Harsh…I know.
I can’t help it; I’m an English major and a professional writer.
You wouldn’t dabble in catering if you couldn’t cook!
You would never suit up to play professional hockey if you couldn’t wield a stick!
So you must understand why it makes my skin crawl when bloggers fail to string sentences together using basic principles of grammar.
I agree that in today’s age of social media and Internet sophistication every business needs to have a content marketing strategy and a blogging presence. But if the English language eludes you, for God’s sake, hire a professional freelance writer to manage your copywriting needs.
Otherwise, commit to learning the fundamentals so that you don’t end up looking like an idiot!
And guess what?! Today is your lucky day.
I’m going to teach you some of the fundamentals.
Below is my summary of the top 5 most often overlooked and most frequently violated standards of grammatical excellence.
You avoid mistakes alot
Did you catch the error?
Alot is not a word! Neither is alright (it’s all right). Stop abbreviating words and creating amalgamations that don’t exist.
Who decided that you could eliminate the space between ‘a’ and ‘lot’. This is fourth grade stuff folks.
Along the same lines, the word ‘everyday’ is an adjective meaning commonplace or unoriginal (“She wore her everyday clothes”). But if you are trying to suggest that you do something daily, you must use the words separately – as in, “I try to write every day”.
After giving it much thought, the participles failed to dangle
After being whipped vigorously, the baker spread cream on the cake.
Dancing elegantly on pointed toes, the man admired his fiance.
You get the idea. The participial phrase at the beginning of the sentence does not actually modify what follows.
The participle didn’t give anything much thought.
The baker wasn’t whipped vigorously.
And the man wasn’t likely dancing elegantly on pointed toes (although I suppose he may have been).
If you don’t pay attention to this error, you will leave your readers confused.
Apostrophe’s rule
Not in this subhead.
It’s vs. its; your vs. you’re; Freelance Writing Blogs vs. Freelance Writing Blog’s…that pesky little buoyant comma can make your life a living hell!
An apostrophe is essentially used in two situations:
- To abbreviate
- To show possession
In the former case, ‘it’s’ would be used to abbreviate ‘it is’. Similarly, ‘you’re’ would be used to abbreviate ‘you are’. So…you’re following me, right? It’s really simple, actually.
In the latter case, you would use the apostrophe when indicating possession. So…this is The Freelance Writing Blog’s first opportunity to win Write to Done’s contest for the Top 10 Best Blogs for Writers (go vote if you haven’t already).
One funny and confusing exception…’its’ demonstrates possession but doesn’t use an apostrophe. So, “The Freelance Writing Blog is known for its smart, actionable advice for writers.”
Commas always, essential are used properly
Again…not in the subhead.
Too often, commas are underused or misused. Particularly online, when you are trying to initiate conversation and establish a sense of personality and brand, commas are an essential tool in defining your voice and tone.
If you can’t create tempo in your writing, and offset your thoughts meaningfully, you will end up misleading your readers and driving them away.
Commas actually play a part in this process.
Make sure you use commas to:
- separate compound sentences (I would end this post right here, but I still have more information to share)
- offset nonrestrictive elements (Ruth, who is a freelance copywriter, hates grammatical errors)
- separate elements in a series (The boy dribbled the ball, dodged three players, and scored a basket)
- set off introductory elements (Before I could go further, I needed to take a sip of water)
- separate coordinate adjectives (The tall, good-looking, brilliant, distinguished man took my breath away)
She uses pronouns when they think it’s correct
Why do writers shift pronouns with such frequency?
I’m inclined to think that it’s oversight more than ignorance. Does this actually sound correct?
When one first reads a Shakespearean play, you are moved by its genius.
If you start with ‘one’, finish with ‘one’. Stick with one pronoun, and use it consistently throughout your copy.
Your Turn
So, these are just a few of my more irksome grammatical pet peeves.
What are yours? Are you interested in reading about more common writing mistakes? Let me know in the comments section below, and if there is interest, I’ll work on a Part 2 to this post.
As always, if you found this post helpful, I would be so grateful if you would tweet, like and share it using the social media buttons provided.
{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
Are you going to do a post on punctuation as well?
Well, punctuation is a much drier and lengthier subject. I did include the use of a comma in this post, but I didn’t even address it comprehensively. Though I agree – it is a topic worth covering, particularly for writers. I will add it to my list of prospective topics going forward; I appreciate your feedback!
I am guilty of slipping an alright in every now and again. It’s such a debatable word, but the purist in me should know better. I guess I can blame The Who for this one.
You know what Kellie – I can tolerate ‘alright’ every now and then. It is a debatable word, and while technically incorrect, it has made its way into our everyday lexicon. (note the use of the word everyday
). I think that The Who’s influence is a perfectly appropriate excuse!
I can’t help thinking that it’s only a matter of time before alright becomes a word, even though it’s rather ugly. It bothers me a lot less than other corruptions and, let’s face it, things change. I was looking at some newspapers from the 1940s recently and they all hyphenated to-day. I don’t think anyone does that any more (or should that be anymore?).
You may be right. Language evolves. Colloquial terms become accepted words and certain principles of grammar change. I expect the same thing will happen with the split infinitive (which drives me nuts, but is used very commonly). Thanks for stopping by Richard, have a great evening.
Ah, the split infinitive. Personally, this has never bothered me. I once read an article that said this was never a real rule of grammar, but just made up by snobby schoolmasters who thought English was inferior to Latin and needed a few more ‘rules’ to improve it. I don’t think that ‘snobby’ description applies to you by the way.
Picking up on Zac’s points below I think that fear of making grammatical errors can inhibit people’s ability to express themselves in writing. I did a blog post of my own on this recently. I’m not talking about the your, you’re type of example – this is just wrong. But my advice to people struggling to get their thoughts on paper is just to concentrate on writing something that makes sense. Give me an idea clearly expressed over perfect grammar any day.
Great post – started lots of useful debate.
I have difficulty with the same things you spoke of which is why I do not want to start a blog before I go back through “basic training” so to speak. I was ranting and raving earlier today when a blogger stated “It was not like one event imparticular started the whole thing.” What? What? I assume she meant “in particular”.
I know when I notice errors, they are huge errors because I make enough of them myself.
Thanks,
Joni
I am not an english major. I know that I definitely make some of those errors, but I’m always trying to improve.
I’ve always been a late bloomer, and I didn’t actually like writing until later in life.
I’m self-taught for the most part, and still learning everyday. I actually hate grammar and punctuation. It’s not fun for me, but I know it’s necessary to master these skills if you want to write professionally.
I have a ton of books on writing, grammar and punctuation, but I haven’t devoured them page for page. I can only take these books in a few pages at a time.
I’m actually being extra careful as I type this response, because your blog post is about grammar and punctuation.
But I don’t want to over-think it, then I’d be here all night. I see typos on blogs all the time, they’re like a speed bump you don’t see coming as you’re reading.
It makes wonder if I should go back over all my blog posts and re-edit some of them.
Afterall, I don’t want to look like an idiot.
The good thing is that I am a perfectionist, but the bad part is that if I tried to make every blog post as perfect as possible I’d never publish a new post.
Maybe bloggers are less careful with their writing because money isn’t always on the line when they’re writing a blog post.
(BTW…it took me way to long to write this reply)
Zac Vega | Turning Point Motivation recently posted..A Simple Method To Improve Your Blog Everyday!
I see a typo already…I meant to write it makes me wonder…LOL
Zac Vega | Turning Point Motivation recently posted..The Day I Almost Drowned In Barbados, Please Learn From My Lesson: Have Respect For The Power Of The Ocean
LOL…trust me Zac, until I’m on to my next blog post, I’m holding my breath on this one as well! It’s only a matter of time before someone points out what a hypocrite I am!
Everyone makes mistakes – it’s inevitable. But what drives me crazy is when there seems to be an utter lack of appreciation or respect for basic grammar. It’s infuriating when someone heralds themselves as a writer/blogger, but can’t string a sentence together properly. Even the best chef can have a flop of a dish; but it’s more so when there is a chronic misuse and abuse of ingredients that it becomes exasperating.
The fact that you own the books, attempt to read them, take your time with your writing, review it…and then CATCH the typos and acknowledge them, is a testament to your level of professionalism and care. So bravo to you Zac!
Much needed post Ruth!
I am indeed glad you put this up, as being freelance writers we all do tend to make a few mistakes here and there, though not when we are dealing with our clients!
It does happen with me so often, but that occurs mainly when I post on my own blogs. I need my husbands critical feedback where he edits the post before I put them up, just to make doubly sure that all is well grammatically.
Sure would help if you have another part up, especially for newbies or those just starting off their writing career.
Thanks for sharing
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Thanks Harleena, I am definitely marking my calendar for a 2nd instalment. There seems to be a need for this kind of information.
And I think you raised a good point – we should ALWAYS solicit feedback from a 3rd party editor before we ‘go live’ with any of our projects.
Your original reference to catering resonated with me … having recently been irritated by a restaurant menu that claimed “a wide range of wine’s to compliment your meal” Aaaargh. Is it too much to suggest that such errors actually taint your experience? I don’t think so: another reason why it’s important to get it right.
Especially when you are paying, right Mike?! I agree with you – poor grammar and substandard writing can taint your entire experience, no matter WHAT the product or service offering. Thanks for sharing your comment.
I am also an English grad, and a Pro Writing master’s candidate. I know that the English language is dynamic, not static, and so I am ok with changes such as the almost ubiquitous use of “they” in order to avoid gendered pronouns, even though the sentence is singular. I think that’s one fight we won’t win. Not that there is any “case” or whatnot- not like Spanish (I’m a Spanish minor), which has an official academy that makes these calls. Perhaps that’s why English is so dynamic- it’s “ruled” (haha) by the people who use it.
I can definitely see with you being an English major and a professional writer why the majority of these kinds of mistakes would get under your skin. A few of them really gripe on my nerves but I admit not doing that well in my English class. Heck, I didn’t do well in any subject for that matter.
I remember I wasn’t too good at spelling either but once I got into the secretarial field, I found that I knew more than I thought. My boss would ask me how to spell something and I quickly would just spout it off. I shocked even myself thinking that I didn’t know how to spell something but I soon learned that I did.
I had a girlfriend that was also in the secretarial field and she never got the you are correct. It use to drive me up the wall. If you are going to be in that profession then you need to learn better grammar.
I’m sure I still make plenty of mistakes so I hope you aren’t biting at the nails every time you visit my place. Maybe a few more of your rants on these subjects will teach us all. I know I look forward to them. The good thing is that I can laugh at myself but once I’ve learned, I’ve learned.
Thanks for sharing this Ruth! I’m sure others definitely find it helpful as well.
~Adrienne
Adrienne recently posted..Why You Need A Bulletproof Mindset To Succeed
If I bite my nails when I visit your blog, Adrienne, it has NOTHING to do with anything shortcoming on your part. It would more so be a function of my own feeling of ineptitude and ignorance when it comes to blogging and online revenue generation. But we all have our areas of expertise – I hope this post didn’t come across as ‘high and mighty’. I want to help people to hone their writing skills. And I want to make sure that online standards for writing are high. Does that makes sense?
You are a wonderful writer – even when there are mistakes. And it is always apparent that you want to grow and enhance your online presence, which is wonderful.
I’ll talk to you later, Adrienne!
Well then see Ruth, we all have our own areas of inadequacy.
I didn’t think this post came across as high and mighty at all. I know there are some things that really bother me that I see people doing online so I have my own moments of ranting.
Now, if you are a freelancer and you are actually getting paid to write then you bet your grammar better be up to par. If that’s not the case though, I don’t want to see some people being held back because others may think their grammar is just horrible. We all like to give people an opportunity to learn and grow without being judged so in that instance I would want people to just do their best and learn as they go. Wouldn’t you agree? I believe your posts can be very helpful in that respect. Great job!
Adrienne recently posted..Why You Need A Bulletproof Mindset To Succeed
Hi Ruth,
I’m about to take some online writing classes and read more to improve my writing style. I am a foodie, and also very particular about how people cook and prepare food, so I totally get your comparison.
You are making me feel super self conscious about my writing.
Take Care…
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Justin, I’ve read your blog – you have no reason t feel self conscious! You’re a strong writer, my friend.
I’m glad you like the food comparison. Sometimes I think that most people believe they can just write a half-ass blog post and call themselves a writer. But is everyone who prepares dinner for their family actually a chef? It takes more than just an interest or a basic level of knowledge. That is, if you want to actually drive business.
Thanks for sharing your comment.
Hard as I try not to be, I’m probably guilty of a few of these doozies at least now and then!! Here’s another one: I think a lot of bloggers and writers in general tend to confuse em and en dashes, or (I’m consciously guilty of this) overuse the em dash…!
Haley-O (Cheaty) recently posted..Heidi Klum, Monster Trucks, Betty White & Rice
LOL, your comment makes me laugh because I deliberately didn’t include a note on em and en dashes because I am most certainly guilty of their abuse (and overuse). I’ll have to read up, make sure I understand the rules and cover them in Part 2
.
While we’re at it (can you tell this is a favourite subject of mine?): eachother, misusing “between” (vs. among), italics vs. quotation marks, and the semicolon…!
Haley-O (Cheaty) recently posted..Heidi Klum, Monster Trucks, Betty White & Rice
I agree. I think having Basic Grammar is important not only because it makes the post look good but because it will also make the post credible.
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I’m ashamed to say that I make a lot of mistakes and sometimes I take upon content creation jobs, like article writing. So its pretty bad for my reputation to make somewhat childish mistakes.
But I have an excuse, I’m no a native English speaker. I just taught myself and frankly, I’m still in the process of learning. Not the basics of course, but expressions and more complicated grammar.
Nothing to be ashamed of, Cristian! It’s wonderful that you acknowledge you have room to grow, and that is a step in the right direction. In fact, we all have room to grow. I wasn’t trying to make people feel badly; I was really trying to open people’s eyes to the importance of language and rules of grammar. Professional writers need to take their work seriously, and when you look at some of the garbage that’s out there, you can’t help but wonder if people even read through their writing before hitting the ‘publish’ button! Stay on course and I have no doubt you’ll have mastered the more complicated stuff in no time!
Hi Ruth,
I am no great English writer, and make plenty of mistakes, but I do try to correct them, or if I am not sure, I will consult a dictionary. Other people could also do that, but don’t. If they cannot be bothered to make an attempt at correct spelling, why should I be bothered to read it.
My pet hates with English writing are, the spellchecker, which tries to correct me whenever I write colour, not color, or realise not realize, and many more UK/US spelling differences.
And, (oops started a sentence with a conjunction) don’t get me going with the confusion people seem to have with your and you’re, their, there and they’re, were and where, and particularly prevalent at the moment, using of instead of have, eg could of, not could have.
Okay, rant over,
Barry
Barry Ranns recently posted..A Few Myths Dispelled
Hi Barry. I’m Canadian, so I completely relate to your frustration with the spellchecker!
You are so right about the could of, would of, should of. You know what else bugs me? When people say, “That’s a whole nother story”. NOTHER is not a word. People may not say that in the UK, but in North America…it’s rampant!
Rant away! I hear ya!
Thanks for a great post! It’s a good thing to know you’re an English major. But have you thought it wise to know that there are many who did not learn English as a first language?
It is good that you decided to offer some free lessons on some of what you think others are doing wrong. But frankly, while reading this what came to my mind is the story related by Robert Kiyosaki about a journalist who tried to prove to Robert that she was a better writer and does not need lessons in selling. To that Robert Kiyosaki replied, there is nothing like best-writing author but best-selling author!
The lesson here, let us correct but correct in love! And oh, I’ve just written something like that. You can read in the post referenced in the commentluv link.
Thanks.
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Thanks so much for your comment Chadrack.
I’m actually always so amazed by the bloggers who tackle English when it isn’t their first language. I find it quite inspiring and brave, and something that should really be commended.
And you are right – the proof is in the pudding. Good grammar and proper spelling really doesn’t mean much if it doesn’t bring home the bacon! I’m off to check out your links now.
Ruth, I’m sorry – this post has been bothering me for days. I have your blog on RSS feed and read every post. Your blog is very useful to me as someone just starting a writing business. However, I see many errors in your posts, including errors you mention here, and it troubles me that you used the word “idiot” in the title. We’re all on a learning curve and we all need to remember the importance of proofreading. That includes all of us. I don’t mean to offend, but I cringe when I see grammar and punctuation errors in posts intended to help writers (who may or may not be idiots), and that includes this post.
Hi Ruth (nice name!). Thanks for stopping by. I’m so glad that you find my posts useful, and I’m sorry that this one bothered you. You are right – we must all learn from our mistakes. And to do that, you need to be made aware of those mistakes. Which is why I wrote about this – some bloggers/writers don’t realize that they are making the mistakes in the first place.
Along those same lines, if you see errors in my writing, PLEASE let me know! I also want to learn and grow as a writer.
And FYI, I didn’t say that the writers who made mistakes WERE idiots – I said that they could LOOK like idiots.
As freelance writers, we are evaluated based on our writing skill. Mistakes simply don’t reflect well, and I gather that anyone doing this professionally wants to put their best foot forward and leave a strong impression.
Ruth Zive recently posted..Inspiration for Freelance Writing Entrepreneurs, Courtesy of My Smelly Dog
Thanks – will do.
Love this post! I always try to write the best posts I can by including things like stories, research and crazy opinion…but the one thing that I miss out on alot (<– haha just kidding) a lot is checking my grammar and structure. In my Freshman English class, I was taught about using pronouns and being CONSISTENT, yet I still find myself going crazy and using multiple pronouns a post.
Just little things, but I know I need to do a little better at checking these things after I'm done reading. Have you ever heard of the plugin "After the Deadline?" It's a pretty powerful spelling/grammar checker.
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Thanks for stopping by Alex. I’ve read your blog – it is VERY well written, especially considering that a) you are so young and b) you are not a professional writer. You’ve got something going on, my friend, and I’m so glad that we’ve connected! I’m going to check out that plugin.
I am guilty, too, I know that I make some grammar mistakes sometimes. But who doesn’t? Anyway, I think most of the blogger aren’t english. Or their mother language is not english. Should they banned from blogging then? They only want to share their thoughts with their followers. And the readers, they mustn’t be perfect in english as well. I think it is not about the grammar rules. At the age of the online communication surely not. But I also understand, that it can make one’s skin crawl. Let’s try to get over it:)
Two things drive me crazy: 1) ‘irregardless’ versus ‘regardless’ 2) You can eliminate the word ‘that’ almost everywhere it’s written and your writing will be improved
A second installment on this topic would make another great post!
Thanks Jim for stopping by and taking the time to comment. ‘Irregardless’ – drives me CRAZY! Almost as bad as ‘a whole ‘nother’. I probably overuse ‘that’, but I agree – they should be eliminated in the editing process most of the time. I think I’ll definitely do a 2nd instalment; it’s a topic that seems to have attracted a lot of interest.
As a substitute teacher I see these mistakes often. Thanks for the reminder to not give up on the basics!
Thanks Tammie for your comment. My brother and sister-in-law are both teachers and they have also told me that the command of basic grammar and spelling, by high school students, has deteriorated dramatically. It’s really a shame.
Great post and I am with Ruth all the way when it comes to using our language properly. I was taught Latin and Ancient Greek at primary school which grounded me in grammar. However, I have great difficulty in explaining what is right and what is wrong about a piece of writing. It either sounds right or wrong when I read it back. Sometimes it may not be wrong but still sound inelegant so I will write it again and again until it sounds right. It has to flow and it has to make sense and it must not jar. You have to proof read and even then you can miss things. The number of times I have written something and published – only to read it a week later and wonder how I could possibly have written THAT! It all boils down to time and how much of the precious stuff we can devote to any activity.
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Nick, I just want to say that I really love the word ‘inelegant’. Need to integrate that one more into my writing! Thanks for taking the time to post your grammatically correct comment!
Phew – for a brief second I thought you were calling me snobby Richard
Actually, I was concerned that this post would come across as ‘high and mighty’ – I’m certainly guilty of making mistakes and I wasn’t meaning to imply that people should NEVER mess up! And you are 100% right – fear of making a mistake shouldn’t hold you back from writing with gusto.
I was more so referring to a blatant disregard of any standards or rules that do (and should) govern the writing profession. It seems out here in the blogosphere that everyone with a cheeky idea is suddenly a professional writer. And I don’t want our standards to be watered down. We should still be mindful of those rules, and while change is welcome (I suppose I could even acquiesce to the dreaded split infinitive) – this isn’t a free for all!
Thanks for your very thoughtful comment Richard!