What essential grammar rules does a good writer need to embrace?

Answer 1

The comma is the most misused punctuation mark, as for grammar; verb agreement, number agreement, but basically the key to strong writing is strong verbs. A poor writer can't find the word but a good writer will no when to drop that scintillating, sharp and concise word. Apart from that, a good sense of language will get you through; as Ernest Hemingway said, Any buffoon can write a book, or something such as my memory is unclear.

Answer 2

Those rules that facilitate clarity. Many grammar rules we learned in grade school can be bent or broken in pursuit of style, effect, drama, humor, or whatever else we as writers are aiming for. But if you break so many rules that no one can make heads or tails of what you've written, then you have a problem.

It also depends a lot on what you're writing. If it's formal business writing, then the writer should embrace all the formal grammar rules.

If it's fiction, you have much more flexibility. Take James Joyce's "Ulysses" as an example--Joyce probably breaks more supposedly hard and fast grammar rules than we ever learned in school, yet the book is considered a masterpiece and a classic.

At the same time, you have to know the rules before you can effectively break them.

Answer 3

Readability.
Yes, I do know that's not a real word but the point is, you understood it. That is the major rule for good writers to follow.
Other than that, although things like 'don't end a sentence with a preposition' or 'contractions are invalid unless encapsulated within quotation marks' are no longer always applicable.
I think that you need to write whichever way comes most easily to you. An editor would surely correct the more blatant mistakes & a proofreader would pick up others.
Good luck!

Answer 4

A good writer needs to embrace every rule of grammar. Discipline with grammar helps the writer become clear in thought and word.
A brilliant writer can choose to selectively ignore some or nearly all rules of grammar. William Faulkner comes to mind.

Answer 5

A good writer needs have control over the language. This means some knowledge of grammar -- limited knowledge or intuitive knowledge, fine, but some knowledge.

Here are the most important (and most frequently violated) rules, in my opinon:

Subject/verb agreement
Noun/pronoun agreement
Verb tense consistency
Avoiding run-ons and fragments
Avoiding dangling modifiers

Breaking these rules indicates that you don't have control of the language.

Basically, you need to know how to put words and phrases together correctly.

Answer 6

Your best grammar guide is The Elements of Style by Strunk & White. Clear, concise rules with examples in a very short and easy to read book.

You'll have to learn them all. Do not rely on spell check or grammar checks on your computer. An editor can easily spot a manuscript that hasn't actually been proofread. It screams "AMATEUR!"
as it's being flung on to the rejection pile.

Someone is having a lot of fun with the thumbs down button. Ignore the first thumbs down on all answers. Doesn't count. Oh, the list of things to avoid is excellent! I liked that.

Answer 7

The post about descriptive grammar is right on. Write how people speak, not how some all-mighty grammar association says we should all be speaking. Language is fluid. It's not just for the privileged. Especially if you are doing any kind of creative writing (fiction, poetry, even non-fiction creative writing). Throw all prescriptive rules out the window.

Answer 8

My one rule could be: do no longer even think of roughly publishing/publishers/literary brokers/destiny audiences till you have easily written the e book. BQ a million: you're handing your physique over to a sparkling proprietor. What do you element out? i might tell that is new proprietor to not at all positioned down my/their glasses, as a results of fact my eyesight is so undesirable that once their off i'm no longer able to locate them returned. BQ 2: How old are you? How old do human beings think of you're? i'm 20 yet human beings think of I"m 17 lots :/ BQ 3: And the terrific video clips of 2012 are/would be... properly I parent the starvation video games would be fantastically reliable. and that i'm additionally looking forwards to the recent Snow White action picture to boot as a results of fact the Hobbit.

Answer 9

To write to the level of your audience.

EDIT: Meaning: write the way they understand best. If it's an academic crowd, you would use more formal verbage. If it's an automotive crowd, use car jargon. If it's a romance crowd, use all those fluffy, sweet, steamy, sexy words. Twist the sentence structure to meet the audience needs. There is no need to follow grammar rules all the time. Look at Stephen King.

Answer 10

In the past, prescriptive grammars were the norm where they teach you how you should speak. Nowadays, grammar that comes out of the bookshelves are descriptive grammars, those usage that records how English speaking peoples actually speak. Collins-Cobuild Advanced Learner's Grammars will be good for you but of course other suggestions will be useful.