by: Kempton Smith
In reviewing and browsing web sites over the years, I have
compiled a list of the most common misuses of English by web authors.
Here they are in Letterman (reverse) order.
10. Who, which or that?
"Who" (or "whom") refers to persons. "Which" refers to animals
or things, never to persons. "That" can refer to either persons or
things.
Examples:
The girl who was hungry.
The dog that wagged its tail.
The software which I wrote.
9. Anyone vs any one
"Anyone" means "any person," not necessarily any specific person. It could refer to multiple people simultaneously.
As two words, "any one" refers to a single person.
Examples:
Anyone can download my software. But the software can only be used by any one user at a time.
8. Commonly misspelled words
All right
Dependable
Independent
Recommend
Responsible
Separate
7. Don't put punctuation at the end of a URL
While not technically an English grammatical error, don't put a
period or anything immediately after a URL reference. Doing so will
usually invalidate the URL. You might call this an internet grammatical
rule.
Example:
Notice the lack of a period in the following sentence. My URL is http://article-promotion.blogspot.com
6. Software not softwares
"Software" can be singular or plural. Never use "softwares."
5. Do the quotes go after or before the period?
Put quotes after a period or comma. Put quotes before a colon.
Put quotes after a question mark unless the entire sentence is a
question. This is a US English standard. British English usage can
differ.
Examples:
He asked, "Are you hungry?"
She replied, "Yes, I am hungry."
Did she say, "Yes"?
4. There, their, or they're
"There" is used in two ways. It can specify a place. It can also be used as an expletive or empty word to start a sentence.
"Their" is used as a possessive form of "they".
"They're" is short for "they are."
Examples:
I live there, not here.
There are nine planets in the solar system.
The two boys raced their bikes.
They're both tired after walking up the stairs.
3. Powerful
Too many developers describe their software as, "XXX Software is a powerful, easy-to-use, ... ." I searched download.com
and found 2149 descriptions or titles of software containing the word
"powerful." Powerful has many meanings, most referring to how
effectively something is performed, as in muscular. A car with 450
horsepower is clearly more powerful than one with only 200 horsepower.
But what is powerful software? If you mean feature-rich (like Adobe
Photoshop), then say so. If your software does only one thing, but it
does it completely or thoroughly (like CounterSpy), then say so. But
please, no more powerful software.
2. Site or sight
A "site" is a place.
"Sight" refers to your sense of vision.
Examples:
A web site is a place on the internet that you visit with your browser.
A beautiful sunset is a marvellous sight.
and, authors="" blunder="" by="" common="" english="" finally,="" is: ="" most="" the="" web="">
1. Its or It's
Use "it's" only when it means "it is." Unless you can replace "it's" with "it is," use "its." Never use "its'."
Examples:
It's raining today.
The dog wagged its tail.
Conclusion:
English is very difficult for persons whose native language is
not English. It is also difficult for many English-speaking authors.
Unfortunately, most of the common grammatical errors will not
be caught by a spell checker, so you have to manually check your
writing for them.
An excellent reference is the short and timeless book, The
Elements of Style, by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White. A free online
version of this book is available at http://www.bartleby.com/141/index.html
I hope that web authors can use this article to recognize and
correct some of the most common grammatical blunders that abound on the
internet.
About The Author
Kempton Smith helps internet businesses promote their products
or services online by ghostwriting affordable, unique, keyword-rich
articles for them. Email him now at articleghostwriter@yahoo.com
for a free article for your online business, no obligation. Or for a
free report on how to use articles to promote your product or service,
visit http://article-promotion.blogspot.com.
Showing posts with label English. Show all posts
Showing posts with label English. Show all posts
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Voices in Your Head; Constructing Dialogues in Writing
Are you struggling with your story’s dialogue? If so, you’re not
alone. Dialogue is tough for many writers. Fortunately, by learning to
listen, you can make your fictional dialogue much stronger. So let’s
begin by looking at a quick dialogue exchange, from a short story I’ve
been working on.
But the question is, “How do we know this?” Certainly there’s a bit of narrative here, but not much. Most of what we know we learn from the spoken words. And I’m not talking about the information here. Instead, I’m referring to way these characters speak. For example, notice how the analytical character speaks in complete sentences, in larger concepts. The woman, on the other hand, speaks in short bursts, using clipped sentences and fragments. Each of these speech patterns relates directly to the characters and who they are.
People are unique in their physical characteristics, the way they dress, and how they view the world. We use these things to paint portraits of people in fiction and nonfiction. But it’s important to remember that people also speak in unique ways. And those speech patterns tell readers just as much about that person as anything else you write. In fact, a unique method of speech often creates a deeper portrait. The readers actually hear the person, as well as seeing your visual description. And that can be a powerful tool.
To achieve this, start listening to the way people speak, paying particular attention to some of the following aspects of speech.
1. Wordiness—Some people will use many words, in many long sentences. Others (like our character above) may speak in short bursts and fragments. This can tell readers a lot about the character’s approach to life. It may even hint at some sort of agenda. Wordiness, for example, may be tool for evasion, helping the person avoid answering a question.
2. Tempo—People speak slowly or at high speed and again, that’s a clue to who they are and how they live their lives. Listen to tempo in speech. Listen for pauses, especially those that might stem from caution or lack of an answer. The rate at which a person offers words can be a great character-building tool.
3. Slang—People and characters will often use slang, helping readers determine their age, economic background, ethnicity, and career. Remember that a simple slang word speaks volumes about a person. Make sure it’s telling readers what you want them to know.
4. Vocal Habits—One person may always clear his/her throat before speaking. Another may overuse a certain word or phrase. Another might be liberal with short sounds, like “uh.” Each of these identifies the person for readers and when they see him/her again, they’re able to immediately grasp that unique character. And that helps keep the story moving.
One very helpful exercise for developing dialogue is to use your friends, relatives and acquaintances. Take a line of dialogue from a short story or a quote from a nonfiction article you’re working on. Then imagine each of your friends saying that line. How would your best friend say it? Your mother? Your boss? You should be able to hear differences just by imagining how others would tackle a particular line of dialogue.
Once you have that firmly in your mind, practicing writing it so that it sounds different to readers with each new speaker. You’ll soon find your dialogue skills (and your ear for speech) improving.
Best of luck with all your writing.
© by Mike Foley
About The Author
Mike Foley is editor of Dream Merchant Magazine and author of more than 700 published stories and articles. He also teaches fiction and nonfiction writing in the extension program at UC-Riverside. Since 1986, Mike has operated the Writer’s Review critique/editing service, helping hundreds of aspiring writers improve their fiction and nonfiction projects.For information on Mike’s critique or coaching services, visit his website: http://www.writers-review.com/ email mike@writers-review.com
Her eyes finally met mine. “This isn’t right, Neil. You felt it out there. I know it.”Although you’re coming into the story somewhere in the middle, without really knowing the characters, you still get a “feel” for each of them simply by reading this short passage of dialogue. One character is more analytical, trying to make sense of what they’ve seen. The other relies mostly on feeling and instinct, taking a more direct approach to the situation. Two distinct individuals.
I nodded. “But it’s free floating. It doesn’t cling to the water and it really isn’t a part of the tank. And there’s no body. A spirit just circles the site.”
“A broken circle,” she said gravely. “Pieces missing…death. Someone died out there.”
“So you’re saying this is a murder?”
“Maybe. Don’t know. No body. But the evil...the dark spirit. It’s still there.”
I had learned over the years that Kathy might be wrong about events and timing, but rarely about feelings. To her, the evil we felt meant death.
“Look,” I told her. “We’ll never know what happened out there. I say we just send the spirit away and go home.”
She shook her head. “It won’t leave…not now, anyway. Isn’t settled…”
But the question is, “How do we know this?” Certainly there’s a bit of narrative here, but not much. Most of what we know we learn from the spoken words. And I’m not talking about the information here. Instead, I’m referring to way these characters speak. For example, notice how the analytical character speaks in complete sentences, in larger concepts. The woman, on the other hand, speaks in short bursts, using clipped sentences and fragments. Each of these speech patterns relates directly to the characters and who they are.
People are unique in their physical characteristics, the way they dress, and how they view the world. We use these things to paint portraits of people in fiction and nonfiction. But it’s important to remember that people also speak in unique ways. And those speech patterns tell readers just as much about that person as anything else you write. In fact, a unique method of speech often creates a deeper portrait. The readers actually hear the person, as well as seeing your visual description. And that can be a powerful tool.
To achieve this, start listening to the way people speak, paying particular attention to some of the following aspects of speech.
1. Wordiness—Some people will use many words, in many long sentences. Others (like our character above) may speak in short bursts and fragments. This can tell readers a lot about the character’s approach to life. It may even hint at some sort of agenda. Wordiness, for example, may be tool for evasion, helping the person avoid answering a question.
2. Tempo—People speak slowly or at high speed and again, that’s a clue to who they are and how they live their lives. Listen to tempo in speech. Listen for pauses, especially those that might stem from caution or lack of an answer. The rate at which a person offers words can be a great character-building tool.
3. Slang—People and characters will often use slang, helping readers determine their age, economic background, ethnicity, and career. Remember that a simple slang word speaks volumes about a person. Make sure it’s telling readers what you want them to know.
4. Vocal Habits—One person may always clear his/her throat before speaking. Another may overuse a certain word or phrase. Another might be liberal with short sounds, like “uh.” Each of these identifies the person for readers and when they see him/her again, they’re able to immediately grasp that unique character. And that helps keep the story moving.
One very helpful exercise for developing dialogue is to use your friends, relatives and acquaintances. Take a line of dialogue from a short story or a quote from a nonfiction article you’re working on. Then imagine each of your friends saying that line. How would your best friend say it? Your mother? Your boss? You should be able to hear differences just by imagining how others would tackle a particular line of dialogue.
Once you have that firmly in your mind, practicing writing it so that it sounds different to readers with each new speaker. You’ll soon find your dialogue skills (and your ear for speech) improving.
Best of luck with all your writing.
© by Mike Foley
About The Author
Mike Foley is editor of Dream Merchant Magazine and author of more than 700 published stories and articles. He also teaches fiction and nonfiction writing in the extension program at UC-Riverside. Since 1986, Mike has operated the Writer’s Review critique/editing service, helping hundreds of aspiring writers improve their fiction and nonfiction projects.For information on Mike’s critique or coaching services, visit his website: http://www.writers-review.com/ email mike@writers-review.com
Monday, December 29, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
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