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Essay on Good Writing - Grammar and punctuation

The first part of my essay on good writing dealt with spelling. This second part will deal with grammar. There's a lot to it, so we'd better get started.

Common mistakes made when writing can get tedious when viewed over and over again by people who should know better. I know it's taught in schools; I was a student once, though it may seem hard to believe. *grins* These can include things like their, they're, there mix-ups, it's, its misunderstandings and confusion over where to put punctuation like commas, colons and semi-colons.

Their, they're, there/It's, its

Their is a possessive plural, meaning it's used to denote that something belongs to more than one person. An example is this: Their bed was covered in roses by the hotel staff. They're is a contraction, which means that it's a combination of two words - they and are. For example: They're going with us to the zoo. There is an adverb, which can be commonly used to denote distance. Something is over there or there is something (or someone) somewhere. Such as: He was waiting over there for you. These words are not interchangeable, therefore you should learn their usage and stick to it.

It's is also a contraction, made up of it and is. For example, you may say something like: It's sunny out today so I need to wear a hat. Its is a possessive pronoun, used to indicate ownership. Something like: Its head was too big for its body. I myself had a problem telling the two apart, but now that I know, I'm passing this knowledge on.

More common mistakes include 'alot' for 'a lot' (you wouldn't say alittle, would you?), or who vs whom (see the grammar glossary under 'relative pronouns' for more information).

Commas, semi-colons, and colons

Commas are mainly used to separate two parts of a sentence where separately, they would become fragmented. It can also be used to separate series of things, as well as being used with conjunctions like 'and', 'but', 'or', and 'so' in a sentence to mark distinctive parts of a sentence. There are many ways to use commas, as well as ways to get around having to use commas in a sentence, usually by starting a new one when the sentence becomes unwieldy or run-on. Commas are also commonly used when there are more than three in a series, in situations such as 'She liked red, blue, and pink blouses.' whereas when there are two in a series 'They only used purple and orange flowers in their signature arrangements.' there is no need for a comma.

Semi-colons link two subordinate clauses (It was getting cold outside; he went and got his jacket.) where either of the two parts of the sentence could stand alone as separate sentences but are closely related, as in a series of events. It's generally accepted that semi-colons act as a 'higher-level comma' in a sentence, connecting things in a distinctive way that commas alone cannot do. Overuse of either of these grammatical tools is generally frowned upon as they break up the flow of a piece of writing, making it hard to read.

Colons introduce clauses which explain or amplify what has gone before, such as 'This was where it went wrong: the signals.' It also introduces lists, or series of things like: 'She had three things to do today: take the kids to school, do the laundry and pay the bills.'. There are many other uses, but these are the most common ones, and the most generally misused.

There are so many other common grammatical mistakes, but these are the ones I've noticed the most in websites that we've reviewed over the past 6 months since we started, and thus why I've decided to include these in my article. Learning to use grammar properly in your work goes a long way to establishing credibility with your audience, letting them know that you know what you're doing, and are willing to work hard to learn how to present your information. Proper grammar and spelling doesn't necessarily make you boring or stuffy, but it does make your site(s) easier to read and easier on the eyes.

**Information for this article was taken from the following portions of the Merriam-Webster website:
Punctuation guide

Grammar Glossary

See the style guides for more grammar and punctuation information.