Writer's Toolbox: The Semicolon

A popular post from April 2008

by Annette Lyon


To some people, they're an outdated form of punctuation. To others, they're one more valuable tool in guiding a reader through their work so they hear the correct tempo and beat of the words.

The semicolon is a unique animal. It has a pause length longer than comma but shorter than a period. It's similar in length to the em dash, but it has a different feel to it.

The trick is knowing how to use it properly.

First off, what a semicolon isn't:

A semicolon is NOT a replacement for a regular colon. While it does connect two similar thoughts, it does so in a different way. Quite often (but not always), what comes after a plain old colon cannot stand by itself and still make sense. On the other hand, what comes after a semi colon is fully capable of standing alone as a complete sentence.

In other words, don't do this:

Laura peeked through the curtains and gasped at what she saw; at least a dozen cats walking around, cat food tins and cat poop everywhere, and in the middle of it all, Mrs. Porter sleeping on a lop-sided couch with a cat on her chest.

Replace that semicoon with a colon, and you're good to go.

Why? Reread it. While the portion after where the colon belongs is longer than the part before, it's still not a complete sentence. Yes, we need a pause there, but what comes next is just a series of visual details without the handy-dandy subject and verb that make a real sentence.

Another common mistake is using semicolons in place of em dashes. I am a fan of em dashes and use them all the time. Few rules apply to how you use them (quite possibly why they're so popular; they're hard to use wrong). But you can't take a spot where an em dash (and its lovely pause) would go and necessarily replace it with a semicolon.

Remember the rule of thumb: Both sides of a semicolon must be able to stand on their own.

Another wrong example:

The door burst open, revealing Steve's boss holding a clipboard and looking distraught; lay-off time.

Use an em dash there or add more to make it a full sentence: "lay-off time had arrived," or, "it was lay-off time."

One area of semicolon use is often debated: Can you use it in dialogue?

Many people say to forget about it, that semicolons are outdated nowadays and belong only in non-fiction. Instead, they argue, you should use em dashes in dialogue.

It's all well and good if that's your position. But I personally use semicolons in my fiction all the time, and I've been known to do it in dialogue as well. There are just moments where the pause length, the "breath" for the reader, and the feel I'm looking for can be achieved only with a semicolon.

There are other uses for the semicolon (splitting up items in a series that already have commas, for example), which we may cover another time, but for now, keep in mind the basic rule: Both sides of a semicolon have to made sense by themselves.

Think of the semicolon almost like a "yield" sign between two sentences that makes you look both ways before proceeding. You'll find connections and subtleties in the writing that couldn't be there any other way.

Resolutions Writing Style

A popular post from January 2008

by Annette Lyon

As you begin a new year of writing, you might want to make making some writing-related resolutions.

First, take stock of what worked for you in 2007 and what didn't. Do daily word count goals fit your lifestyle? What about weekly ones? Do you work better by tracking chapters or pages rather than words? What system works best for you?

Second, set goals for yourself--goals that, while reachable do require you to stretch a little.

Last, decide on rewards for each goal you meet. It's amazing how a little incentive can help yourself plant your behind in the chair and your hands on the keyboard. Your inner writer is a child. Bribe it! (I find chocolate works well. And pedicures.)

Consider adding some of the following when making your list:

• Read. A lot. It helps me to keep a running log of all the books I've read in the year. I've done this every year for over a decade, and I try to at least match if not beat the number of titles from one year to the next. A good writer is a good reader. Be sure to include writing books in your list. And don't forget to read works in the genre you write in. Add one or two books that stretch you.
• Take regular outings to places that bring something new to your senses: try new foods, visit a museum, take long a walk through a strange neighborhood, go on vacation to a place you've never been before. Stimulation to the senses does marvels for creativity.
• Proof every query, cover letter, and manuscript you send out. Many times.
• To help you send out the cleanest material possible, learn your punctuation and grammar rules. (A funny and great place to start: Eats, Shoots, and Leaves, by Lynne Truss.)
• Get up the guts to show your work to someone other than family and friends . . . someone who will give you the honest truth. Consider hiring a professional. It's worth the cost.
• Make at least one big goal for yourself: I'll finally finish this book/I'll query 20 agents/I'll attend 2 writing conferences. And attach deadlines to each goal.

The biggest resolution? Don't give up in 2008. This may be your year.

Grammar = No Tears

A popular post from May 2009

Have you ever shed tears over grammar? Or maybe you've been in denial that you need help . . . You'll find relief with Annette Lyon's newest book: There, Their, They're: A No-Tears Grammar Guide From the Word Nerd.

Only Annette could pull this off! Congrats!

And if you're interested in this easy-to-follow grammar guide, you can find it here.

Subjunctive Mood: Was or Were?

A popular post from June 2009

by Annette Lyon

Today's topic sounds scary: subjunctive mood.

Wahahahaaa . . .

Really, there's no need to freak out. That's just a fancy term for something pretty simple.

Which word is correct in these sentences?

If only she was/were home, she could tell her mother the truth.

He wondered if she was/were cold and whether to offer his jacket.

One of those is subjunctive (and takes WERE), and the other isn't (takes WAS).

In reality, subjunctive isn't that big a deal. While I'm not an expert on all things subjunctive, I do know a few basic rules that can help clarify things.

Subjunctive mood simply refers to is a situation contrary to fact.

A line from a Carpenters Christmas song helps me remember the rule. It goes:

"I wish I were with you."

See? The singer isn’t with the loved one but wants to be there. What she is wishing for is contrary to fact.

So instead of: I wish I was with you.

It’s: I wish I were with you.

It's subjunctive. (So is our first example above: the girl isn't home, but if she WERE, she could tell her mother the truth.)

A common rule of thumb people use is watching out for the keyword if, which often signals subjunctive.

If I were taller, I might be able to make the basketball team.

That’s a correct usage of subjunctive mood, because again, the speaker is speaking contrary to fact. They aren’t tall. But if they were, then . . .

Big caveat:

Be wary about relying on if too much. There are plenty of cases where IF does NOT refer to something that’s contrary to fact, so the sentence isn’t subjunctive mood at all, and was is correct.

Such is the case with our second sentence above:

He wondered if she was/were cold and whether to offer his jacket.

In this sentence, nothing is being stated contrary to fact. He's wondering what the reality is—whether she's cold or not—he doesn't know.

Yes, the sentence has if in it, but that doesn’t automatically make it subjunctive. In this instance, WAS is correct.

Subjunctive rule of thumb: When the statement is contrary to fact, use were.

This post is adapted from a section of There, Their, They're: A No-Tears Guide to Grammar, available HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Misplaced, Dangling Fun

A popular post from October 2008

by Annette Lyon

Time for another post with self-editing fun. No, really. This time it is fun. Today's topic is one that's easy to giggle over, at least when you find the mistake in someone else's work (or before yours gets in front of an editor).

Let's laugh with some misplaced modifiers and dangling participles!

So what is a misplaced modifier? It's a noun (or pronoun) or phrase—basically any descriptor—that's in the wrong place for what it's supposed to be describing. Often that means it's too far away from it, or at least that something else is in the way.

Don't let the terminology scare you. Dangling participles are just a specific type of misplaced modifier. I won't go into the differences between the two. Instead, I'll lump them together.

Try this sentence on for size:

Joe went on the ride with my sister called The Raging Flame of Death.

Hmm. That's not a sister I'd like to hang out with. Oh, wait! The ride has that name. In that case:

He went on the The Raging Flame of Death ride [or the ride called The Raging Flame of Death] with my sister.

Other funny examples:
Two computers were reported stolen by the high school principal.
(That's one unethical principal . . .)
The anchor reported a coming lightning storm on the television.
(Get AWAY from that television!)
Please look through the contents of the package with your wife.
(Must be one huge package if she fits in it.)
James hadn’t meant to let it slip that he wasn’t married, at least to his boss.
(Wait. His boss is Mrs. James?)
Quiet and patient, her dress was simple, yet stylish.
(Let's hope her dress wasn't loud and impatient.)
At the age of five, her mother remarried.
(Um . . . doubt that's legal in any state. And she certainly wasn't a mother then.)
These little nasties are painfully easy to drop into your work without you even knowing it. Basically they happen when you've used an action and then the subject that belongs to the action is put into the wrong place.
The result is most definitely a meaning you didn't intend.
One of the most common forms is relatively easy to spot: look for sentences that open with an "ing" phrase. (These are the most common dangling participles, if you care about that sort of thing.)
Turning the corner on a bike, a huge dog startled him.
(Apparently that's a dog with serious coordination skills.)
Driving through town, the grocery store appeared on the right.
(Freaky store. And just how big is that car?!)
And here's one of my favorite dangling participles (which I found in a New York Times bestseller that shall remain nameless, even though it was just too funny):
Being my father, I thought he'd be more upset.
(Now THAT is one amazing genetic trick . . .)
You get the idea.
Misplaced modifiers and dangling participles can sound scary and intimidating, but in reality, they're easy to fix. Just make sure the action in your sentence is really attached to the person or thing doing it.
This is one of the many things you don't need to worry too much about in the drafting stage. It IS, however, one of those things you should try to catch in the revision stage. One great way is to read your draft aloud. The stresses and pauses will make you recognize when something doesn't quite sound right. Pick some trusted readers to ferret out these kinds of bloopers as well.
Your future lack of embarrassment is most definitely worth the effort.

In Writing, Nothing Is Black and White

A popular post from December 2011

by Annette Lyon

Recently at a meeting with my critique group, we got to talking about giving advice to other writers. All of the members of my group have spoken at writing conferences, at workshops, in classrooms. And we've all had aspiring writers come to us with specific questions.

We all try to help as best we can. But there's a little secret behind all our advice:

In writing, there are no black and white answers.

• The craft and industry has some general rules, yes. But you can find exceptions to just about every rule.
• You can find plenty of successful writers who violate rules all over the place.
• What works for me may not work for you.
• And while it pains me to say this: this includes grammar and punctuation, to a point.

Whether it's outlining, point of view, character development, world building, finding time to write, getting over writer's block, or a hundred other things, no one has the ultimate answer.

Really.

That said, figuring out what works most of the time and for most people is useful.

Learning the acceptable rules of grammar and punctuation will be in your favor . . . so that when you need to violate them, you can do so effectively and purposefully.

Following industry expectations usually plays in your favor when seeking publication, so you can come across as a professional.

You may be the exception. Or not.

So . . . How do you know if you are?

Um, yeah. Another tricky question. You can't really know, at least, at first. Figuring it out takes time and practice. And a lot of both.

My advice: learn the rules. Learn to use them well. Figure out why they're rules in the first place. That could mean years of practice.

You can't know what works for you until you do. So try outlining. If that just isn't you, try pantsing it. Chances are you're somewhere between the two extremes. Play around until you find the place on the continuum that fits you best.

You'll have far more success finding your own way than trying to duplicate someone else's journey to publication.

No writer follows the same path as any other. You'll find obstacles unique to you, things you need to figure out on your own. Things that, frustrating as that is, may not have a clear black and white answer.

None of this is to say to ignore the instruction of writing teachers, to stop going to conferences, to stop reading blogs like this one, or to abandon writing books, podcasts, and the rest.

Rather, it means to expose yourself to as many different ways of viewing the writing process and the rules behind it so that you can find your personal niche.

If something a writing teacher passes along doesn't resonate with you, that's okay. Maybe another writer's way of viewing the same issue will work better for you.

Along the way, you'll stumble upon situations where you'll want to do something out of the lines. If you've put in the work, you'll know if you can do that. You'll be able to do it better than if you tried going into it blind. And coming out the other end, you'll know why it worked.

So: Learn as much as you can. Read lots. Practice writing even more than that. Figure out which rules work best for you.

You'll eventually discover what is your black, your white

Pronouns Hate Apostrophes

A popular post from January 2010

by Annette Lyon

I know, I know. This one is so easy to confuse, which is why I'm writing about it. I've gotten this question a few times, so I thought I'd address it.

Daniel's coat and Megan's shoes need apostrophes to show ownership. As a result, we're used to adding the little curly mark to tell people that the car's tire is flat or the cat's litter needs to be changed.

So it's SO easy to let the little squiggly bugger sneak in where it's not welcomed and where it doesn't belong: in a possessive pronoun.

In English, we have two pronouns in particular that tend to get an apostrophe shoved into them incorrectly on a a regular basis. It's so common that many people don't even realize it's incorrect. After all, Mrs. Smith's class gets an apostrophe. So does Mom's car.

When I'm taking the dog to the vet, why don't I say mutt is getting it's shots?

Or when someone drops a dirty sock on the floor, why isn't it correct to ask who's it is?

Because possessive pronouns don't take an apostrophe. They are special: they're already possessive. Adding an apostrophe makes it redundant.

Actually, that's not entirely true. The apostrophe turns the word into a contraction, giving the sentence a meaning you didn't intend.

Taking the sentences above:

The mutt is getting it's shots.

When a word has an apostrophe, it's usually a contraction of two other words, like do and not creating don't, or can and not making can't.

In the same way, IT'S comes from IT and IS.

So what you are actually saying is: The mutt is getting it is shots.

Come again?

The same thing applies to who's and whose.

Think of the apostrophe as a big, red flashing light that warns you:

This is a word that originally came from two words. It's NOT a pronoun.

Let's take the other commonly mistaken pronoun:

WHO'S is a contraction of WHO and IS.

Look at the sentence above, and you'll realize it doesn't make sense when you pull the contraction apart:

Who is sock is this?

Okay . . .

For me, an easy way to remember the rule is to focus on that apostrophe and imagine it elsewhere. Think of possible replacements. Could they fit? In other words, what other other possessive pronouns fit?

His

Her

Our

My

Their

Note how none of them have an apostrophe. But hey, let's try adding one:

Hi's

He'r

Ou'r

M'y

Thei'r

Um, no. That doesn't work. So ITS and WHOSE don't get the apostrophe either.

Not even when you're adding an S, such as, "Is this sweater yours?"

Still NO apostrophe. Same with OURS, THEIRS, HERS, etc.

Pronouns hate apostrophes. Say it to out loud. Say it again. And again, until it's ingrained in your mind.

Wash and repeat.

"IF" Is NOT the Key

A popular post from February 2010. 

by Annette Lyon

We all know the line Tevye sings in Fiddler on the Roof:

"If I were a rich man . . ."

That sentence is in what's called subjunctive mood.

It's a complicated topic, but today we're making it pretty simple and addressing the biggest mistake I see with it (even with professional copy editors who are supposed to know what they're doing . . .).

In his song, Tevye describes what he'd do if he had a lot of money. He's not rich. He's rather poor, frankly, but IF HE WERE rich, this is what he'd do.

What he's describing is CONTRARY TO FACT.

That right there is the key. He's NOT rich. Therefore, If I WERE a rich man rather than If I WAS a rich man.

The latter sentence is valid too; it just needs a different context that doesn't contradict reality.

The best way is to put reality in question. What if we don't KNOW whether Tevye is rich or poor? Someone could then remember good 'ol Tevye from the neighborhood and say:

"I wonder if he was rich."

WAS works here, because we're simply contemplating the reality. We aren't contradicting it.

The problem is that most people use a handy-dandy trick as their personal red flag for when things are subjunctive: they look for IF.

And that does work a lot, just like our opening sentence, and many others:

• If I were a rich man . . .
• If I were skinnier . . .
• If I were in England right now . . .
• If I weren't so impatient . . .

In each case, the speaker is contracting fact. They aren't rich, skinny, in England, or patient.

But here's where things get dicey and most people mess up with subjunctive: they see IF and, whether or not the sentence contradicts reality, they immediately assume, "YAY! SUBJUNCTIVE! I'll use WERE!"

WRONG:

• He wondered if she were cold.
• If she were going to get there on time, she'd better hurry.
• She couldn't help but think about if he were attracted to her.
• If it were a homemade pie, which she'd find out in moments, she'd surely she'd eat the whole thing.

In each of the cases above, we either don't know the reality (so it cannot be subjunctive) or we do know the reality. But the sentence happens to have IF in it, so heck, let's throw in WERE anyway.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

CORRECT:

• He wondered if she WAS cold.
• If she WAS going to get there on time, she'd better hurry.
• She couldn't help but think about if he WAS attracted to her.
• If it WAS homemade pie, which she'd find out in moments, she'd surely eat the whole thing.

Teachers used IF as a tool to help students spot subjunctive and help them know when to use WERE. But it's not a foolproof method.

IF isn't the only time you'll get subjunctive mood, and it's not a guarantee that the sentence using IF is subjunctive at all.

Simply ask: Is this sentence contracting facts we know?

YES: Use WERE.

NO: Use WAS.

Easy, no?

Conjunction, Junction: Real Functions

A popular post from Nov. 2011

by Annette Lyon

First, an important item of business:

For those doing NaNoWriMo (and for anyone else needing a writing boost), Precision Editing Group is again doing a write-a-thon to kick off the month.

It'll be held THIS Friday, November 4th. Win books, or write the most words and be the grand prize winner, receiving either a FREE $50 edit or a $50 Amazon gift card.

Details HERE.

And now for today's post!

Sometimes it's the small things that make all the difference, and it's one of those things we'll discuss today.

A common issue I see in my editing work is awkward use of conjunctions. You know, those little words that, to go all School House Rock on you, hook up "words, and phrases and clauses."

Let's refresh our memories:

Okay, so to review a list of common conjunctions. You know them: AND, OR, FOR, NOR, YET, BUT, SO.

For our purposes, we'll focus on three: AND, BUT, SO

We'll also mention a couple of other connector words that aren't technically conjunctions but are often used in similar awkward ways:

WHICH and THAT

AND

This conjunction adds two things together. Any time you use it, the text should be saying this PLUS that.

For example: Jane at an apple and a banana.

Here, Jane ate, and she ate two things. AND works.

This also works: At school, Jane took a test and worked in the science lab.

Again, we have a single action: Jane went to school. While there, she did two things. This AND that.

The problem I see often is when writers combine two things that don't go together in a natural addition:

Jane wanted to try and talk to her teacher.

I've mentioned this one before. TRY should jump out at you and demand a TO after it. AND implies two things, but here, Jane's doing ONE thing. She is attempting to speak to her teacher. That's it. But the phrasing says she's doing two things: TRYING and TALKING. That's not what we mean. It reads clunky.

While the reader may understand, there's always the chance of confusion, or at least getting yanked out of the story.

Another example:

Jane went to the police station to report the crime and ate lunch.

Here, it sounds like Jane ate lunch at the police station. Unless she's eating in the detectives' break room, I suggest adding THEN or adding a new sentence altogether.

BUT

This word implies a reversal. We start out with A and then B gets thrown at us instead.

This works: Jane hoped she did well in her audition, BUT she didn't get the part.

We get the set-up in the first half (she hoped she did well) and then the reversal (she didn't get the part).

I often see writers using BUT almost like AND, where there really isn't a reversal.

Another, even more common, mistake is where a writer uses AND (which, remember, implies an ADDITIONAL item) where we really have reversal and BUT should be used:

Jane hoped she did well in her audition, and she didn't get the part.

Can you see how AND in this case doesn't flow like the example with BUT? We aren't adding something to Jane's actions or desires; we're describing an action with an expectation, and then a reversal. We need BUT, not AND.

SO

This one implies causality. THIS causes THAT. In many cases, AND could be used, but very often, SO is more effective and conveys the meaning so much better.

Consider the difference between the examples below.

This could work, but it's not as strong as it could be:

Jane didn't get the part, AND that night she ate a bunch of ice cream.

But this one connects the two thoughts clearly with cause and effect:

Jane didn't get the part, SO that night she ate a bunch of ice cream.

WHICH and THAT

These words elaborate on a thought or clarify a subject:

Jane tried out for the play, WHICH would run during December.

Here, WHICH gets attached to thoughts with an explanation that isn't necessary to understand the sentence. In the example above, it's nice to know when the play would run, but it's not critical to understanding the point.

Jane auditioned for the part THAT she felt she had the best shot at.

In this sentence, THAT restricts the meaning to something specific, here, to a specific role: the one Jane tried out for. Maybe the play is Into the Woods, and she tried out for Cinderella, not the Baker's Wife or Little Red. In this case, THAT makes the sentence specific, and it's needed.

It's easy to throw in lots of useless THATs. But there are also cases when the word is needed, and restrictive clauses are one of them.

For the grammar nerds: remember that these two words aren't conjunctions, so you use them in situations where one clause can't stand on its own as a sentence rather than between two independent clauses.

I've said it many times, but it's a truism that remains: Getting the small things right will set your work apart from the rest of the pack. Something as simple as clunky conjunction use can signal to an agent or editor that you don't have a solid grasp on writing mechanics, relegating your submission to the circular file.

The great news is that this particular issue is easy to fix. Look at your conjunctions to see if they mean what you intend. Change them out as needed. You'll be glad you did.

Tip: Watch the School House Rock clip again. Pay close attention to how the conjunctions are used, especially AND, BUT, and SO.

Language Links and Helps

by Annette Lyon

A comment by Angela Michelle on one of my recent posts inspired me to post links to some great blogs that help with punctuation, grammar, and other English-language questions.

First off is the one I looked up after she pointed me toward it: Apostrophe Catastrophes (Great minds think alike; that was my post title!) After seeing enough funny wrong examples, you'll get more confident in using apostrophes correctly in your work.

Same goes with this humorous blog. It pokes good fun at misused quotation marks. I got plenty of laughs seeing signs where something very different than what is meant is implied by rogue quotation marks. The blog is appropriately called The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks.

Now for a great resource: If you're unsure about a grammar, punctuation, or usage issue, consult Grammar Girl. She covers just about everything. (Her latest topic: misuse of the phrase, "begs the question." Bet you didn't even know that was an issue!) Subscribe to her newsletter, listen to her podcasts, and take her online challenge (a brief quiz). She's even got a new book out.

Not long ago, I stumbled upon another site that was not only educational, but it was great fun for word nerds like yours truly: Common Errors in English. I could spend all day surfing that site. Bookmark it; you'll want to go back to look things up when you're unsure. The man behind the site, Paul Brians, now has a book out by the same name.

If you're a total word nerd (celebrate with me!), you'll want to look into buying the Oxford English Dictionary (known as the OED) either on CD or by subscribing to it online. It's the most comprehensive dictionary in the English language and a boon to any writer's arsenal.

(Read about how it came to be in this book. The dictionary, a couple dozen volumes in length, is a truly remarkable feat.)

I rely on the OED to verify when words came into use (especially helpful with historical writing) by checking the printed quotes in a citation, which include the earliest known published usage of each word. You can also discover the history behind words, which has been loads of fun. The CD version gives you a word of the day whenever you start it up. (Mine today: familiarism.)

And remember, you can always e-mail a question to the editors here, and we'll post an answer. Find the address at the top right.

Capping Revisited

by Annette Lyon

Last week's post about capitalizing (and capping incorrectly) sparked a few reader questions, so today I'll address those.


North/north
Generally speaking, compass directions are not capitalized. If I give someone directions to my house, I tell them to turn north at this street and west on that one, all lowercase.

But there are (rare) times when you do capitalize those words, and that's when they're being used as a name for specific, a large area that is known by that name.

For example, in the mid-1800s, there was a huge chunk of the country in North America (capping "north" here because it's part of the name of a continent) known as "the West."

If someone was heading out to seek their fortune, they were heading out West or to the West. It's a bit tricky in these cases, because grammatically, you could still use the term as you would a compass direction at the same time you're using it as a name.

But even in 1843, if someone gave directions on how to reach their cabin in the woods, they'd say, "Go west, past the two big oaks," not, "Go West."

When in doubt on this one, it's pretty safe to use lowercase. The exceptions are pretty rare.


Human/human and Alien/alien
The usage in your work will determine which you use.

By and large, if you're just referring to regular people on this planet and the idea of Martians, you'd use lowercase: human and alien.

However, if you're writing a science fiction piece and there are two distinct factions working together or fighting one another, you'd probably distinguish the groups by capping them: the Humans and the Aliens.

You could also be more creative and call your two groups something else altogether, and you'd cap whatever name you came up with, just like you cap American and Soviet.


Little People/little people
I wasn't sure on this one, so I did a little digging. It appears that either could be considered correct.

In my mind, it depends on what you mean by the term. Are you describing someone who has dwarfism, or are you describing them as one of a group of people who have dwarfism?

I know that's a thin line of distinction, but in my case, I'd err on the side of capitalizing this one, which would acknowledge the group and individual identity more than just a condition.

This one is much like the cultural and linguistic group of Deaf people, who prefer to have the term capitalized because it acknowledges their cultural identity rather than defining them solely by their lack of hearing, as "deaf" (lowercase) does.


Irish Folk Tales/Irish folk tales
This one is pretty straight-forward. Folk tales are simple nouns, so you don't capitalize them. You wouldn't capitalize Irish Beer or Irish Books.

"Irish," however, is obviously capitalized as a nationality.

You'd put it like this: Irish folk tales

The only exception is if you were to find a book on the shelf with that title, in which case capitalization rules with titles would come into play: Irish Folk Tales.


Daisies/daisies, Lily/lily, Oak/oak
Types of plants aren't considered names, per se. Use lowercase. Sometimes species or varieties might have a capitalized term in them because the extra term might be a name, such as with Japanese maple.


As for Emily M's question:
How do you feel about deliberate flaunting of the capitalization rules in order to Make a Point or maybe Be Sarcastic? It's also got a kind of nineteenth-century, Emily Dickinson sort of appeal to it, when it's done deliberately and well. I'm not talking about not knowing the rules; I'm talking about knowing them and choosing to manipulate them for effect . . . does that bug you too?


My opinion:
If done with obvious intent, not haphazardly, and it's clear that the writer knows the rules, then no, it doesn't bother me at all. As you said, the result can be very effective when done well.

But I don't recommend trying this kind of thing unless you really do know the rules and you're doing it with a definite purpose in mind, because it's painfully obvious when a writer stumbles because they don't know the rules in the first place. That's not effective; it's sloppy.

English is a fun language to play with. Shakespeare is known for the way he toyed with it, broke rules, and made up new words. He was a master.

If you're a beginning writer, I suggest having an apprenticeship period where you write straight, learning the skills you need.

Then, when you've learned the ropes, go ahead and have fun braiding, fraying, and tying knots into the ropes to see what you can do. Just don't go overboard with breaking rules. That can get annoying.

To Cap or Not to Cap

by Annette Lyon

The longer I'm working at this editing thing, the more I see the same problems in manuscripts. They're so common, so pervasive, that I'll be blogging about them for the next little while. Then maybe I'll get to stop fixing them in future jobs (one can always hope . . .).

I'm not talking about plot, characterization, or conflict. I'm talking about the little things that clutter up the manuscript and make you look less professional. It's time to pick up the old feather duster and clean-up your manuscript.

Today's topic:

Don't capitalize unless you're supposed to.

In English, we capitalize proper nouns (names) such as John, Seattle, or Yellowstone Park.

We do not capitalize other nouns, no matter how important we think the noun is.

In other words, even though you may adore your parents, don't write, "my Mother and Father." They may be fantastic people, but they're still your mother and father—lowercase.

If you take a cruise, you're on a ship, not a Ship. I've seen writers capitalize random nouns like Leader, Car, and Room. (No, no, and no.)

If the word isn't at the beginning of a sentence or an actual name of something, use lowercase.

So when do you capitalize?
When a word is acting as a title in the sentence. That means the word you're capping must come immediately before the person's name:

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln was in office.

You capitalize "president" here because it's attached to Lincoln's name. It's acting as a title, as if it's part of his name.

When "president" appears elsewhere in the sentence, just describing Lincoln, (and no matter how important the role of president is to the nation or the world), you don't capitalize it:

Abraham Lincoln was the president of the United States during the Civil War.

Now back to the mother/father thing. If you refer to your parents using "mother" and "father" as names, then you do capitalize them:

"Hey, Mom, look! He's hitting me!"

Hint: Do you have "my" in front of "mom" or "dad"? If so, use lowercase:

"I told my mom that he was hitting me."

In this case, you're describing/modifying your parent. So "mom" or "dad" aren't acting as names or titles, but as regular nouns, like "my book" or "my computer."

(And remember, we don't capitalize regular nouns!)


Most writers I've worked with err on the side of capitalizing too much, so when in doubt, you're probably safe making it lowercase.

If you adored the truck you drove in college, sorry; it's still just a (lowercase) truck.

Unless it's a (capitalized) Dodge Ram. And unless you named it (yes, cap it!) Bruno.

Adjectives Demystified

by Annette Lyon

Following up on my post about overusing adjectives, we received a reader question:

Ages and weights? To hyphenate or not to hyphenate, that is the question.

For example: nineteen year old eighty pound girl

Hyphens? Comma? Help!


Here's a relatively simple rule of thumb for compound adjectives:
1) Groups that belong together need hyphens.
2) Connect groups with a comma.
3) Other adjectives need only a space.

Let's discuss #1:
If two or more words function as a single image, it's almost as if they're one word, so they need to be connected with a hyphen for clarity.

In the example above, it's pretty simple to distinguish which words are working together, so here are the groupings:

nineteen year old

eighty pound

girl

Obviously you wouldn't be lumping "old and "eighty" in the same grouping, because they aren't describing the same thing. "Old" is part of explaining "nineteen" and "eighty" clearly belongs with "pound."

Remember that not all groupings will have multiple words. You could split a phrase up this way:

tall

ugly

dude

"Tall" and "ugly" belong in separate groups because the two adjectives are functioning alone, with equal weight. You could describe the guy as the "tall dude" or as the "ugly dude," and both make sense.

Putting "tall" and "ugly" into the same group would mean he's some funky, tall version of ugly.

If your final groupings have more than one word, connect them with hyphens:

nineteen-year-old

eighty-pound

girl

Note that "girl" still stands alone. It's the thing we're doing all the describing about, so she doesn't have anything to connect to.

In our second example, we have no hyphens at all. It's still:

tall

ugly

dude

Now, if we were trying to say that tall is ugly (or there really is a kind of ugly unique to being tall), we could use a hyphen and make it:

tall-ugly

dude

That would be an awfully weird image . . .

One exception to this rule: you don't hyphenate after an -ly adjective, so this would be correct, without any hyphen even though the two adjectives are working together:

The slightly overgrown grass needed mowing.


On to #2:
Connect groups with a comma. Each "group" (whether it's one word or several) describes the object equally. Test the sentence by flipping the order of the adjectives around. Or throw in "and" between them. If you can do either, then a comma is correct.

nineteen-year-old, eighty-pound girl

(You could also say: eighty-pound, nineteen-year-old girl)

tall, ugly dude

(You could also say: ugly, tall dude OR tall and ugly dude)


#3: Other adjectives need only a space.
Say that the first adjective isn't part of the same group as the second one (so you wouldn't use a hyphen).

It's also not describing the object with equal weight, so you can't use a comma.

Instead the first adjective is separate, and the second one is already attached the noun. In this case, you don't connect them with anything besides a space:

The cute little baby.

See? We're calling the little baby "cute."

You can't flip the two adjectives (or throw in "and") or you come up with something completely different:

the little, cute baby

the cute and little baby

(Yes, the baby is little and cute, but that's not what we meant.)

Likewise, "cute" isn't acting as a way to explain "little," so you would NOT say:

cute-little baby

(There's no such thing as "cute-little.")


Now for a review. Ask:

Are all the adjectives describing the final object with equal weight? (Can you flip them around or add "and" between them?)
IF YES, USE A COMMA: The big, red car was parked out front.
(Or: The red, big car . . . OR The big and red car . . .)

Is the adjective part of a bigger group?
IF YES, USE A HYPHEN: The cherry-red car was parked out front.
(It doesn't work to say, "The cherry car," since "cherry" needs to be attached to "red" to make sense.)

Is the first adjective describing the next adjective and noun as a separate group?
IF YES, USE A SPACE: The cute little baby laughed.

Adjectives can be a powerful tool. Be aware that punctuating them incorrectly can mean things you never intended.

Take this example, where leaving out a comma changes the implication:

The lazy freckled writer didn't want to proof his manuscript.

(In other words, there are lots of other freckled writers, but we're discussing only the lazy one.)

Add the comma, and suddenly it's one writer we're discussing, a person both lazy and freckled:

The lazy, freckled writer didn't want to proof his manuscript.

Either one works, but you need to know which one you mean.

Punctuation is like magic; you can create nuances of meaning by adding these little marks into your work. Knowing how to use them well is almost an art, guiding your reader like a conductor leads a symphony: where to pause, where the emphasis should be, where to stop.

Learning how to wield the baton is well worth the effort.

Read here for more about using hyphens with compound adjectives and using commas with adjectives.

some blog tests are just cool

I confess to not be as grammatically inclined as many other authors out there. I have issues with lay and lie. I commonly leave out commas. But I know enough to be bugged by awful grammar (though, in spite of the test findings, I really do not critique people's blogs. Blogs are informal enough to not require a red pen).

I took a test and invite you all to do the same. I may not be great . . . but I got an A :) Mrs. Brown would be so proud!

You Scored an A

You got 10/10 questions correct. It's pretty obvious that you don't make basic grammatical errors. If anything, you're annoyed when people make simple mistakes on their blogs. As far as people with bad grammar go, you know they're only human. And it's humanity and its current condition that truly disturb you sometimes.

The It's Its There Their They're Quiz

When Homophones Attack

by Annette Lyon

One of the banes of the computer age is the usually wonderful invention of the spell checker on your word processor.

The problem occurs when you type something that is wrong but that is technically a word—just not the one you meant.

One of my personal demons is the word, "from." I tend to type it as "form." Spell check will never catch that, so I have to be vigilant on that as well as other words.

But one major problem is that sometimes we aren’t sure ourselves which word we mean, or our fingers pick the wrong one.

Two common sets of mistakes involve pronouns: it and they. A quick review of the issues involved can help clarify:

It’s vs. Its
This one is so prevalent it’s almost epidemic.

It’s is a contraction of two words, IT and IS, and they’re connected with the apostrophe, in exactly the same way that DO and NOT are connected with one in the word, don’t.

Somehow because we add an apostrophe to people’s names when making them possessive (such as Bob’s cat/Mary’s car), people assume we do the same with pronouns.

Not so. Think of other possessive pronouns.

You wouldn't ever consider writing hi’s or he’r or who’se or thei’r.

Likewise, we don’t write it’s tire when referring to the car’s flat. The pronoun should be ITS.

Some examples of correct usage:

It’s going to be a hot day. (IT IS going to be a hot day.)
It’s a golden retriever. (IT IS a golden retriever.)

The tree has shed its leaves.
The truck was rear-ended, so its bed needs to be replaced.


Their/There/They’re
The triple threat. But if you take just a second to think about which one you need, making the right choice is really very simple.

Their
This is simply the possessive form of they.

Examples:
Their house has a beautiful maple out front.
For the second year in a row, their business ranked #2 in sales.


There
Add the word "over" to this one, and you’ll never get meaning wrong. There (or over there) refers to a location.

Examples:
Put your coat down there.
I’ve been to Paris and hope to visit there again.


They’re
We’re back to the wonderful world of contractions. How do you know that? By the trusty apostrophe hanging around. This time the two words it’s shoving together are THEY and ARE.

Examples:
They’re such a great couple.
I love home-grown tomatoes; they’re much more flavorful than store-bought.


Always, always print out and reread your work to make sure your fingers didn’t type a mistake that your spell checker won’t catch. It only takes a few extra seconds, but the time is well spent if it makes you look professional.

The Benefit of Extra Eyes

by Annette Lyon

My critique group is composed of several talented, published writers, yet we continue to meet regularly and read our work aloud to one another and get criticism. I've been attending for upwards of 8 years.

Some might think that by now we must have exhausted our usefulness to one another, that we've learned all we can, and might as well move on.

Nothing is further from the truth.

I've found that extra sets of eyes looking at my work will find things that I am incapable of seeing because I'm the one that wrote it. It doesn't matter how great a writer I become; the fact that I wrote the piece by its very nature dictates that I cannot see all the holes. The moment I think I'm such a good a writer that I don't need outside feedback is the day my writing takes a nosedive.

In our group, every so often we come upon something that makes us all laugh out loud—usually something that didn't come out quite how we meant it to.

Below are a few gems from our last meeting. Remember: all of these sentences came from authors who have multiple published novels under their belts. It happens to the best of us.

1. James hadn't meant to let it slip that he wasn't married, at least to his boss.

(No, James isn't married to his boss . . .)

A set-up for #2: the character in question has built a narrow enclosure for a horse, using dowels slid through the back opening of the area to prevent the horse from backing out of it. Okay, now the sentence will make more (silly) sense. Note that we've been talking HORSES:

2. He had made holes for sliding sticks through the rear end instead of her recommended two.

(Uh, that would be the rear end of the enclosure . . .)

The next one shows a scuffle between two WOMEN:

3. Suddenly her hands were on my chest, pushing me backwards.

(Doubt she meant to give her an unscheduled mammogram . . .)

Note there's nothing inherently bad about any of these sentences, but in context and with a different pair of eyeballs than the author had, a new meaning emerged.

Sometimes our "bloopers" are of the grammatical variety. Other times they're simply ambiguous. Then there are those that just leave a silly image in your mind.

Here are more I've gathered over the years—all real quotes from drafts brought to our critique group. And yes, some are mine:

Suddenly, my mother turned into a driveway.

Your grandmother killed him before I got the chance.

Lizzie's hands flew to her mouth. Inside lay four books.

Lighting a candle, she settled beneath the covers.

Andrew noted his lean frame on the high counter sipping his drink.

. . . he began, then stopped seeing Jacob's scowl

Quiet and patient, Alice's dark hair was always pulled into a simple bun.

And our all-time favorite blooper:

A man is inside a cedar wood closet, which reminds him of the cedar chest his mother once owned. But instead of saying it like that, it came out like this:

The scent reminded him of his mother's smelly chest.

We've had our laughs over all of these, and any time someone else lets a blooper loose, I write it down—not only because of the chuckle, but because it's a subtle reminder that we need one another to read over and catch not only our bloopers, but all kinds of other things that can make our writing continually better.

Every writer needs that.

Confusing Word Pairs

by Annette Lyon

I'm putting on my grammar police hat today in hopes of clarifying some commonly confused word pairs.

imply/infer
Hearing this word pair used incorrectly is one of my personal pet peeves, and it's happening more and more often in casual conversation. But that doesn't mean you have to slip into laziness and do it wrong. Most mistakes use the two words interchangeably, as if both mean imply.

Incorrect example: "I couldn't believe she inferred such rude things when she was talking to me."

Why it's wrong:
Imply and infer are at opposite ends of the same relationship (sort of how a tenant/landlord are in the same relationship, or speaker/listener, but not doing the same thing).

In this case, the speaker IMPLIES something:
"Check out this pair of jeans. They're HUGE on me, so I'm sure they'd fit you."

The listener hears the implication and deduces from it (or infers) the meaning.
"Oh, she thinks I'm fat."


compliment/complement
When you tell someone that you love their shoes or that their new glasses sure look great, you're giving them a compliment.

On the other hand, if something completes or enhances an experience, it complements it, such as having just the right chocolate dessert after your favorite meal, a perfect complement to the feast.

This one's easy to remember: something that "completes" has the E in it, hence complement goes with it.


affect/effect
Almost always, one of these words is a VERB and the other is a NOUN.

Affect is the verb form, such as:
"The commerical affected me so deeply I cried."

Effect is the final result of something, such as:
"The commercial had a profound effect on me. I cried."

(An exception applies here, but it's rare, and chances are you'll never use "effect" as a verb. Don't worry about it.)


then/than
Easy to mix up, but easy to fix as well.

Then refers to a sequence of events: "I went to the bank and then to the movie."

Than compares two items: "I enjoyed this book much more than the last one I read."


ensure/insure/assure
A triple threat! No problem, though; they're still pretty easy.

Ensure: There's a good chance this is the word you're looking for. It means to make sure something will happen. When it doubt, use this one. Example: "To ensure the children's safety, the parents always buckled them in their car seats."

Insure: This is the common mistake form. Avoid using it unless you're referring to protecting your car or home. Only insurance companies insure: "How much would it cost to insure my old heap of a car?"

Assure: Less-often confused than the othe two. This one is used to denote giving confidence over an issue, such as: "She assured her son that she'd be at the concert."


eminent/imminent
A rising star or talent that stands out from the others would be considered eminent.
"The eminent dancer received a standing ovation for her solo."

Something about to happen at any moment would be imminent:
"I just knew my latest rejection was imminent."


allude/elude
If you refer to something, such as how Shakespeare often dropped in references to mythology into his work, you allude to that reference:

"Steinbeck frequently alludes to portions of the Bible in East of Eden."

If, on the other hand, you're running away from something or trying to avoid an issue, you need the other word: elude:

"The solution to the problem eluded me." OR
"The bank robber eluded the police."


fewer/less
Another pet peeve of mine. This one constantly is messed-up on network commercials.

Fewer belongs to COUNT NOUNS, or things you can actually count, such cars or calories:
"She enjoys the chocolate cake, even though the chocolate mousse has fewer calories."

Less belongs to NON-COUNT NOUNS, or things you cannot count but instead refer to in general quantities, such as flour or time:

"Be sure to use less flour in the cake than you did last time."

"He said it happened three weeks ago, but she was sure less time had passed than that."

If you're saying "cups of flour," you're now using "cups" as the noun, and you can count cups, so you'd use FEWER: "This recipe calls for fewer cups of flour than the other one."

With time, if you're discussing minutes or hours, you're again into count nouns and can use fewer. "It takes fewer hours to drive to Grandma's than to Aunt Marge's." But time by itself is generic and immeasureable, so you'd use less, as in the example above.

Please, please, don't make this mistake, which is how the two are usually messed up:

"Diet Coke has less calories than regular Coke."

NO!!! Diet Coke has fewer calories and is less fattening as a result.

I admit it; I'm a little neurotic when it comes to some of these things. I almost get an eye twitch when I hear "less calories" on TV. But that's because I'm an editor. I've trained myself to know the rules.

And here's the clincher: any editor you submit to will likely know the rules inside and out—and know full well if you've broken them. Don't give editors eye twitches. Make your writing smooth, clean, and seamless.

Quotes or Italics?

by Annette Lyon

It's the simple things that shoot you in the foot, knock you off the slush pile, and get a rejection flying to your mail box.

It's also the simple things that make you look more polished and professional: things like knowing when to italicize a title versus when to put quote marks around it.

Here is a basic primer on the quote marks vs. italics rules:

First and foremost, never ever use quote marks or italics when a title is ACTING as a title. In other words, on your own title page or at the top of your manuscript, DON'T italicize or put quote marks on your own title.

(Have you EVER seen a title ON a book italicized? Ever seen a magazine article with quotes around it? Don't think so.)

On the other hand, when you're referring to your own work, THEN you'll either italicize or quote mark it, such as in a cover letter or query. (Enclosed is my fantasy short story, "Please Publish Me.")

The basic rule of thumb:

Use QUOTE MARKS for things that are SHORT.
Use ITALICS for things that are LONG.

I had an editor once suggest a way to remember this by going back to the days of typewriters, when they used the underline key for the italics. A long line reminded her of a bookshelf, or something LONG, while quote marks looked like nails or hooks, something that would hold up something little.

Okay, so what constitutes SHORT and LONG?

Quote marks go around short works such as:
Poems: "Prometheus" by Lord Byron
Songs: "The Star Spangled Banner," by Francis Scott Key
Magazine Articles: "Learning from Lincoln's Wisdom" by William Kristol
Short Stories: "A Rose for Emily," by William Faulkner
Episodes within a TV series: "The Trouble with Tribbles" in Star Trek
Chapters within a book: "The Boy Who Lived" in Harry Potter

Italics set apart larger works such as:
Novels: Harry Potter, by J.K. Rowling
Magazines: Time Magazine
Television Series: Star Trek
Movies: Shrek
Ships: The Monitor

Another hint: If something can be broken down further, the smaller piece goes into quote marks, and the larger work will be in italics (ie, the magazine will be italics, while the articles inside it will be in quote marks. The TV series will be italics and the individual episodes will be quote marks).

And I have no clue why ships are in italics. That's just the rule. :)

Other items that aren't listed above, such as a brand of soda or jeans, a big mansion (think Tara in Gone with the Wind) or a store, are just names, not titles, and therefore don't need to have quotes or italics. Simply capitalize them.

These things may seem nit-picky, but they're the types of things editors do watch out for. Yes, editors try to overlook little mistakes, but why give them one more thing against you?

Tuck one more thing into your arsenal and be prepared, because the writer who comes out ahead is the one who is forearmed.

Edited to add: I've added a new post (find it HERE) with updated italics and quotations mark rules, as well as answers to questions I've received since this post first went live.

Becoming Better Editors

By Lu Ann Staheli

One of our readers recently asked for more insight as to how to improve the editing quality of a critique group whose members she described as “middling writers.” Well, the answer is easier than you think. Here are ten suggestions you might apply to improve your own skills and to help you guide the other members of your group into being better trained as editors.

1. Be a voracious reader. The more you read, the more you will recognize what works and what doesn’t work in your chosen genre. Read the best, and read a few of the worst. Learn to recognize the difference between the two.

2. Know that good writing is more than good grammar. As you read, consider how the author uses ideas, organization, sentence fluency, voice, and word choice to hook the reader. Read your writing aloud as your group critiques, and mark those spots where you notice word repetition or awkward construction. Also point out those places where the writer was successful.

3. Know your grammar basics. For many writers it may have been a long time since they studied the rules. I’m not suggesting you bring back bad memories of parsing sentences, but do locate a good handbook that covers punctuation and grammar rules. I use Writer’s Inc. (Great Source Publishers) at school. This book not only has easy-to-follow instructions about the rules, but it also includes maps, conversion charts, and other supplementary materials that can be an asset to writers as they research.

4. Teach a skill. If you notice that someone in your group continues to make the same mistake time and again, take a few minutes to teach the correct writing principle to them while giving your critique. For example, say one of your group members is confused about the use of dialogue tags. They often end one paragraph with the tag (said, asked) that actually belongs to the speaker in the next paragraph which leaves you, the reader, confused about who is actually saying what. Instead of becoming frustrated and marking the same error each week, show the writer how the tag needs to be tied to the quotation.

5. Read books about writing. Everyone from Stephen King to Janet Evanovich has written about themselves as writers it seems, and many of them had great tips to share with you. Keep a log of errors you know you personally need to work on improving. Make a list of words you sometimes overuse. (See The Ten Percent Solution by Ken Rand. http://www.sfwa.org/members/Rand/Solution.html)
Use what you learn for your own writing, but also share it with the members of your group as appropriate.

6. Read magazines such as Writer’s Digest. For a long time, this magazine included a feature where aspiring authors sent in their first page for an edit by a professional. Carefully reading articles such as these and others in each issue show you exactly what an editor wants.

7. Understand genres. Although it is important that your ideas be unique to you, it is also important that the writing you do will actually fit into a niche in the market. Novels can often include two genres if one of those genres is either romance or adventure. For instance a historical romance works, as does a science fiction adventure. But historical science fiction is a little hard to fathom.

8. Talk about books. Be knowledgeable about what is being published. Follow the trades, local bookstores, or online marketplaces such as Barnes and Noble or Amazon.com. Use books as a place to gather new ideas (see the earlier blog entry: “Your First Chapter” by Heather Moore), but also use them as a textbook for becoming a better writer. Study those opening paragraphs. Listen to the character’s voice. Know why you love, or perhaps hate, the main character. Then talk about your ideas with the other members of your group. Consider their opinions because all of you make up the buying audience you someday want for you own writing.

9. While all group members are learning to improve their skills, use a few meetings to practice on the writing of others. Choose a short story or the first chapter of a published novel and read it for an evaluation. You’ll be surprised to learn that even published authors who have been through the editing process experience the same slow spots, occasional typographical errors, or word repetition problems your groups members find in their work. Even if this exercise doesn’t improve the writing you are currently working on, it will at least let you know you are not alone when it comes to the problems associated with writing, and it may even give you a good laugh if you find a book that’s a real clinker.

10. Believe that your editing skills will grow, as will your writing skills. I’ve been a member of a critique group now for nearly ten years, and I can promise you that I catch many more spots that need edits now than I did back then, and it’s not because the members of my group are untalented writers. That would be far from the truth. Learning to edit has a rhythm of its own, and like any task we undertake, we tend to become more proficient as we practice that skill.

Good luck, and know that the time it takes to improve your group members editing skills will be well worth it once you see those magazine articles and books being accepted for publication.