Grammar Nazi
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I like this! -ly adverbs (adverbs in general) are a real problem. I don't worry about them too much in first draft, but get ruthless in later drafts. The new writers I work with are enchanted with them, unfortunately.Not to be redundant...
That's another thing: be aware of your own 'crutch words'. Every writer has them, and sometimes they vary. I know I will be getting rid of a truckload of 'just' and 'really' in every second draft. They're my crutches. I remember something I read from Mark Twain, about the word 'very': "Every time you're tempted to use 'very', write 'damn' instead. Your editor will get rid of them all and your story will be better for it."
This is the Old English way of spelling, isn't it? By George, I think I've got it! HahahaNot to be redundant...
As an editor, I have these books I refer to about grammar and style, etc. I am not an expert by any means. I still mess up. I wrote something and "Oops" used assessable instead of accessible. Yes, there is a difference. DUH!
Good evening.
May you and yours be well or on the mend.
I LOVE this thread but I am second guessing my posts and grammar! Ha!
I have no idea what a dangling participle is...although I watched an episode of Designing Women (T.V. show.) and one of the female characters was called out because she committed a grammar infraction!
She then continued to repeat her sentence but included the word "B**** at the end and THEN it was grammatically correct.
Peace.
May you and yours be well or on the mend.
I LOVE this thread but I am second guessing my posts and grammar! Ha!
I have no idea what a dangling participle is...although I watched an episode of Designing Women (T.V. show.) and one of the female characters was called out because she committed a grammar infraction!
She then continued to repeat her sentence but included the word "B**** at the end and THEN it was grammatically correct.
Peace.
Mr. King is good about that in "On Writing." I'm looking over my draft with a whole new eye.
Mine is "then." Mostly unnecessary to the story. Of course the next action will happen "then." That's how things happen.
I love Twain. That's a great one.I remember something I read from Mark Twain, about the word 'very': "Every time you're tempted to use 'very', write 'damn' instead. Your editor will get rid of them all and your story will be better for it."
Also:
“When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don't mean utterly, but kill most of them--then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are far apart.”
And, of course:
"Eschew surplusage."
I do ok with words, but punctuation is what gets me. Mainly commas and semicolons, etc.
My head spins when someone asks me to be more pacific.
Specific means to clearly define or identify. The Pacific is an ocean.
Specific means to clearly define or identify. The Pacific is an ocean.
...said it before, gonna say it again...the word is supposEDly, NOT supposEBly!!!!!!....
For me, it's prolly. The word is probably dammit!!
And what's up with the trend to make plurals into possessives by adding the apostrophe "s" when it clearly should not have the apostrophe because you were talking about more than one of something?!
And what's up with the trend to make plurals into possessives by adding the apostrophe "s" when it clearly should not have the apostrophe because you were talking about more than one of something?![/QUOTE]yeah, that drive's me absatively posilutely bat's kaka-poopie.
Words and phrases that get up my nose: Moving and going forward. Beginning every sentence with the word "So". The word "like" littered throughout a persons speech. And what bugs me even more is the fact that I do some of these annoying things.
The word "tooken" drives me up the wall. Never heard it until I moved to the south. The correct word is "taken".
Agreed. The one exception I can think of is "do's and don'ts." I don't mind it then. "Dos" may be technically correct, but it doesn't read as well, and "does" looks, counterintuitively, like the third-person singular form of "do." Or the plural for a female deer.For me, it's prolly. The word is probably dammit!!
Yup. And in the last few years, I've heard "boughten" more and more.
One of those pesky exceptions.
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There's an exception to every rule. Right? Including that one.One of those pesky exceptions.
Well, I better hop to it, then! Let me find a good spot.........Only 1 more post to go and your posts will no longer be moderated.
Oh. Never mind.
I was reminded of a problem I have while I was posting to the Walking Dead thread this morning. I never know when to use the word 'that'. I used the word twice in the following sentence. Should I have?
I'm actually surprised the girls lived as long as they did since Carol and Tyreese were too dumb to figure out that they shouldn't run off and leave the girls alone... that every time they left the girls alone, zombies attacked them.
Another question while typing this post popped up lol... Is 'Should I have?' a complete sentence?
I'm actually surprised the girls lived as long as they did since Carol and Tyreese were too dumb to figure out that they shouldn't run off and leave the girls alone... that every time they left the girls alone, zombies attacked them.
Another question while typing this post popped up lol... Is 'Should I have?' a complete sentence?
Took Take Tooken... sounds right to me
This might be a Texas thing... Do people in Florida add st to the end of words? It took me a while to figure out the word pronounced wonst means once.