Writeability

There are so many different kinds of pronouns. They can replace both a noun or another pronoun to make phrases less cumbersone and repetative but you should not use them without thought. One of the things to remember is to keep the number consistent when using pronouns. This means that the pronoun is either singular, if it refers to one thing, or plural, if it refers to several.

Example: (singular)
That man is deciding which car to buy.
He is deciding which car to buy.
Example: (plural)
Those men are deciding which car to buy.
They are deciding which car to buy.

In some cases, "their" might be more appropriate if you are looking to refer to both sexes, write inclusively, - but know this is not grammatically sound and some do not consider it acceptable in formal writing.

Example: No individual should have to forfeit his right to free speech. (his or her, not their)

To is a preposition (acts as a link or introduction to nouns, pronouns and phrases) that begins a prepositional phrase or an infinitive (to + verb =  infinitive).

Example: We went to the park. (preposition)  We like to watch cooking shows. (infinitive)

Too is an adverb meaning "also" or "excessively."

Example: I like chocolate, too. ("also")  She tans too much. ("excessively")

Than is used in comparison, while, then is used to denote time.

Examples: First you sift the flour and baking powder together, then you add it to the wet mixture.
Sylvia is more athletic than Mary.

When relating to things in groups of two or more the second of the two or the last of several is referred to as the latter.

Example: If deciding between apples and oranges you should consider that the latter is currently in season.

When relating to the first in order of two or more things we use the term former.

Example: Color and colour are two common ways of spelling the same word. Of the two given, the former spelling is more common in American English.

A college class was told they had to write a short story in as few words as possible. The instructions were: The short story had to contain the following three things:

• Religion
• Sexuality
• Mystery

Click here to view the only A+ short story in the entire class.

When writing it is a good idea to consider sentence length. Earlier we had a look at the sentence. If you use simple sentence construction too often your writing will lack fluidity. If you are prone to using complex or compound sentences this can lead to confusion on the part of the reader. Use all types of proper sentence construction to keep the reader's attention and to best convey your message.

When writing a letter to an unknown recipient use: To Whom It May Concern.You may also use: Dear Sir/Madam if you know the sex of the recipient but not their name. If you know the name of the recipient the letter should start: Dear Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms/Dr X.

A colon is traditionally used at the end of a formal greeting.

Example: To Whom It May Concern:

If you used To Whom It May Concern, custom dictates that you capitalize each word.

Poetic license is a term, or euphemism that is used to mean the distortion or ignorance of fact, language or grammatic convention. It can also be applied to the changing of an established fact, undertaken in the name of art. It is used intentionally at the discretion of the writer, poet or artist for effect. It is also known as artistic license. 

To follow-up on Tuesday's daily tip, I thought it would only be appropriate to explore the semicolon's older, stronger, brother - the colon.

The colon is most often seen following what could be a stand alone sentence. Its use, in such scenarios, brings together the first "annunciatory" phrase with a second complete thought that expands on the first. For instance:

There is only one rule to observe when living in this house: no cookies before breakfast!

When there is more to be explained about the first phrase, the second phrase is also preceded by a colon, as seen in the example:

My mother does not drive at night: her astigmatism is too severe.

A colon can also act as the yoke between two opposing statements:

You talk: I'll drive.

Aside from its ability to exemplify, restate, elaborate, undermine, explain or balance that which comes before (Truss, 2003: 120), you can tell from my use of colons throughout this post that it also fulfills the role of "introducer" quite often:

• When starting lists
• When separating main titles from subtitles of books or films
• When separating character names from their dialogue in a script
• To start off long quotations
  

The colon creates a stronger pause than the semicolon, yet it does not elicit the full-stop of a period. Similarly, the semicolon provides a stronger pause than the comma, which one can think of as the baby of the punctuation family - perhaps that would explain its popularity!

Business Correspondence: If you start a letter with "Dear Mr/Ms/Mrs/Miss/Dr X", end "Yours sincerely" or  "Sincerely yours".

If you know your reader quite well, you can start "Dear + first name" and end with "Best wishes" or "Best / Kind regards" or "Regards".

If you don't know the name of the person you are writing to and start "Dear Sir or Madam", end with "Yours faithfully".

You can also start and end emails in the same way as letters. If you are writing to more than one person, you can omit the salutation completely and start with your objective. Other ways you can end emails is by writing "Thanks" or even "Cheers", but never "Bye".

Ah, the semicolon. A mystery that continues to elude the masses, the semi-colon is one punctuation mark that most definitely deserves some attention.

According to Lynne Truss, author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves, "Expectation is what these stops are all about; expectation and elastic energy. Like internal springs, they propel you forward in a sentence towards more information..." (2003:114).

As a general rule, the semicolon is used to join two related phrases in one sentence in such a way that a comma alone would not suffice. For example:

The garbage truck woke me this morning; it was out on the street earlier than usual.

I remember when you were just learning the alphabet; now you're a teacher with your own students!

The semicolon can also be used to add clarification when writing out lists. Using only commas, it can be difficult to decipher one item on the list from another. For instance:

I've lived in Mississauga, Ontario, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Sydney, Australia, and Lanciano, Italy.

vs.

I've lived in Mississauga, Ontario; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Sydney, Australia; and Lanciano, Italy.

You may also find that the semicolon, in some cases, is interchangeable with the dash or ellipsis (...). The choice really depends on the style of the author. Lynne Truss reminds us, however,

so long as there remain sentences on this earth that begin with capital letters and end with full stops, there will be a place for the semicolon. True, its use is never obligatory, because a full stop ought always to be an alternative. But that only makes it the more wonderful (Ibid., 123).

Em dash...or en dash? What's the difference anyway?

Well, it's really all about length. The Em dash is the length of an "m" while the En dash resembles the length of an "n". The En dash is most familiar, and is typically used in the following scenarios:

• Indicating a range: 1954 – 1967, pg. iii – iv, ages 5 – 11, etc.
  
• Connections or relationships: father–son baseball game, Obama–Biden campaign.
• Non-related compound adjectives: Canadian–American relations

The En dash (with spaces on either side) can also stand in for a semi-colon or a set of two commas that separate an injection or secondary thought/phrase within a sentence. For example:

I went to the gym every day – except for Wednesday – so now I'm feeling pretty tired.

Depending on the style school you to which you subscribe, this example above could be said to require Em dashes rather than En dashes. When using an Em dash, spaces are not required given the length of the dash already.

I went to the gym every day—except for Wednesday—so now I'm feeling pretty tired.

In some publications such as newspapers and magazines, where space is limited, En dashes are the way to go given the smaller character size. Otherwise, the Em dash is used to place emphasis on stand-out clauses in prose or dialogue.

If working in MS Word, a single hyphen will extend into an En Dash when you use it in a sentence. To create an Em dash, type two hyphens after a word, followed by the next word and then a space. You'll notice the difference between the two instantly.

A Simple Sentence

A sentence is a phrase that conveys a complete thought. The basic English language sentence is called a simple sentence and it requires a subject and a verb. An independent clause is the part of a sentence that contains a subject and a verb and constitutes a complete thought. Ordinarily additonal words are included to explain the subject.

• Example: I fell down (subject: I, verb: fell)

A Complex Sentence

A more elaborate way of constructing a sentence is a complex sentence. It contains an independent clause and a subordinate clause. The independent clause can function as a complete sentence on its own while the subordinate clause, which also contains a verb and a subject, cannot.

• Example: We enjoyed the view as the sun set over the harbour.
  (Independent clause: We enjoyed the view, Subordinate clause: as the sun set over the harbour)
  

A Compound Sentence

A compound sentence contains two independent clauses. The independent clauses may be joined by a comma, a conjection, colon or semicolon. There can be as many independent clauses and subordinate clauses written into a single sentence as your imagination will support. However, reader comprehension declines as complexity increases.

• Example: He eats hot dogs, but she prefers hamburgers.
• Example: At a traditional birthday celebration for a Korean baby girl, objects with symbolic associations are place before the child and might include: a doll to indicate the likelihood of her becoming a good mother or a needle and thread to forecast her future role as a talented seamstress.
  
  

To pluralize nouns that end with -fe change f to v then add -s

• Example: knife - knives
  

To pluralize nouns that end with -f  change f to v then add -es

• Example: wolf- wolves 
  

To pluralize nouns that end with -o  add -es

• Example: potato - potatoes
  

To pluralize nouns that end with -us Change -us to -i

• Example: nucleus - nuclei
  

To pluralize nouns that end with -is Change -is to -es

• Example:crisis - crises
  

To pluralize nouns that end with -on Change -on to -a

• Example: phenomenon - phenomena

To pluralize some words irregular endings are required

• Example: mouse - mice

Some words are unchanged when either singular or plural

• Example: sheep

Some singular words are completely different words when pluralized

• Example: person - people

To pluralize some singular words the vowel must be changed

• Example: tooth - teeth ; man- men

When pluralizing words do not use - 's

• 
  

Complement: something that fills up, completes, or makes perfect : the quantity, number, or assortment required to make a thing complete : counterpart

• Example: Her shoes complemented her new dress.

Compliment: an expression of esteem, respect, affection, or admiration ; especially : an admiring remark : formal and respectful recognition : honor : plural : best wishes : regards

• Example: Brent received several compliments about the excellent pot roast.

Sic is a Latin word meaning "thus", "so", "as such", or "in such a manner".

While writing, sic is placed within square brackets and usually italicized  [sic] . It is used to indicate that quoted material has been reporduced verbatim to include incorrect or unusual spelling, phrases or punctuation from the original source and is not a transcription error.

• Example: Andrea said she would chuse [sic] any of them.

When adding an -s to the end of a date (ie. 1980) there is no apostrophe between the two.

• Example: The 1970s were a time of social change.