the scariest moment is always just before you start
How to become a better writer
in one month
60 min read — Grammar
This blog is a personal logbook and diary of my writing odyssey as an engineer.
Committing to one short lesson per day—I told myself—will make you a better writer, attentive reader, and more successful person.
Each post is a short excerpt, please find the full source attached.
Adverbs (words often ending in –ly), and in particular "really" and "very" are overused and tend to weaken the meaning and integrity of your sentences.
Second language writers (or even worse, Engineers) are usually using too many adverbs indicating a lack of active verb vocabulary.
Replacing adverbs by stronger and more concise verbs will help you write shorter sentences while painting a more vivid picture for the reader.
Incorrect: After a very short introduction...
Correct: After a brief introduction...
Incorrect: The girl ran really fast.
Correct: The girl sprinted.
Incorrect: Her face was very pale.
Correct: Her face was ashen.
Incorrect: The algorithm is very simple.
Correct: The algorithm is basic.
Incorrect: Overuse of adverts can really dilute your writing.
Correct: Overuse of adverbs can clutter your writing.
I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs.
–STEPEN KING
As engineers we are well accustomed to listing items. I would find listing items very satisfying, because I knew that I had a good chance of avoiding grammar mistakes. Little did I know that already a simple list like "nuts, washers, and screws" would require already an Oxford comma in a business writing context.
Convention: A serial comma is the optional comma at the end of a list of three or more items.
Some facts about the serial or Oxford comma:
- Academia and business consistently uses serial comma.
- Customary convention in journalism is to omit it.
- Americans tend to use the serial comma more often than British.
- There is no right or wrong for serial comma but consistency is key
Let's assume that you are throwing a party inviting:
strippers, John and Charlie
You will probably end up with two male strippers named John and Charlie.
Where as if you are throwing the same party with a serial comma:
strippers, John, and Charlie
You will and up with at least two strippers and two other guests called John and Charlie.
That's why throwing parties with a serial comma is much more fun.
Over the holidays I'll probably go home and see
"My mother, my mentor, and biggest critic"
Hence I'm going to meet at least three people including my Mum one of my mentors and one of my biggest critics.
But if we using a serial comma here
"My mother, mentor and biggest critic"
I'll meet my Mum who is also my mentor and biggest critic.
Recommendation:
Use the serial comma consistently in your business writing.
For most of you this might seem like a simplified chapter of a primary school textbook. Choosing the wrong word with unprecedented accuracy—I relied completely on autocorrect to deal with these two words.
My biggest problem as a kid was that the two words produced a similar sound so when I had to study them in school I was probably storing this information in a remote area of my brain labeled as "nitty-gritty educational ballast". Anyway—I was not planning on using English ever again, luckily this conviction has died a traitors death.
1. Then is an adverb that indicates time.
"I was younger then."
"I lived in Austria then."
"You will have to wait until then."
"If you are so busy, then leave."
"Hike then jump into the lake."
"You're certain then?"
2. Than is used in comparison of objects.
"You are younger than I am."
"She is taller than you."
"Time is more important than money."
"We have less space than you."
"Paul is taller than Maria.""China is growing faster than Europe."
When relying on autocorrect for your writing—something I have done for years—it is difficult to avoid mistakes with lay and lie.
Lay-> put
Lie-> rest
Present tense:
Lay: Please lay the book on my desk. (put the book on my desk)
Lie: You should better lie down. (rest in a horizontal position)
Past tense:
Lay: He laid the plates no the counter. (put the plates)
Lie: I felt sick, so I lay down. (rested in a horizontal position)
Present participle:
Lay: She was laying the flowers on the table (placed the flowers)
Lie: We have been lying down all day (have been resting)
Grammar hack:Try to speak it out loud, the sound of the word "lay" will sound similar to "place" or "place something" and is therefore equivalent to "put".
In my earliest scientific writing I have only used hyphen—and I would call it "minus". I would use it for everything from joining words, numbers to listing items or creating a text break.
A comparison of the three most common horizontal lines: - – — will give us meaningful insights into their different meaning and use.
1. Hyphen - Mac: "minus key"
2. En-dash – Mac: "option key" + "minus key"
3. Em-dash — Mac: "shift key" + "option key" + "minus key"
4. Underscore _ Mac: "shift key" + "minus key"
1. The hyphen is the shortest and the one I previously called "minus" it's used to create compound adjectives (high-tech, well-being, life-size, state-of-the-art and off-campus) or to tell the age of things (two-year-old) or for all compound numbers (twenty-one)
2. The En-dash, is slightly longer than the hyphen and shorter than the Em-dash it's used to join numbers ( 2–3 pages, 2017–2019 period, 3:45–4:15 meeting, 25–35 people) Do not space before and after the En-dash.
3. The Em-dash, is the longest of the three and commonly used to show a break in thought. ( No-one—not even here mother—realized the change) Do not space before and after the Em-dash.
4. The underscore—originally used on analog typewriters to underline text—has no direct application in English writing. Some applications include Email-addresses, URL's and document naming nomenclatures all of which are dating back from a time when computer programs had troubles processing blank space between words.
Try to avoid too many prepositional phrases in a single sentence, they can obscure the main subject and action of a sentence. Whenever possible, simplify.
–Complicated: The opinion of the manager.
–Simple: The manager's opinion.
Use prepositions instead of prepositional phrases.
–Complicated: The caravan came over the top of the mountain.
–Simple: The caravan crested the mountain.
The first sentence contains two prepositional phrases—"over the top" and "of the mountain" both of which can be avoided with a better word choice.
–Complicated: The obvious effect of such a range of references in his talk is to assure the audience that the author is intelligent.
–Simple: The wide ranging references in his talk assures the audience of the author's intellect.
–Complicated: It is a matter of the gravest possible importance to the health of anyone with a history of a problem with disease of the heart that he or she should avoid the sort of food with a high percentage of saturated fats.
–Simple: Anyone with a history of heart disease should avoid saturated fats.
Grammar hack:
Clear and concise sentences can be yelled by a boat's captain. If he can't shout your sentence over the roaring thunder and against the howling wind it's not a clear and concise sentence.
The semicolon has more power to separate than the colon and the comma, and it is more formal than the dash.
The semicolon is therefore the instrument of choice when joining two independent sentences. The semicolon is a simple method of indicating relationship between statements is one of the most useful devices in composition.
The relationship, as below, is commonly one of cause and consequence.
–It is nearly half past ten; we cannot reach the summit before noon.
–Emilia's works are entertaining; they are full of appealing ideas.
It is, of course, equally correct to write them separately.
–It is nearly half past ten. We cannot reach the summit before noon.
–Emilia's works are entertaining. They are full of appealing ideas.
If a junction is inserted use a comma.
–It is nearly half past ten, and we cannot reach the summit before noon.
–Emilia's works are entertaining, for they are full of appealing ideas.
The comparison of the three versions given above will show clearly the advantage of the semicolon. It suggest the relationship between the two statements better than version two while being shorter than the third form.
Day 8
“What” is for lots of possibilities
“Which” is for less possibilities
3 min read
When it comes to "What" and "Which" I was deeply convinced that they could be used interchangeably. Well little did I know that this is usually the exception.
1. Infinite vs finite options to choose from:
Both words are interrogative pronouns used to ask a question. The key difference is the number of options and your knowledge about the subject asked. If you are asking a general or open ended question you are using "What". On the other hand if you have some options to choose from you are usually using "Which".
"What" is used for lot's of possibilities and when you don't know how many possibilities there are.
"What should we study tomorrow?"
"What makes someone a good friend?"
"What can we do to stop her?"
"Do you know what time it is?"
"Which" is used when asking about a few options and when the options are known.
"Which wrist did you strain?"
"Which of your paintings is your favorites?"
"Which one is my fork?"
"Which way should we go?"
2. Background knowledge:
Choosing "Which" implies you know something already. Asking someone for example about their nationality.
What's your nationality: Implies I don't know where you are from.
Which is your nationality: Suggests that you have for example narrowed it down to two choices and are awaiting a confirmation of one or the other.
Grammar hack:
"Which" can be combined with "of your" or "of" to check if the sentence sounds right.
"Which (of your) pair of shoes are you going to wear tonight?"
"What (of your) pair of shoes" does not sound right and is therefore not possible.
parenthetic = something enclosed by commas
Abbreviations should be enclosed accordingly.
Samples, organic waste, etc., should go here
Max Musterman, Ph.D.,strongly objected.
Dates can be written with and without commas
January 1, 2020
September, 11th, 1990
9 July 2019
Titles and names in direct addresses is parenthetic
If, Madam, you refuse, I can not guarantee for your safety.
Well, Martin, look where this got you.
No comma should separate a noun from it's identification
Alexander the Great
The novelist Aldous Huxley
The poet Cicero
Restrictive clauses: can't be split in two statements
Non restrictive clauses: check by asking "who, which, when, where"
–People who live in glasshouses shouldn't throw stones. (restrictive)
–Andrea, being too tired, moved forward.
(non restrictive)
–My friend Klaus is a talented gardener.
(restrictive)
–His younger brother, Clemens, plays football.
(non restrictive)
–Anthony, the friendly neighbor, helped her.
(non restrictive)
–Right there, in this office, his life changed forever.
(non restrictive)
–People sitting in the rear couldn't hear.
(restrictive)
Day 10
Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding ‘s
2 min read — “The elements of style, 4th edition”
Possessive pronouns have no apostrophe they are already showing possession.
-his, -hers, -its, -yours, -ours, -theirs
For all other nouns create the possessive singular by adding 's.
-Klaus's garden
-the bird's prey
-next week's meeting
-know one's rights
-someone else's problem
We can also distinguish possessive singulars and plurals by putting the apostrophe before and after the "s".
-the cow's long horn (one cow's horn is long)
-the cows' long horns (here we are talking about many cows)
Exceptions are ancient names ending in -es and -is.
-the temple of Hades
-the crook of Osiris
I am not going bother you with another story of me misusing this one in about every situation possible. It's actually pretty simple and many native English speakers are actually surprised how you can get confused with it.
Use the apostrophe after "it" only if a word has been removed.
"It's a sunny day." — it is
"It's been a while since..." — it has
"It's been a pleasure." — it has
Its is used as a possessive.
"Its surface showed deep bullet holes.""Its tail between its legs.""Its very first try was a success."
Maybe it helps you to remember that 's is only used when a word is removed, in any other case "its" should be used to indicate a possession.
Day 12
In grammatical terms a tautology is the repetition of the same idea using different words. While a tautology can be used to put emphasis on a particular statement it is often cluttering your sentence.
–Incorrect: I made this with my own hands for you.
–Correct: I made this for you.
The word "made" implies already that I did it "with my own hands" creating a redundancy.
–Incorrect: It was adequate enough.
–Correct: It was adequate.
This tautology is not adding additional value to the reader as "adequate" and "enough" convey the same meaning.
–Incorrect: In front of a large crowd.
–Correct: In front of a crowd.
At this point it is worth mentioning that there is no such word as "infront", as a complex preposition it can not be written in one word.
–Incorrect: her added bonus
–Correct: her bonus
A bonus is usually added, so this is a grammatical tautology. The problem can be resolved by simplification (as demonstrated above) or by specification e.g. –her large bonus –her deserved bonus.
Tautological examples, there is no need to use both:
–over-exaggerates
–close proximity
-dry desert
–new innovation
–see her personally
–close proximity
–dilapidated ruins
–evening sunset
–frozen ice
–3 p.m. in the afternoon
–summit at the top
–take turns, one after the other
–sad misfortune
A logical tautology is something slightly different and describes a statement that is always true:
–Either it will rain tomorrow, or it won't rain.
Day 13
The colon has more power to separate than the comma, less power than the semicolon, and it is more formal than the dash.
A colon has certain functions of form.
Arrival at 15:50
Dear Mr. President:
Gardening: A beginners guide
We need: hammer, chisel, and bolt cutter
The colon is used to join two independent clauses where the second emphasized the first.We tried to reach the base camp that day but couldn't: there was no end of the storm in sight, wispy clouds soaring by, disappearing in the darkness.
A quotation can be introduced by colon if it supports the preceding clause.
The despair reminded her of a line from Winston Churchill: "We make a living by what we get, but we live by what we give."
The despair reminded her of a line from Winston Churchill: "We make a living by what we get, but we live by what we give."
Day 14
this and that
5 min read — see full Source here
This, that, these, and those
Telling the difference between these words might seem easy to native, but for many second language speakers it can get really tricky when to use them.
First distinction:
Singular: this and that
Plural: these and those
Follow these three rules when indecisive about using this, that, these, and those. It has to do with the items you are describing.
1. Rule: distance and time
If the object you are addressing is close to you, use "this".
If you are addressing more than one object close to you, use "these".
On the other hand when an event happened to you recently use "this"; when several events happened to use use "these"
–This day was beautiful.
–He will drop you at this stop.
–Did you make these pastries.
–These dogs are very well behaved.
When at least one object or event is far away from you use "that" and "those"
–That factory in China is enormous.
–That trial was 10 years ago.
–Let's go to that famous sushi restaurant.
–Are you going to buy those sunglasses.
–Those boys over there are talking about you.
2. Rule: Introducing and identifying people
When introducing yourself or someone else you usually use "this", or "these" when it's more than one person.
–Hello, this is Martin speaking. (on the telephone)
–Mum, this is my boyfriend, Maximilian. (direct person to person)
–These, are my teammates John, Dani, and Xavi. (introduction)
That and those would be used when talking to someone about another person.
–Do you know those kids?
–Those are the friends that helped me yesterday.
–That tree there was already here 400 years ago.
3. Rule: Separating items or groups
Use "this" and "that" in this order when comparing objects; use these and those when comparing groups or sets of items.
–This car belongs to my sister. That one is mine.
–I have already read this book. Let's read that one
–These cookies are stale, but those are still good.
–Are these your cloths, or those?
4. Rule: Demonstrative nouns
This, that, these, and those can also function as demonstrative pronouns. Like other pronouns, demonstrative pronouns stand in your nouns. They demonstrate which item the speaker is talking about.
–The perfume you are spraying smells nice.
–This smells nice.
–The day I got accepted by my school was the best day of my life.
–That was the best day of my life.
–I wouldn't eat the cookies, they have been sitting on the table for 2 weeks.
–I wouldn't eat those.
–Hand the books in my hand to Silvia, please.
–Hand these to Silvia, please.
5. Rule: Demonstrative adjectives
Adjectives are words used to describe or modify nouns (fast, smart, small). While demonstrative nouns replace a noun or an entire noun phrase, demonstrative adjectives come before the noun. This can be used when removing the entire noun phrase could create confusion.
Standard: I love the idea of going hiking with you.
Demonstrative pronouns: I love that.
Demonstrative adjectives: I love that idea.
The second version is grammatically correct but can be hard to understand. Using a demonstrative adjective makes the sentence more concise and easy to understand.
More examples:–This salad tastes really good.
–I would like to buy that jacket.
–Did you bring those chocolate cookies last Christmas?–All these scars are from my skin accident.
Grammar hack:
Use this, that, these, and those to
1) refer to things closer or further away
2) differentiate things and compare items
3) introduce someone or something
4) replace pronouns
5) replace adjectives
–I would like to buy that jacket.
–Did you bring those chocolate cookies last Christmas?
Day 15
–The number of the subjects determines the number of the verbs.
5 min read — see full Source here
Words that intervene between the subject and the verb do not impact the number of the verbs. Signal verbs such as "either", "one of", "none", and "and" help us to choose the right form.
SINGULAR
After each, either, neither, everyone, someone, nobody, "no one", "not one" use a singular
–Everybody thinks he has a unique approach.
–Although both boys printed to the classroom, neither was there on time.
–None of us is perfect.
A singular subject remains singular even if other nouns are connected to it by: except, with, in addition, together with, no less than or as well as.
–Her attire as well as her manner is objectionable.
–What is wanted is a few more pairs of watchful eyes.
–The trouble with viruses is it's many varieties.
Some nouns that appear to be plural are usually construed as singular.
–Politics is an art, not a science.
–The company headquarters is on this side of the lake.
–The contents of this book is essential for the exam.
Certain compound phrases are considered so common that they are considered a unit and therefore take a single verb.
–Give and take is essential to a sustainable relationship.
–Bread and cheese was all they served.
–Every door, window, and ventilation shaft was barred with planks
PLURAL
Use plural when "none" indicates more than one person.
–None are so fast as those who are running for a good cause.
Use plural in a relative clause when following "one of", or a similar expression when the relative is the subject.
–She is one of those people that are never ready on time.
A compound subject formed by two or more nouns joined by "and" almost always requirers a plural verb.
– Sasha and Shane were walking hand in hand.
Day 16
Pronouns can function as subject or object.
1 min read
Pronouns (he, she, it and who) change their form when they function as subject or object.
Always supply full context: –Incorrect: My mum misses him even more than I.
–Correct: My mum misses him even more than I do.
–Incorrect: Peter loves his bike more than me.
–Correct: Peter loves his bike more than he loves me.
–Incorrect: A group of us workers protested.
–Correct: A group of us protested as workers.
Keep it simple:–Incorrect: Dave and myself stayed at home.
–Correct: Dave and I stayed at home.
–Incorrect: Sheila and yourself are on holiday, I thought.
–Correct: Sheila and you are on holiday, I thought.
The difference between a verbal participle and a gerund is not always easy:
–Do you mind me asking a question?
(do you mind if the question comes from me in particular?)
–Do you mind my asking a question?
(do you mind being asked in general?)
Day 17
A contraction is a shortened form of a word, or a combination of words, that omits certain letters or sounds.
Can we use contractions in formal writing—YES absolutely
Making prose more approachable, less stilted and overall easier to read are the main objectives when incorporating them into your writing style.
Contractions may not be suitable for all forms of formal writing e.g. research papers or when writing to a judge.
Clarity and context are key, if a contraction results in lack of clarity avoid it. e.g.
–she'd can mean she had or she would.
Not
is not — isn’t
are not — arn’t
was not — wasn’t
were not — weren’t
will not — won’t
would not — wouldn’t
has not —hasn’t
have not —haven’t
am not — ain’t
is not — ain’t
are not — ain’t
has not — ain’t
have not — ain’t
BE
I am — I’m
You are — You’re
He is — He’s
She is — She’s
It is — It’s
We are —We’re
They are —They’re
That is — That’s
These are — These’re
There is — There’s
What are — What’re
Who are — Who’re
WILL
I will — I’ll
You will — You’ll
He will — He’ll
She will — She’ll
It will — It’ll
We will — We’ll
They will — They’ll
That will — That’ll
These will — These’ll
There will — There’ll
Who will — Who’ll
WOULD
I would — I’d
You would — You’d
He would — He’d
She would — She’d
It would — It’d
We would — We’d
They would — They’d
That would — That’d
These would — These’d
There would — There’d
Who would — Who’d
HAVE/ HAS
I have — I’ve
You have — You’ve
He has — He’s
She has — She’s
It has — It’s
We have — We’ve
They have — They’ve
That has — That’s
These have — These’ve
There has — There’s
Who has — Who’s
You have — You’ve
He has — He’s
She has — She’s
It has — It’s
We have — We’ve
They have — They’ve
That has — That’s
These have — These’ve
There has — There’s
Who has — Who’s
HAD
I had — I’d
You had — You’d
He had — You’d
She had — She’d
It had — It’d
We had — We’d
They had — They’d
Thad had — That’d
These had — These’d
There had — There’d
Who had — Who’d
Day 18
The subjunctive is used in formal writing or formal speech to express something desired, anticipated or imagined.
The use of the subjunctive is more common in the American than in British English and nowadays only used, understood, and practiced by few people. Correctly applied it can give your writing style a tremendous boost.
The subjunctive is required in colloquial writing for a few fixed expressions such as:
–God bless you
–God save the Queen!
–God help us!
–Long live the President!
–If I were you, ...
Base Subjunctive
The subjunctive is used in subordinate clauses that follow verbs expressing a desire, a demand a formal recommendation, or a resolve.
There are two common structures for the Base Subjunctive:
1. suggest-verb (or noun) + that
examples: order, request, suggest, demand, command, insist, order, propose, prefer, ask, advise
2. advisable-adjective + that
examples: crucial, best, desirable, essential, advisable, important, unthinkable, necessary, anxious, adamant, determined, eager, keen
Examples: Main clause + suggestive-verb (or noun)
–She suggests that you be promoted.
–The consultant recommended that this devision join the company.
–The board recommended that he not be dismissed.
–She requested that the room not be locked at night.
–They made a request that we be early.
–We made a request that we not be disturbed.
–She made a proposal that the company buy more shares back.
–The president has issued an order, that the secretary resign.
Examples: Main clause + advisable-adjective
–It was advisable that she rest for a week.
–It was essential that the army advance rapidly.
–After the landing it will be vital, that every solder not use a radio
–He is anxious that she return soon.
–They are keen that he not be hurt.
–We were determined that it remain secret.
Some more examples for the Base Subjunctive:
–Heaven forbid that that should happen to me.
–Suffice it to say he escaped unscathed.
–If that be the case I intend to report.
–The judges ordered that he be released.
–It is important that the car be waiting when we arrive.
–The manager was eager that he see the new product.
Were subjunctive (If + were)
In written English and in very formal speech, the past subjunctive were is sometimes used with the 1st and 3rd person singular, in place of the normal past form was.
The past subjunctive may be used after if or I wish, to express regret or longing.
Structures for the Were-Subjunctive:
(If, as If, wish, suppose) + were +subjunctive
Some Examples of the Were-Subjunctive:
–I wish you were here.
–I wish it were over.
–I wish I weren't so slow
–I wish the computer were working.
–I'd check these numbers again if I were him.
–I'd tell her if I were you.
–I'd go if I were younger
–I'd do this if I were you.
–If I were younger I would go back.
–If I were richer I would travel the world.
–If he were not so mean, he would have friends.
–If she were inside she could open the door.
Many people prefer to use the normal form (was instead of were) of the past in this type of sentence.
In ordinary English this is quite acceptable.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.
William Shakespeare
If I were a boy Beyoncé