Common Writing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them by Angela Joseph

In a previous post I wrote about some common writing mistakes seen on the web and elsewhere. The web is also full of sites that deal with ways to avoid some of these writing errors. Yet many writers continue to present work that either brands them as amateurs or sloppy writers.

If grammatical errors are your weakness, then you would do well to purchase a book on grammar or take an online course. However, there are some writing errors that can only be eliminated through practice and/or by joining a writer’s workshop or group.

Misuse of words

Your spellchecker will catch words that are misspelled, but if you misuse a word, you are on your own.

For example, let’s say you write, “The boy and girl tried to be discrete in their conduct.” A casual reader may not notice the misuse or misspelling, but your editor will redline it and write discreet, which means careful or showing good judgment. Discrete means distinct or separate.

Affect and effect are two of the most commonly misused words on the planet. So common are they that the effect of their misuse affects my mood for days. Did you see the difference? If you remember that a verb is an action word, then the one that begins with a, affect, is the verb. Effect is the noun.

Stationary and stationery also cause some confusion. If you write, “The woman was stationary (unmoving) as she examined the rows of stationery (writing material)”, you would have conveyed the correct meaning. Although I don’t know why you would want to write that when you can easily say, “The woman examined the rows of stationery.” Which brings me to my next point.

Verbosity

Writers in years gone by were noted to be very wordy, and I guess it was okay in those leisurely times. Nowadays, people do not have much time to read, so writers have to be succinct. Therefore, when you write, go over everything and if you find repetitions and unnecessary explanations, delete them.

As an editor-proofreader I’ve received assignments that contain a lot of verbosity, like this one: As I said before, I was the oldest of 8. I had a sister one year younger, then a brother one year younger than her, then a sister one year younger, then another sister one year younger than her, then a brother two years younger, then a …

I did not make this up, okay? I’m not that creative.

Misplaced modifiers

Another common writing error is the misplaced modifier. The problem with this is, not only do you have to search for them, but they confuse the meaning of the sentence, waste time and draw the reader out of the story. Look at these.

The girl walked over to the piano on shaky legs. Did the writer mean the piano had shaky legs (possible), or did the girl have shaky legs?

Here’s another: “As First Lady, the agents acted as my protectors.” Obviously, the agents are the protectors. Much easier to say, “As First Lady, I had agents who acted as my protectors.”

One more: Dark half circles rimmed the lower part of her eyes, almost black or maybe blue. It’s unclear whether the writer is referring to her eyes or the dark circles.

There are many more writing errors that space and time would not permit me to mention in one article. As you strive to be a writer you will be able to spot these writing errors more easily and will learn how to avoid them.

The cliché, practice makes perfect, is never more true when it refers to writing.

Angela is a novelist, proofreader, editor and freelance writer and the author of Women For All Seasons. You can view another article on Writing errors by Angela at http://angelasfreelancewriting.com/grammatical-errors-that-will-kill-your-writing.

Here are some common writing mistakes in children’s fiction.