Basic Writing Tips – Some Controversial, All Correct
By
David Clapham
As a previous article (“Making Better Word Choices – 4 Examples”) explained,
writers can take steps to prevent simple, and common, errors from degrading
their writing. Five areas of writing that cause authors problems are discussed
in this article.
Split Infinitives
First let us exam the famously frowned upon split infinitive. Maybe some
readers do not know, or do not remember, what a split infinitive is exactly. To
understand split infinitives readers must first remember what constitutes an
infinitive. An infinitive is a phrase that includes a verb preceded by the word
“to,” such as, “to play” or “to investigate.” Now that we know what an
infinitive is maybe we remember our English teachers lecturing us against
“splitting” them. Simply put, a split infinitive is when a writer puts a word
between the word “to” and the associated verb. Therefore, a split infinitive
would look something like the following examples:
He was going to quickly investigate the theft.
Tommy likes to neatly color in his book.
These two examples would be re-written as shown below.
He was going to investigate the theft quickly.
OR
He was quickly going to investigate the theft.
Tommy likes to color neatly in his book.
OR
Tommy likes to color in his book neatly.
Splitting infinitives is not criticized to the degree it has been in the
past. As many reputable sources explain, occasionally splitting an infinitive is
acceptable. Even some progressive English teachers will agree with this idea.
Compact Oxford Online Dictionary explains that the rule for not splitting
infinitives was based on an analogy to Latin, a language that writes infinitives
as one word, such as bibere ‘to drink.’ The decision to argue with an English
teacher about the acceptance of splitting infinitives is your decision to make.
As Oxford states, “…in standard English the use of split infinitives is
broadly accepted as both normal and useful.1” If you do decide to argue with an
English teacher, feel free to point out that people such as John Donne, William
Wordsworth, and Benjamin Franklin split infinitives at will. The larger problem
occurs when a writer consistently splits their infinitives. If splitting the
infinitive helps with emphasis or the statement flows better go ahead and split
the infinitive.
Superlatives and Comparatives
Writers should also strive to use superlatives and comparatives correctly.
Some cases of incorrect use may sound okay, but if the author remembers the
rules that they learned for using superlatives and comparatives they will
realize that they have made the error. For example when a sentence is written as
below it sounds correct, but it is not.
One of the most common mistakes a cook makes is not using fresh ingredients.
In this example, the lack of fresh ingredients is either a common mistake or
it is the most common mistake; there generally cannot be two, or more, most
common mistakes. A case where there can be two “mosts” is in an exact tie. For
example, if 20 mistakes are made and two of them occur six times each (making up
12 of the 20 mistakes) and the remaining eight mistakes are all different, then
the two mistakes that occurred six times each could be labeled as the most
common mistakes.
The sentence below shows another way that a comparative can be written
incorrectly.
Of the three dogs, the bulldog was the smaller.
To use a comparative there needs to be something compared to something else.
The bulldog either was the smallest of the three dogs or was smaller than
another dog in the group. Both sentences below are written correctly.
The bulldog was smaller than the German shepherd and the St. Bernard.
The bulldog was the smallest of the three dogs.
A third sentence, shown below would also be correct.
The bulldog was smaller than the other two dogs.
This is written correctly because the bulldog is compared to a pair. It is
clear from the sentence that the other two dogs, by being grouped together, are
larger than the bulldog.
Comma Use
The use of commas can be confusing for many writers. Three rules for using
commas are addressed here. The first rule involves comma use when a series is
given, such as in the example below.
I bought carrots, peas, and watermelons.
Some readers may consider this rule controversial; some teachers and editors
may say the final comma is not necessary, in my opinion the use of the final
comma is more appropriate than not. If, for some reason, your teacher or editor
tells you the final comma is unnecessary then ask them to explain why, I do not
have an explanation as to why some have a preference for not using the final
comma.
Do not use a comma when only two items are in the series, such as in the
sentence below.
I saw birds and fish at the pet store.
The second rule for use of commas is to use a comma before the “and” when a
wholly correct clause is introduced. The way to determine if the clause is
wholly correct is to ask if it makes sense on its own, such as having its own
subject(s) and verb(s). The example below shows two clauses separated by “and,”
along with a correctly used comma.
We went to the store, and Joan bought some juice.
The third rule is an extension of the second rule; do not use a comma to
separate a sentence from text that could not be a complete clause on its own.
The example below shows an incorrect use of a comma in this situation.
We are going home, and sleep.
The ending of the example sentence (“…and sleep”) is not a complete sentence
on its own, therefore, a comma should not be used before “and.”
Acronyms and Abbreviations
Completely spell out acronyms and abbreviations the first time they are used.
Once a writer decides to use an acronym or abbreviation they should be used
throughout the remainder of the text, switching back and forth between the full
spelling and the acronym or abbreviation should be avoided.
Using “etc.,” “i.e.,” and “e.g.”
The final rules discussed in this article involve the use of several common
abbreviations. The first abbreviation is “etc.” This comes from Latin and is an
abbreviation for et cetera, which means “and others.”
First, make sure that a period is included at the end; second, make sure that
the “others” have been specified previously. A final note on this abbreviation,
if it is used put the letters in the correct order; “ect.” is not correct.
The second abbreviation often misused is “i.e.” Also from Latin, this is a
shortened form of id est which means “that is.” When used correctly this
abbreviation indicates an alternative way of stating something. The most common
error when using “i.e.” is not following it with a comma; there should be two
periods and a comma in this abbreviation.
The final abbreviation discussed in this article is “e.g.” Again, this is an
abbreviation for a Latin phrase, “exempla gratia.” This is used when the writer
means “for example” or “for instance.” Some people believe that “e.g.” stands
for example given, this is not true, but it can be a helpful way to remember
that it does have something to do with an example. Similar to the use of “i.e.”
many writers forget to put a comma after the second period in “e.g.” Below are
three correct examples of these abbreviations.
Bob bought a whole bunch of office supplies, pens, pencils, staples, paper,
highlighters, and erasers on his way home. He purchased so many things that when
he got home he realized that he had forgotten a bag at the store. He had his
pens and pencils, but the staples etc. were still at the store.
John is a big person, i.e., he is over six feet tall.
The black horse is fast, e.g., it has won all of its races.
By using the rules above your writing will make more sense and will be
correct. Future articles will address other writing errors and provide
additional advice.
1 Compact Oxford Online Dictionary. 25 January 2005.
http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/splitinfinitive
David is the owner of Blue Arch Consulting, a proofreading and editing
business helping clients worldwide to generate English documents of all types.
Their website is at
http://www.blue-arch.net
