
We mustn't dwell over past losses; we must cherish present gifts.
Last edited by Angie on Wed Apr 26, 2006 11:43 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Phorcys
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Angie
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| Posted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 7:43 pm Post subject: |
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Lol, like I said I wrote them ages ago. There are some that even I disagree with now.  |
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I'm covered in pixie dust and flying without a care.
Please don't make me fall; the ground's too hard for me to bear.
We mustn't dwell over past losses; we must cherish present gifts. |
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| Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2006 9:24 am Post subject: |
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| I actually took my time to read all this, especially the grammar and punctuation as I sometimes still have trouble with it. Thanks! |
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Angie
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| Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2006 9:11 pm Post subject: |
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No problem, I'm glad it could be of some use to you.  I tried to write (in the errors section) the things that I catch most when I read the literary works of my friends (AKA people of the younger age group) so as to sort of make a checklist for people in our educational situation to go over when proofreading a piece, so hopefully it can help someone in that aspect. |
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I'm covered in pixie dust and flying without a care.
Please don't make me fall; the ground's too hard for me to bear.
We mustn't dwell over past losses; we must cherish present gifts. |
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Dream Deep
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| Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 8:34 pm Post subject: |
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Very nice.  A lot of the things you have suggested have sort of been rambling around together in my mind without actually organizing themselves in any way, shape or form. I think it's cool that you actually sat down and wrote it all out.
You have a lot of really good ideas, and I plan to incorporate all the things on your list I'm not already doing into my personal writing routine. It'll help. Thanks a lot! |
Last edited by Dream Deep on Mon Oct 06, 2008 9:37 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Angie
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| Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 11:50 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks, DD.  I'm always making checklists for myself, and I think this may have really not helped my OCD (which is not officially diagnosed as of yet, but I think I have it. . .).  |
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I'm covered in pixie dust and flying without a care.
Please don't make me fall; the ground's too hard for me to bear.
We mustn't dwell over past losses; we must cherish present gifts. |
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| Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 7:04 am Post subject: |
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*sighs*
Grammar is so beautiful... :lots_hearts: |
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Angie
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| Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 11:27 pm Post subject: |
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| I quite agree. I have a very hard time taking someone seriously if said person's writing has the grammar of a fourth grader. *hugs tattered and overused grammar book* :thumb: |
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I'm covered in pixie dust and flying without a care.
Please don't make me fall; the ground's too hard for me to bear.
We mustn't dwell over past losses; we must cherish present gifts. |
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| Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 11:32 pm Post subject: |
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what about adding an "es" or "s" to words that end with an "s"? And what about the possessive for words ending in an s?
Those seem to confuse people. I think. |
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You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, instead, you should read every single book to see what every book is about before you even come close to judging its viability. |
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Angie
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| Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 11:38 pm Post subject: |
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| I could have sworn I had something in there about that, but now that I glance through, I apparently don't. I shall edit it now with those tips. Thanks for suggesting it. |
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I'm covered in pixie dust and flying without a care.
Please don't make me fall; the ground's too hard for me to bear.
We mustn't dwell over past losses; we must cherish present gifts. |
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Fye
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| Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 9:46 am Post subject: |
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Is this thread that desperate to receive posts from the era of 2008? ^^ Okay, okay, so I clicked the link.
Anyway, I'm confused about the usage of apostrophes. As I remember correctly, names or words that end with an 's' will have an apostrophe behind them and nothing else. E.g. Joses' pants, families' homes. So according to the post, it should be "My boss' word is final"? But I'm really not sure. Can someone clarify this?
| Quote: |
| * Using paragraphs incorrectly. Note: Only change paragraphs when the subject or speaker changes. Try to stay away from one-sentence paragraphs. One thing that can help is to go into more detail. |
I don't see anything wrong with one-sentence paragraphs, if used correctly. If I really should stay away from it, what are the reasons?
But all in all, this was helpful . There are some tips I already follow myself like proofreading as I go and setting a theme before the story. |
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| Posted: Tue Oct 07, 2008 2:43 am Post subject: |
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| You don't have to always use bosses' or families' to show posession. Boss's or family's work just as fine. It depends on how smooth you want the word to sound when reading it, where "boss's" sounds much clearer than "boss'" when you say it aloud. They're really not for literary writing, I think. And that girl can't answer your post. |
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