ChargewithSword
Zelda Dungeon's Critic
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2009
- Location
- I don't want to say.
This is Chargewithsword, here to give aspiring writers any advice on grammar they may need for their fiction. I'll be updating this consistently, so check back often.
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Dashes and Parenthesis as interrupts: Both of these are meant to show interruption in the flow of your narrative, and they are both meant for different forms of interruption.
Parenthesis can be used to interrupt in a manner that fits with the narrative while still proving as an interruption.
For example.
He was stout and strong hearted ,(and a little short), yet a strange friend.
Dashes do just about the same thing, but their interruptions are more abrupt and separate while still pertaining to the sentence.
He was stout and strong hearted —don't talk about his shortness though— yet a strange friend.
I'll get more into dashes at a later time.
Using "And" and "But" to start sentences: Throw out those lessons your English teachers told you for these things whenever writing a narrative, because you can start sentences with "but" and "and".
However, don't get over your head, there are still rules for this word usage. Even though you can use these words to start sentences, it is informal to do so. Too much informal writing can turn off a reader and make them think you amateurish.
Exercise restraint with this knowledge, and only use "And" & "But" when you feel like nothing else could sound better.
- (Also, when writing essays, it is also informal to do so, and will most likely annoy your teacher if you try to do this.)
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Working with Spell-check: It's obvious that spell-check is a very useful tool for finding misspelled words easily, but it is also very hindering, since you're not the one spelling the word correctly. You're not taking anything out of it. So I have devised a simple procedure to make sure that you take something out of the procedure.
Step 1. Spell the word incorrectly.
Step 2. Use the right click to use spell check.
Step 3. When you find the correct spelling of your word, look at it and then your spelling.
Step 4. See where you made your misstep and make a mental note, but don't use spell check to correct the word, do that yourself.
Step 4.5 You can also pronounce the part which you made your mistake so as to have an easier time remembering.
Step 5. If you use that word often enough, your subconscious should click in whenever you misspell it, and thanks to spell-check you'll know when you did it wrong.
When Spell-Check or Grammar-Check doesn't work: It's no secret; Grammar & Spell-check doesn't grab everything. For some reason it barely understands comma usage, and sometimes you may spell a word correctly but it's the wrong word.
So this is why you must always print your story before you release it, to find the many snags your computer won't spot. There's almost no point at looking on the computer. On the computer we're so used to reading fast messages that we often skim many grammatically incorrect sentences. So print it out and check doubly sure for any mistakes.
If you're pressed for paper, then you'll have to sit at your computer and make many checks with your eyes, though it is more difficult than paper reading.
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The em and en dashes: First, what are these dashes? They are simply put: lines longer than a hyphen (-)
I shall show you the difference now.
En Dash = (–)
Em Dash = (—)
Now, what are their usages?
An En Dash is used to indicate space between numbers, more specifically, dates, time periods, etc.
For Example: Pages 243–Page345
(There should be no spaces.)
The Em Dash is meant to interrupt flow as a thought that strings two independent clauses together.
I'd better have passed my test—it's ninety percent of my class grade—or I'll have to go to summer school.
It can also be used as a way to help put emphasis in a sentence (most likely dialogue) by adding a space.
Of course, I'll sign a prenuptial agreement—as long as it's in my favor.
Now this here's important. The en and em dashes are not present on your keyboard; you have to get them through specific means.
Step 1. Turn on the Num Lock (Yes, it has a use.)
Step 2. For the En Dash, hold down the Alt button and type in this code on the number key to the right: 0150 <--- Do that and you should get this: –
Step 3. For Em Dash do the same thing, but the code must now be; 0151 <--- That gets this: —
In Microsoft Word, most of the time when you just put down a hyphen, word should edit the hyphen to become an En Dash, so you can breath easy about those. It will also edit in Em dashes if you put two hyphens.
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The Tenses:In Writing, there are three tenses, past, present, and future.
We writers use past tense to describe many of the situations going on in the stories because we are describing events that happened already, much like a storyteller does.
Present is normally used for when the story calls for you to talk in it. In a past tense narrative, it's best to write present only when a character is speaking, or when the narrator wants to describe something on a personal level.
Future is the least used, being only for character dialogue and very specific narratives that would require you to basically be interpreting a story, much like a fortune teller your future.
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Characters Speaking -
When a character speaks, attention is normally drawn to them and their actions in the paragraph. However, writers must make sure that this is not disjointed from the rest of the passage, and does not come off as awkward to the reader.
The most common way of solving this problem is to write a simple, "He said", "she said." This way of writing though is repetitive and often makes the reader feel like as if they were being talked down to. We know that the character is saying something. The better question the reader will ask is, "How are they saying it?"
The power of language is that we writers are able to use it to compare actions to others.
A character doesn't need to simply say something! What if their speaking resembled the savage roar of an animal, or what if it they were shrieking?
There are many fanciful ways to spruce up speaking so that it doesn't seem like some monotonous task. Here are a few examples.
"I want my mirror," she commanded with great gusto!
She looked to him and bellowed, " I want my mirror!"
"I want my mirror," she said with a sudden growl in the back of her throat.
There are many ways to convey speaking.
There's also a method to have a character speak so that you don't need to have something explaining that they are. All you need to really introduce that a character is speaking is an action that comes before or after the phrase.
"I want my mirror!" She stomped around the room like a boisterous bull. The mirror was still lingering in her mind like a leech to the skin.
She stomped around the room like a boisterous bull. The mirror was still lingering in her mind like a leech to the skin. "I want my mirror!"
There are many ways to play with this little trick. Look for them.
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