It's that time of year when the newspapers are giving away freebies to try to get people to buy them regularly. It's been particularly useful for me and my class this week because The Guardian and The Observer have been giving away booklets every day about creative writing. They contain many handy hints, food for thought and writing exercises.
On Saturday 27th, The Guardian is also giving away a 110-page guide to English - another very useful free gift for my students. From time to time we discuss grammar and punctuation. There are always a few things that catch a lot of them out, so it's useful to do some revision.
Let's hope that all this talk of creative writing will inspire more people to put pen to paper and try it for themselves - or sign up for creative writing courses and discover the joy of discovering writing in the company of other like-minded people.
So do buy The Guardian this week or if you know someone who's a regular Guardian reader, ask them to let you have the creative writing guides. Happy reading!
Showing posts with label grammar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grammar. Show all posts
Tuesday, 23 September 2008
Thursday, 5 June 2008
'Get It Right' - Part 3 - Adjectives and Adverbs
Adverb or Adjective?
Both adverbs and adjectives modify (describe) something. Adverbs describe how something is done - quickly, carefully, sweetly, roughly, scarily - whereas adjectives describe what something is like - quick, careful, sweet, rough, scary.
How to Spot an Adverb
It's easy to spot the difference between an adjective and an adverb. Adverbs often end in -ly, though there are a few exceptions.
Puzzle
Can you spot the adverbs in the following list?
hoarsely good excitement foolishly enthusiastically wrong well bubbly uniquely holy mad old
The answer can be found at the end of this posting.
When Do You Use an Adverb?
Whether you need to use an adverb or an adjective depends on what it is that you want to describe - whether you're talking about the way something is done or what something is like.
Adverbs
Adverbs are attached to a verb - a doing word - and describe how the verb is being done. For example, take the following sentence:
The burglar crept softly into the house.
What is it that is being described? It's the way the burglar crept. Crept is a verb, so softly must be an adverb.
Adjectives
Adjectives are attached to a noun - a naming word - and describe what the noun is like. For example:
The nurse spoke to the patient in a soft voice.
What is it that is soft? It's the nurse's voice. Voice is a noun, so soft must be an adjective.
An Adverb instead of an Adjective
Of course, you could rewrite the sentence so that it uses an adverb instead:
The nurse spoke softly to the patient.
The next time you're reading something, why not see if you can spot for yourself which are the adjectives and which are the adverbs?
Tomorrow's Blog
This is the last in this week's mini-series about the nuts and bolts of the English language. Tomorrow we'll look at how to write an opening to a story or article that will make your readers want to read on.
The Writing Wizard
Both adverbs and adjectives modify (describe) something. Adverbs describe how something is done - quickly, carefully, sweetly, roughly, scarily - whereas adjectives describe what something is like - quick, careful, sweet, rough, scary.
How to Spot an Adverb
It's easy to spot the difference between an adjective and an adverb. Adverbs often end in -ly, though there are a few exceptions.
Puzzle
Can you spot the adverbs in the following list?
hoarsely good excitement foolishly enthusiastically wrong well bubbly uniquely holy mad old
The answer can be found at the end of this posting.
When Do You Use an Adverb?
Whether you need to use an adverb or an adjective depends on what it is that you want to describe - whether you're talking about the way something is done or what something is like.
Adverbs
Adverbs are attached to a verb - a doing word - and describe how the verb is being done. For example, take the following sentence:
The burglar crept softly into the house.
What is it that is being described? It's the way the burglar crept. Crept is a verb, so softly must be an adverb.
Adjectives
Adjectives are attached to a noun - a naming word - and describe what the noun is like. For example:
The nurse spoke to the patient in a soft voice.
What is it that is soft? It's the nurse's voice. Voice is a noun, so soft must be an adjective.
An Adverb instead of an Adjective
Of course, you could rewrite the sentence so that it uses an adverb instead:
The nurse spoke softly to the patient.
The next time you're reading something, why not see if you can spot for yourself which are the adjectives and which are the adverbs?
Tomorrow's Blog
This is the last in this week's mini-series about the nuts and bolts of the English language. Tomorrow we'll look at how to write an opening to a story or article that will make your readers want to read on.
The Writing Wizard
I have a new blog site, The Writing Wizard, in which I will be applying my magic touch to your writing problems. I'll be providing advice, tuition, and inspiration for aspiring writers.
You can read The Writing Wizard on http://www.bloglines.com/blog/GaleBarker.
Solution to the puzzle: The adverbs are: hoarsely foolishly enthusiastically well uniquely.
Well is one of the exceptions - an adverb that doesn't end in -ly. Bubbly and holy end in -ly, but they are actually adjectives.
Wednesday, 4 June 2008
'Get It Right' - Part 2 - Using the Humble Comma
Too Much or Too Little
When I'm marking my students' work the humble comma seems to cause an awful lot of problems. I spend an inordinate amount of time putting in commas where they are needed or changing them into full stops or semi-colons. It's bizarre that something so small could cause so much trouble.
When to Use a Comma
So how do you decide when to use a comma? Are there any rules?
One of the most common uses of the comma is to divide up bits of a sentence that are logically separate from one another. The best thing to do is to read your sentence and ask yourself if you could take out any sections and still end up with a sentence that makes perfect sense.
Separating Names from the Body of the Sentence
Here's a sentence which needs a comma between a name and the rest of the sentence:
John, I'm going out now.
What would happen if you took away the word John? Would the sentence still work without it?
You'd be left with this:
I'm going out now.
I think you'll agree that makes a perfectly good sentence all by itself, so you need to have a comma to separate John from the rest of the sentence.
When You Can't Separate a Name from the Rest of the Sentence
Take a look at this sentence:
John is going out now.
Can you get rid of the word John? Definitely not! You'd be left with:
Is going out now.
That's not a proper sentence! So it would be meaningless to write:
John, is going out now.
John is the person who is doing something in the sentence, so the word John needs to be connected to the rest of the sentence.
This may sound rather obvious, but you'd be surprised how often writers break up the logic of a sentence by shoving commas in strange places like that, especially if the sentence is a long one.
I hope you feel clearer about that particular rule on commas. There are lots more uses of the comma, but that's enough for now.
Tomorrow I'll look at a grammar problem. Why not e-mail me if you have something you'd like me to explain? My address is: gale.barker@tesco.net. I'd be delighted to hear from you.
When I'm marking my students' work the humble comma seems to cause an awful lot of problems. I spend an inordinate amount of time putting in commas where they are needed or changing them into full stops or semi-colons. It's bizarre that something so small could cause so much trouble.
When to Use a Comma
So how do you decide when to use a comma? Are there any rules?
One of the most common uses of the comma is to divide up bits of a sentence that are logically separate from one another. The best thing to do is to read your sentence and ask yourself if you could take out any sections and still end up with a sentence that makes perfect sense.
Separating Names from the Body of the Sentence
Here's a sentence which needs a comma between a name and the rest of the sentence:
John, I'm going out now.
What would happen if you took away the word John? Would the sentence still work without it?
You'd be left with this:
I'm going out now.
I think you'll agree that makes a perfectly good sentence all by itself, so you need to have a comma to separate John from the rest of the sentence.
When You Can't Separate a Name from the Rest of the Sentence
Take a look at this sentence:
John is going out now.
Can you get rid of the word John? Definitely not! You'd be left with:
Is going out now.
That's not a proper sentence! So it would be meaningless to write:
John, is going out now.
John is the person who is doing something in the sentence, so the word John needs to be connected to the rest of the sentence.
This may sound rather obvious, but you'd be surprised how often writers break up the logic of a sentence by shoving commas in strange places like that, especially if the sentence is a long one.
I hope you feel clearer about that particular rule on commas. There are lots more uses of the comma, but that's enough for now.
Tomorrow I'll look at a grammar problem. Why not e-mail me if you have something you'd like me to explain? My address is: gale.barker@tesco.net. I'd be delighted to hear from you.
Tuesday, 3 June 2008
'Get It Right' - Part 1 - Spelling
Beginner writers are often hung up about spelling, grammar and punctuation.
'I've got loads of stories in my mind,' they say. 'It's how to get them onto paper that worries me. I didn't go to university and my grammar and punctuation aren't up to much.'
What they don't realise is that they're lucky. Good stories are hard to come by. But anyone can sort out their spelling, grammar and punctuation, with a little help. Here's a little help from me - today I'm going to deal with spelling. Log in tomorrow to find out how to solve your grammar problems.
Spelling
Now that most aspiring writers have computers, spelling isn't nearly the problem it used to be. Spellcheckers sort out an awful lot of potential mistakes. They can even correct your typos for you before you get onto the next word. How clever is that!
What they're not so clever at is spotting whether you've used a word that is a real word, spelt correctly, but it's not the right word in that context. I'm talking about homonyms, words that sound the same but have different meanings and different spellings.
Homonyms - Different Words - Same Sound
Let's take a simple example: the word 'there'. Or it could be 'their'....Or even 'they're'. It's astonishing how often I see these three versions confused in my students' work. Even highly educated people with very responsible jobs can get in a mess with these.
Here's how to tell them apart.
* There means 'in that place'.
The paper clips are over there.
* Their means 'belonging to them'.
The students fixed their essays together with paperclips.
* They're is a shortened version of 'they are'. An apostrophe marks where the missing letter 'a' would have been.
They're getting ready to leave now.
Your spell checker won't be able to tell if you've chosen the wrong homonym, but an editor will, so it's worth investing a bit of time to brush up on any that you aren't sure of. There are plenty of books which explain grammatical points like these very clearly and simply. My favourite one is Collins Good Grammar (£8.99). Or you can use an online grammar website like this one : http://edufind.com/English/grammar/INDEX.cfm.
Little and Often
Grammar books aren't the sort of thing you'd want to sit and read from cover to cover in one sitting. Little and often is the best way to learn this sort of thing. You could read a short section while you're waiting for the kettle to boil or your bus to arrive. The next day, re-read that section and begin a new one.
Gale's Guide
I'll cover more cases like these in my blog, so keep on logging in. Tomorrow I'll deal with a thorny punctuation problem.
Meanwhile, if you have any queries about grammar, punctuation and spelling that you'd like me to deal with, e-mail me on gale.barker@tesco.net.
'I've got loads of stories in my mind,' they say. 'It's how to get them onto paper that worries me. I didn't go to university and my grammar and punctuation aren't up to much.'
What they don't realise is that they're lucky. Good stories are hard to come by. But anyone can sort out their spelling, grammar and punctuation, with a little help. Here's a little help from me - today I'm going to deal with spelling. Log in tomorrow to find out how to solve your grammar problems.
Spelling
Now that most aspiring writers have computers, spelling isn't nearly the problem it used to be. Spellcheckers sort out an awful lot of potential mistakes. They can even correct your typos for you before you get onto the next word. How clever is that!
What they're not so clever at is spotting whether you've used a word that is a real word, spelt correctly, but it's not the right word in that context. I'm talking about homonyms, words that sound the same but have different meanings and different spellings.
Homonyms - Different Words - Same Sound
Let's take a simple example: the word 'there'. Or it could be 'their'....Or even 'they're'. It's astonishing how often I see these three versions confused in my students' work. Even highly educated people with very responsible jobs can get in a mess with these.
Here's how to tell them apart.
* There means 'in that place'.
The paper clips are over there.
* Their means 'belonging to them'.
The students fixed their essays together with paperclips.
* They're is a shortened version of 'they are'. An apostrophe marks where the missing letter 'a' would have been.
They're getting ready to leave now.
Your spell checker won't be able to tell if you've chosen the wrong homonym, but an editor will, so it's worth investing a bit of time to brush up on any that you aren't sure of. There are plenty of books which explain grammatical points like these very clearly and simply. My favourite one is Collins Good Grammar (£8.99). Or you can use an online grammar website like this one : http://edufind.com/English/grammar/INDEX.cfm.
Little and Often
Grammar books aren't the sort of thing you'd want to sit and read from cover to cover in one sitting. Little and often is the best way to learn this sort of thing. You could read a short section while you're waiting for the kettle to boil or your bus to arrive. The next day, re-read that section and begin a new one.
Gale's Guide
I'll cover more cases like these in my blog, so keep on logging in. Tomorrow I'll deal with a thorny punctuation problem.
Meanwhile, if you have any queries about grammar, punctuation and spelling that you'd like me to deal with, e-mail me on gale.barker@tesco.net.
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