Grammar Tips for Writers

Created by Edita Kaye

With just a click, anyone can be a published writer - anything is possible on the internet these days.

• The long process of book publication that once was might not completely be over, but it has been revolutionized.

• That being said, without a professional editor or publication company, there has been an increase of poorly written books being published with a considerable amount of spelling and grammar mistakes.

Publishing Literature in the Technological Age

Grammar Guides• So, if you’re thinking about publishing

one of your works online, you should make sure that your piece is free of these seemingly simple mistakes that many people unknowingly make.

• For your convenience, you should invest in at least one (preferably all) of the following grammar guides:

1. The Chicago Manual of Style2. Strunk and White’s The Elements of

Style3. Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero

Tolerance Approach to Punctuation

Why Buy a Grammar Guide?❖ All of these books contain a vast

amount of information concerning the world of grammar for the English language and will assist with any questions you may have while editing your work.

❖ As a writer, it’s important that you know all the complicated rules of citation along with the knowing the when to use the right “there”.

❖ So, always have one of these books in your bag as you work on a piece for publication, or just to practice using correct grammar.

Invest in a Dictionary❖ In addition, it’s a good idea to

invest in a copy of the Oxford English Dictionary, or subscribe to the OED’s online edition for when your word processor’s spell checker doesn’t have the answers to all of your spelling or grammar questions.

❖ Having an available dictionary will also expand your use of diction and altogether make you a more advanced writer.

Use Your References❖ Keep in mind, just having these

references won’t help if you don’t use them.

❖ This is not to say that you should overuse them so they disrupt your workflow, but when you’re revising your piece and come across a grammatical problem that you are unsure about, these grammar guides will most likely have the answer.

Revise Aloud❖ Also, a good piece of advice

while revising is to get into the habit of reading your work aloud.

❖ If you notice that you’re stumbling over a sentence, there is probably a structural or grammatical error that needs to be fixed; it’s also a lot easier to find spelling mistakes when you read your work out loud.

Thank you for viewing! –Edita Kaye

So, before you click “publish,” remember to revise with the help of these grammar guides, because these days you don’t want to fall into the trap of

making mistakes that can be easily avoided.