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Writing Tips

Common Writing Mistakes and How NOT to Make Them - Paid Online Writing Jobs

Have you ever read an article or some other piece of writing where the author, who is supposed to know what he or she is doing, has made an obvious writing mistake and you think to yourself, “What the heck? Have I ever done something like that?” Chances are good that you have. Here are some of the most common writing mistakes that people make and how to avoid making them and looking like a novice:

Subject/Verb Agreement – Does this sentence look correct: “Mrs. Doubtfire” is a better cook than me”? If you say “yes”, you are wrong. The verb in this sentence is “is”. While it is stated with the first subject, with the second one, “me”, it isn’t. If you look at this sentence with the second verb present, it would read “Mrs. Doubtfire is better cook than me (am)”. That makes it obvious that the second subject should be “I” and the sentence should read “Mrs. Doubtfire is a better cook than I (am)”. Make sure that all subjects and verbs agree.

Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement – A pronoun is a word used to replace a noun; the antecedent is the word being referred to by the pronoun. Look at this sentence, “I spoke to someone in the office, but they couldn’t help”. The pronoun is “they”, the antecedent is “someone”. While this sentence might look correct, it isn’t because we don’t know if that “someone” is a male or female and “they” is a plural pronoun; therefore, the correct way to word this sentence would be “I spoke to someone in the office, but he or she could not help”.

Mis-Use of Apostrophes – This is most definitely the most common writing error and is made by professionals and novices alike. That doggone apostrophe looks good almost anywhere, but you need to be sure you use it correctly. Apostrophes are used in two ways: to indicate possession and to make contractions.

When you use the apostrophe to indicate possession, if the possessor is single, you will use an apostrophe followed by an “s”. If the possessor is more than one, you will use an “s” apostrophe (Judy’s bear, the boys’ tent)

When you use the apostrophe to make a contraction, be sure you are doing it correctly. The contraction of they are is they’re; the contraction of is not is isn’t, etc. Come on people, we learned this in third grade, know it learn it, love it!

Do not use nouns as verbs – For example, the word “parent” can mean to give birth or to be the main part of a company. Another example is the word “focus”. You can focus a camera or you can be the focus of an investigation. It can get confusing so just avoid this altogether.

Use similar words correctly – This is a very, very common mistake. You “affect” someone when you have influenced them. You have an “effect” on them when the aforementioned “affect” has been applied. It is very easy to use the wrong word – especially under deadline. Be sure that you are getting across the message you want to instead of one you do not.
Of course, these are only a few of the more common writing mistakes. Err on the side of caution and look up anything you are unsure of. It is better to be safe than sorry and be professional instead of not.