Everyone has their own writing styles such as Dialogue, stories, poems, ect. But wouldn't you like to improve your styles by making it look more professional?

Well, I have a few ways to make your writing better for your readers to understand.

Here is a list of what I expect all writers to follow when they need help in their writing skills:


1. Misspelling:
Spelling errors are usually perceived as a reflection of the writer's careless attitude toward the whole project.

Don't allow your hard work to be marred in this way! :/

In addition to comprehensive dictionaries, you may want to use electronic spell checks, spelling dictionaries, and lists of frequently misspelled words found in handbooks.

2. Misplaced and dangling modifiers
First let me clear up what a "modifier" is. A Modifier is phrase or word meant to describe or explain part of a sentence. In Example 1a, the phrase before the comma modifies the subject of the main sentence, which is "I":

Example 1a: Driving down the interstate, I saw the dead dog.

The modifer “driving down the interstate”clearly describes the action of “I.”
A dangling or misplaced modifier is not clearly connected to its object, making the sentence unclear or illogical:

Example 1b: I saw the dead dog driving down the interstate.

In Example 1b, the modifier appears to describe “the dead dog,” an unlikely candidate for a driver’s license. The problem with dangling modifiers is that they confuse your reader.

3. Sentencce Fragments
Make sure each word group you have punctuated as a sentence contains a grammatically complete and independent thought that can stand alone as an acceptable sentence.

4. Superfluous commas
Unnecessary commas make sentences difficult to read.

Example 1a: Field trips are required, in several courses, such as, botany and geology.

In Example 1a, the commas between "courses and such as" and "such as and botany" are not necessary in this sentence. Here's the correct sentence: Field trips are required in several courses, such as botany and geology.

5. Apostrophe errors
Apostrophes indicate possession for nouns ("Jim's hat," "several years' work") but not for personal pronouns (its, your, their, and whose).

Apostrophes also indicate omissions in contractions ("it's" = "it is").

In general, they are not used to indicate plurals.




Hope this will help all young and old writers, more will be added later on. If you have some advice on perfecting writing, then share your ideas here.

I hope you don't mind if I post here to syo. I mean after all I wish to show and help with others skills. I'll post some help in a bit in the message so I'll edit it. Alright?

Like I said, anyone may post thier thoughts in this thread ^^;

@o@ you hurt my brain. I thought you said married instead of marred, and thats were you lost me. and then the Misplaced and dangling modifiers, I didn't understand that. Yea.

It's not that hard to understand ^^; If you need more help to understand you can PM me

This is a really nice guide you have here, Tori-san. Anyway, I don't think I really have much of a problem with any of these. Sometimes I have gramatical errors(but it's only cause my comp doesn't have grammar check and sometimes I just think it's right and then I find out it's wrong.

I want to add also to take care about the orthograph of names and foreign words. Albeit for some foreign languages, the 'romanisation' may vary along the system, like: Raoh/Raou/Raô/Raoo.

I need help with grammer and spelling :chidorisd:

I can say I have misspelled words...or typed to fast words would be mixed. Like

waht instead of what

Gotta work on that more than anthing else...

i just need help ^_^" lol

okay

I've whiped up some questions that you should ask yourself if you are concerned on your writing. Enjoy ^-^
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Orginization

How does my story begin?
Does everything link to my message?
How does my story end?

Content and Ideas

What is my message?
Is my message clear?
Did I try hard to make it interesting?
Do I have enough information?

Voice

Do I really like this story?
How do I want readers to feel?

Convention

Did I leave spaces between my words?
Did I use a title?
Did I use use periods, question marks, commas, or anyother writing symbols?
Capital letters in the right places?
Could another person read my story?

----------------

Hope I could help.

I peeked in here to see what your tips were, and I have another one.

When you're grammar/content checking, always read your stories aloud. You'll catch more errors that way. And its best to go through your stories more than once because you always miss something the first time around.

In case you haven't noticed, I'm a grammar check expert. *wink*

Capitalization- Always Capitlize
~the first word in a sentence
~almost everyword in a title (Conjuctions, prepositions, and "to" before a verd are not capitalized.)
~proper nouns and proper adjectives
~titles of individual people
~the pronoun "I"
~direction words that refer to a specific region of a country.

Do NOT Capitlize-
~Words that describe family relationships, such as brother, sister or father,mother.
~Names of seasons, such as Spring or Summer.
~ direction words such as south or north.

Parts of Speech

noun- a person, place or thing
verd- an action
subject- the noun that the sentence is about
predicate- the web that says what the subject of the sentence does
adjective- a word that describes, or modifies, a noun
modifier- a word that limits or changes the meaning or limits another word.
conjuction- a connecting word such as, and or but.
proper noun- the specific name of a person, place or thing such as a person's name (Aaron, Nancy, Apolo, etc.) or the name of a country (United States of America, Germany, Spain, Canada, China etc.).
prepositions- a word that links a noun to the other words in a sentence, usaully showing the place or postition of the noun, for example near, far, toward or beneath.


Please listen to this people. (After all that took me a while to type.) ~Soko-chan

A nice something on words usage:

“Put your vocabulary on the top shelf of your toolbox, and don't make any conscious effort to improve it. (You'll be doing that as you read, of course ... but that comes later.) One of the really bad things you can do to your writing is to dress up the vocabulary, looking for long words because you're maybe a little bit ashamed of your short ones. This is like dressing up a household pet in evening clothes. The pet is embarrassed and the person who committed this act of premeditated cuteness should be even more embarrassed. Make yourself a solemn promise right now that you'll never use "emolument" when you mean "tip" and you'll never say John stopped long enough to perform an act of excretion when you mean John stopped long enough to take a shit. If you believe "take a shit" would be considered offensive or inappropriate by your audience, feel free to say John stopped long enough to move his bowels (or perhaps John stopped long enough to "push"). I'm not trying to get you to talk dirty, only plain and direct. Remember that the basic rule of vocabulary is use the first word that comes to your mind, if it is appropriate and colorful. If you hesitate and cogitate, you will come up with another word-of course you will, there's always another word-but it probably won't be as good as your first one, or as close to what you really mean.

This business of meaning is a very big deal. If you doubt it, think of all the times you've heard someone say "I just can't describe it" or "That isn't what I mean." Think of all the times you've said those things yourself, usually in a tone of mild or serious frustration. The word is only a representation of the meaning; even at its best, writing almost always falls short of full meaning. Given that, why in God's name would you want to make things worse by choosing a word which is only cousin to the one you really wanted to use?”

(Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft)

Well, I came here to give some writing advice. I've noticed that a lot of people seem to be having trouble when it comes to dialogue and commas. They just don't seem to know the rules. Hehe. I'm going to put a little tutorial for those of you who need help with this kind of thing.

Comma (,) Used: (1) to separate words, phrases and clauses of a series; (2) to set off parenthetical expressions, non-restrictive clauses, transitional words or phrases, appositives, and nouns of direct address from the rest of the sentence; (3) to separate words in a date or address; (4) before a quotation; (5) to separate independent clauses, containing no commas, that are joined by a simple conjunction; (6) denote the omission of a word; and (7) after the salutation of an informal letter.

(I got that right out of the dictionary, so you know it's right. Also, I would never give you false information.)

There are also a few problems with dialogue that I've noticed. What I'm about to tell you is not my opinion of how it should be done, it is fact. You CANNOT have more than one character speaking in the same paragraph. That is simply incorrect. I'll see something like this:

“Give Joshua a break,” Bayleigh told him sternly. “It is early after all.” She turned her head back toward the black-haired boy, who had obviously fallen asleep again. Bayleigh finally managed to haul herself off the pullout bed. She wore a long white tee shirt that had multiple pictures of green dancing frogs on it and bright pink pajama pants. She sauntered over to Caleb, sitting next to him on his bedding. “Why don’t we wake someone up?” she suggested. “I’m bored.”“What, I’m not interesting?” Caleb asked sardonically, sounding offended. He laughed hardily at himself. He certainly had a knack for sarcasm.

It should be:

“Give Joshua a break,” Bayleigh told him sternly. “It is early after all.” She turned her head back toward the black-haired boy who had obviously fallen asleep again. Bayleigh finally managed to haul herself off the pullout bed. She wore a long white tee shirt that had multiple pictures of green dancing frogs on it and bright pink pajama pants. She sauntered over to Caleb, sitting next to him on his bedding. “Why don’t we wake someone up?” she suggested. “I’m bored.”

“What, I’m not interesting?” Caleb asked sardonically, sounding offended. He laughed hardily at himself. He certainly had a knack for sarcasm.

What this does is create a break between the speech of the characters, making it easier for the reader to understand. Anyway, that's all I have to say for now.

Kikyyophobia

Good advice! :lemon14:

This topic is really old, but... I thought I should post.

My tip: DO NOT THINK IN PICTURES.

My problem: I think in pictures. Therefore, I have trouble conveying what I want to say. I'm probably doomed to become a manga artist...

I agree with Lacus

They who think in pictures must have extensive therapy to make them stop thinking in pictures. LC especially.

I do also i admit it

This is a very helpful little forum, isn't it? I think it's a great idea!

I know I am not one to offer advice, considering my spelling and grammar leaves much to be desired, but I'm going to give a whack at it.


Sentence Length

To make stories more appealing, try and make your sentences different lengths; try not to make them all long or short. Make them vary.

For example:

Kagome was looking around at the lush and fruitful scene that was Sengoku Jidai. The birds were singing happily, the wind was blowing softly, and sweet scents of flowers danced in the breeze. That was heaven. Nothing could ruin this moment. Well, almost nothing.


I think I saw someone say be careful of fragmented sentences. Personaly, I think that they can be useful some times, but do not use in excess because it will make people lose interest in stories.


Detail

I know that a lot of the stories are written by preteens and young teens, so they may not hold the same level and style as a story written by someone who is 17.

Some stories need to add more description into the plot so that readers can try and picture the story happening in their heads. Details make the story appealing.

Also adding thought to stories can be good.

Kikyophobia uses character thought in her story. She doesn't put it in '......' marks, but she weaves it in subtly so that you barely even notice.


These are just some suggestions to consider.

The main way that I improved my writing skills was through reading fanfictions on fanfiction.net and a-single-spark.com.

After reading some of the stories on other websites, the difference is very clear.

I do enjoy the stories on here as well. There are a lot of creative ideas.

Like I said; I shouldn't really be one to give advice, but this is sort of 'food for thought.'

Here's an advice for those trying to write in play format, and yes, I myself do write plays.

Now you see, play formats and tiny script formats are two totally different things. First to be able to write plays, you have to know about discription and when you add in people talking.

An example of tiny script format is:

Rocky: *runs into Kira*

Kira: *Falls onto ground with Rocky* Hey watch where you're going!

Rocky: *Gets up* *helps Kira up* I am so sorry Kira...

See my drift? That is how a lot of people here write in, and that dearies in no play, that is a script. Of course, these are ussually for comedy fanfictions which I understand.

Here's an example of play format:

*Rocky was running down the school hallways, his mind was in confusion and in fatigue condition. He paid no attention to what he was doing until he ran straight into Kira, sending them both to the ground.*

Kira: Hey, watch where you're going.
Rocky: Oh I am so sorry Kira!

Now that would be considered play format, of course that is not my best one and I never have posted my best plays, and never will I post them.

I admit, I am still struggling with third person paragraphs but that it not the issue. I am speaking of tips on how to write in proper play format.

You see, it is very rare of me to stumble across a true play written in play format.

You see this is how play formats are built:

*Action/ character's feelings/ scenary/ setting change*

Person 1:
Person 2:
Person 1:
Person 3:
(Or which ever order, it is a good idea to have three people talking per script)

*Action/ Character's change in emotion (if play calls for it)/ secnary/ setting change*

""
""
""
""
""

Now you see, that is how good plays are typically written out. If you are writing a play for a school concert then this would be a good idea for actors so they know what the character is thinking and feeling.

If you're a beginner in writing plays, don't go so harsh on yourself if your first play isn't well described or detailed, I felt that way when I wrote my fanfiction "Crossover mania", and as many people had said to me, it got more discriptive as the story went on.

I'll admit that I myself am still trying to perfect my plays. But just practice, practice and practice!

Also another tip with play formats, in this kind of writing you can think in pictures, it helps a lot. Because if you don't then you'll get lost in your own writing and neither you nor the readers/actors will be able to follow whats going on. Because without thinking in pictures then you will never know what is going on in your own story.

Strangely I learned this from many fellow play writers who never did bother thinking with pictures, and when I told them to, it helped them.

And I am not saying this to be mean, but too many writers here who think that they are writing in play format are actually writing in simple script format, which in my opinion I find it helpful for practice.

But if you keep trying this type of writing (esspecially if you want to become a script writer for a movie) then people will be bothered to read and understand what is going on.

Now then, writing in true play format does not mean that the writer is lazy to write, because if it were then you'll be basically saying that William Shakesphere was too lazy to write, Romeo and Juliet is a play, and would you consider that lazy writing?

But of course, this is a form of writing and this is my advice to you good people who want to write plays, even if it is just a fanfiction.

~Saku Tatsuya

xD I actually write like that also Saku, script-style that is. I also do third and first person narrative. : )

Good advice.

I don't if some people will use it though. : (

Some people might use it, others may not!

^^

I put it up because I had nothing else to do!

x3

That is always a great reason to post something. ^^

I disagree. I think people who perceive things in images can become exceptional writers. I actually believe that those with such a thought process are usually the people who excel in imagery. I also think in images, but I write what I see. I see everything is clear detail, which is why my writing shows that. I want the readers to see the images I see. If I've accomplished that, then I've done my job as a writer. That's just my thought on this, though.

When you think in images, it creates something I (and many others) like to call imagery. Through the words, an image is painted. If you never even thought up a way a place will look, how can you accurately discribe it? If you don't know what a sunset looks like, how do you know what to say?

EDIT:

Here, Lacus Clyne.
You see the color pink in your head, What type of pink is it? Bright? Eggy? Pastel? Hot? Eye-burning-bright?

You see a folder sitting on a desk.
I see a red folder:

The red folder lied silently on the dark brown desk, not moving, not swaying. It held everything of mine, the stories... my drawings. It was all in there, thus it's fat exterior, but oh, I I love my folder. It has drawings, doodles more like, written all across the edges. Flowers twisted around "I Love <Insert name>"'s. Vines moved, eemingly growing an inch or so everyday as I add on to them...
--

Etc.

Really, it could just be the way you see everything. You must discribe it all, everything you can think of. The shadows, the colors, the movements, the size, shape... it all paints a lovely picture in which the reader can enjoy.

A trick I have heard that a famous writter (Stephen King?) is that the guy always created in his head the beggining and the end, then make the path there, sections by sections, jalons in turns. Maybe it can work.

That sounds like an interesting idea...

That's what Kari does.^^ Though, I always make it in 'anime format' when I think about it, like it's actually happening in my mind anime style, like I'm watching it. If you can picture it happening like that, then it's easy to write out, because there is so much detail.^^

~Kari

A point important - if needed, make researches! A good story can use it, to respect any canon and/or historicality and such. To make a story more believable, logical.

Here are my tips:

Paragraphs: Stick to one idea and move on to a different one in the next paragraph. A lot of members here (even I) have that problem with this. If you stick to one idea per paragraph then readers won't get so confused. Also, it will help you be able to do mroe character building.
I may also add that you cannot have more then one person speaking per paragraph. As Bayleigh had said, if you have more then one character speaking per paragraph, it'll confuse readers to who is talking and who isn't. Paragraphs are 4-8 sentences, I'm pretty sure most of you have the ability to put one speaking person per paragraph.

Metaphore: This is something that I am still struggling with but I'll say this: Metaphore really helps your story by a lot. It'll make it a lot moreinteresting to read and you'll be able to get down to capturing the character's feelings even more, plus, it helps you to be able to describe original characters better. Here's an example:
"His eyes were sapphires."
Well, that's not the greatest example, but it's just there to give you an idea of metaphore.
Nonetheless, metaphore really helps a lot.

Ideas: There is a difference between plagurism and archetype. Just in case you don't know the meaning:
Plagurism: The act of stealing someone else's hardwork/ copyrighted material. In short, it is steal someone's work and claiming it as your own.
Archetype: An element of genre within a story or movie which makes up the genre. Example: Loss of innocence comes in the form when a major change happens in a character's life. (Well known fan-fictions here that have that scenario: Addiction by Kikyophobia and Unforgiving Sins by me)

Anyways, let's say you want to write a diary fan-fiction. Well, it is of course going to have a scenario where someone had written a diary and someone else reads it or someone is currently writing in it. I know other people will say differently, but it is not plagurism if you have that scenario. That scenario is used in most diary fan-fictions. A lot of people consider it plagurism for using that archetype, but it isn't. You won't be stealing anyone's story through using that archetype, you'll just be putting in the basic elements of a type of story. Those who say otherwise are people who don't know what they're talking about.

What I may also suggest is that if you feel as though no one likes your story, DON'T GIVE UP! No matter what, do not give up. There will always be someone who will love your story, even if they don't reply.

To add in:

Character Development: This is a good friend to Original Characters, especially if you don't want your character to be considered a "Mary Sue". When you add in your character, there are things to think about while doing so. One of those is "What does my character look like?", honestly, think of this first before going into personality. And then you should be thinking "What does my character act like?" then lastly you should think "What is my character's history? Why does he/she act the way he/she does?" All these questions are relevant to character development.
What also contributes to it is how your character develops throughout the story. Now lets say you have a character named Mae and you added her into an Inuyasha fanfiction. Just because it's a fanfiction, theres no excuse to not use character development. Character development makes your story much more interesting and I swear it'll equal into a fantastic story.

More to add in:

Fit in with the timeline: You know what could also make an Inuyasha fanfiction much more interesting? Adding in Old English text into the character's speech. I've been doing this for quite a bit lately in little bits here and there, but it is a good idea to also still have modern English in there too. Just having some Old English in the story would make it a lot more interesting and a whole lot more convincing then just adding in modern street slang and such. This isn't something that should be used 100% of the story, but having the characters speak a little Old English here and there would just make the story more realistic.

^^; Sorry for triple posting with tips.

i agree!! :kittylove: