|
|
|
 Here we will practice applying one of the most basic and yet also most troublesome rules of grammar: in the present tense, a verb must agree in number with its subject. Put simply, this means that we have to remember to add an -s to the verb if its subject is singular and not to add an -s if the subject is plural. It's really not a hard principle to follow as long as we can identify the subject and verb in a sentence. Let's have a look at how this basic rule works by clicking here.
0 Comments
 If you’re any kind of writer, you probably noticed that I failed to capitalize the key words in the title of this post. I actually did this on purpose. The titles of books, songs, newspapers, and works of art should all be capitalized. In fact, titles, no matter what the content, should always have their keywords capitalized. In additional to capitalizing titles of content, what other ways should you capitalize?
Click Here to Check Your Knowledge on Capitalization  Now we are in the heart of proofreading. You’ve found missing words. You’ve found double words, now its time to improve your sentences by eliminating overused words.
You probably have a number of words that you personally overuse, so you should probably add this to your personal style guide. Until you develop your own list, here is a list of words to use cautiously. Click Here to see the list of these words  One of the things that I often have had difficulty with when editing a novel has been that I have forgotten to include small but critical words or write words twice. This often happened when I was in a hurry to write what was in my head and then later when I was editing that same passage, I missed that I had forgotten to write the word. Instead, I read the passage as though the word was actually there. Click Here to Learn How to Fix Your Writing Blind Spots
 Last week we discussed how to write great paragraphs, now let’s fix the problem of run-on sentences. What exactly is a run-on sentence?
A run-on sentence, by definition, is a sentence in which two or more independent clauses are joined together without an appropriate punctuation or connecting word. In other words, trying to join two complete sentences with just a comma. A definite amateur mistake. The good news is, fixing run-on sentences is among the easiest proofreading skills to master. Master run-on sentences by CLICKING HERE  During the past two weeks we discussed overall aspects of proofreading, this week we’re getting down to the nitty-gritty. We’re editing paragraphs. We all know that a paragraph is not just a random group of sentences but is a group of sentences organized around a central topic. Paragraph writing focuses on a single idea. A well-written paragraph takes its readers on a clear path.
To Learn how you can create a better paragraph, CLICK HERE  As you proofread your manuscript, there are several things you can do to make your process easier. Here are a few commonly recommended tips:
1. Print a copy of the novel and mark it up. Having a hard copy in front of you allows you to work with your draft on something other than your laptop or desktop screen. You’ll want your printout to be double-spaced so you have plenty of room to make edits. 2. Be consistent in your marks. A question mark might indeed convey the appropriate emotion when you find passages that don’t make sense, or where the pacing drags, or where there’s a glaring plot hole or a character who seems to act out of character. But a question mark doesn’t really help you recognize one problem from the next when looking back over your notes For more proofreading tips, CLICK HERE  Here it is, August, and together we have gone a long way down the editing process. If you have come this far with me, you have worked through the major aspects of content editing. You have looked at the macro-editing stage. You have looked at the story as a complete project. We have looked at the story scene by scene. Today, we turn a corner into the micro-proofreading stage. In this stage, we break things down into individual paragraphs and sentences and word choices. Click here to learn the most common items to look for in proofreading
 A number of years ago I was reading about gardening and I learned about using kelp in the garden. The article that I read said that kelp offered all the nutrients available in seawater and all of the nutrients needed for life and in a form that is readily available.
I started sprinkling kelp around the garden. One thing I discovered right away was that when I sprinkled the kelp at the bottom of my tomato planting holes, I had no problems with blossom end rot that year. In the years that I didn’t use the kelp, my tomatoes did suffer from the ailment. Click here to read more of the article. For the the print or digital book click here  Now, while you’re still viewing your novel for content, read your novel through one more time and look at it through the eyes of your ideal reader.
Your Ideal Reader Everything you do regarding your content writing from now on should be related to how your ideal reader will view what you have written. I know that I have skimmed over the concept of writing for your ideal reader to this point, but if you haven’t done it already, you’ll need to get a better idea of who your ideal reader is. To Learn more about your ideal reader, CLICK HERE |
AuthorCygnet Brown is the Author of The Locket Saga. The current five volumes Include: Archives
August 2019
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed
