Blogger: Mary Keeley
A recent review of the most common writing rules revealed that I’ve forgotten a few. Perhaps you have too, in which case there’s no time like the present for a review. Being human, we all overlook a sloppy oversight occasionally, but a repeated mistake may hurt your chances with agents or editors, especially when your mistake is a particular annoyance for them.
Merriam-Webster defines cheat sheet as “a written or graphic aid (as a sheet of notes) that can be referred to for help in understanding or remembering something complex.” I think we all would agree that grammar rules can be complex. This writing mechanics and grammar checklist covers a sampling of 
common mistakes, but I hope it will serve as a handy cheat sheet that raises your awareness.
Word Usage
- Fewer vs. less. Fewer refers to number; less refers to volume or degree. Examples: That jar contains fewer jellybeans. That jar is less full.
- Who vs. whom. Who is the nominative form, referring to the subject of a verb; whom is the objective form, in reference to the object of a verb. Example #1: Who wrote this piece? This piece was written by whom?
- That vs. who/whom. Use that in reference to an object. Use who/whom when referring to a person. Example: John found a coat that was left in the library, but he couldn’t find the person whom it belonged to.
- That vs. which. A restrictive clause calls for that. Which is used in nonrestrictive clauses and requires a comma in front of it because it’s additional information that doesn’t change the meaning of the sentence. Examples: Sue bought the dress that fit her best. Sue bought the dress that fit her best, which happened to be on sale.
- Anxious vs. eager. Anxious is a form of the word anxiety and should be used only in that context. Example: I am anxious about the appointment with my doctor, but I’m eager to go to the concert.
- Could care less vs. couldn’t care less. Could care less means that it’s possible for you to care less about something than you do. Couldn’t care less means it isn’t possible for you to care less about it.
Sentence structure issues:
- Wrong order of thoughts results in a sentence that’s cumbersome to read and hard to understand.
- A wrong word or phrase screams “amateur.”
- Too much packed into one sentence becomes a chore for readers when they have to re-read it in order to grasp everything being said.
- Repetition of a word or phrase within adjacent sentences or paragraphs is annoying.
- Lack of variation in the length of sentences is monotonous.
- Sentences beginning with There are or There is are viewed as lazy writing by editors and agents.
When in doubt about anything grammarly, consult The Chicago Manual of Style: 16th Edition, which is the generally accepted standard. This latest edition of the CMS should have a permanent place next to your computer. Publishers have their own style guides that may differ in some specifics, but editors know you won’t be privy to that information if you haven’t published with them before and won’t hold minor deviations against you as long as you’re consistent in your usage. Editors are sure to react positively, however, when you adhere to the most current CMS style. Here is a sampling of changes that were made in the 16th Edition:
2.133 — Checklist for proofing electronic publications. Also includes how to communicate those proofing changes on an electronic file.
6.119 — Commas following other punctuation marks are now allowed.
7.16, 17, or 18 — Possessives. To maintain consistency, it was decided that possessives of all names, including names like Jesus and Moses, will end in ‘s (Jesus’s, Moses’s)
7.76 — Website is now one word (website), and worldwide web is capitalized (Worldwide Web).
8.136 — Rulings for styling websites. Roman for name of organization (www.booksandsuch.com); italic for title of book (www.365mostimportatbiblepassagesforwomen.com)
8.159 — Ordinals and compound numbers. When the first word needs to be capitalized, as in the beginning of a sentence, both words are capitalized (First Century, One-Fourth).
8.55 — When referring to a specific mountain, river, street, and so on, both/all words are capitalized (Illinois River, Blue Ridge Mountains).
8.153 — Brand names don’t need to follow standard capitalization style (ebay, iPod).
8.157 — Principles of headline style capitalization. Lower-case prepositions regardless of length or importance (A River Runs through It).
11.2 — Extended introduction to unicoding (for international characters across electronic platforms).
14.7 — Access dates. Access dates are now allowed if no publication date is available.
15.2 — Uniform treatment in author date references and notes and bibliography. CMS now recommends a uniform treatment for the main elements of citation. Use authors’ full names rather than initials. Headline style capitalization for titles or works are now identical in the author-date system.
Chapter 5: the grammar chapter:
5.9 (and 5.220) — Mass nouns followed by a prepositional phrase. The definite or indefinite article preceding a mass noun and prepositional phrase indicates if the mass noun or the number of the noun in the prepositional phrase controls the verb form. If a definite article (the) precedes, the mass noun controls, and usually a singular verb is used (The quantity of coins saved this year has increased.) If an indefinite article (a or an) precedes, then the number of the noun in the prepositional phrase controls (a small percentage of coins are added each month.)
5.220 — There is a great list of word combinations to watch out for. Example: close proximity. This is noted as redundant.
Which word usage or grammar rules did you not know? Do you detect sentence structure issues you need to address? Can you think of common mistakes to add to this list?
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Um…I hate to point this out…but shouldn’t John, the chap who found the coat in the library, have been looking for the person to whom it belonged?
* Obviously, ending a sentence with a preposition is one of my pet peeves, as is the use of cliched phrases, such as “pet peeves”
* I find that foreign place names are often treated with scant regard; Germany should have a city called Cologne, unless you happen to have an umlaut handy, in which case it can be promoted to Koln (see how silly it looks, umlaut-less?). And Frankfurt has a split personality that one might do it the courtesy of recognizing…is your German from Frankfurt am Main or Frankfurt am Oder?
* And Viet Nam means Far South…or do you prefer Vietnam, aka Farsouth?
* Technical jargon also lends itself to errors, or at least misapplications that those involved would never use. An airplane is not controlled by a ‘joystick’; a video game is. The word ‘tailspin’ would make any pilot cringe; not from dread, but because it sounds so old-time Saturday matinee stupid. And the horizontal wing-like thingy at the back end of an airplane is a horizontal stabilizer (or just stabilizer, the vertical stab being called the ‘fin’); it sure as shootin’ AIN’T a ‘tail wing’.
* And finally, here’s one that a lot of good historians get wrong…the correct use of ‘caliber’. In small arms, caliber is the dimension of a firearm’s bore (the whole the bullet comes a-whizzin’ outa), while in rifled artillery it’s the length of the barrel, measured in bore diameters. Thus, a 5″/45caliber (5″/45) naval rifle does NOT have a bore diameter of 5.45 inches; it has a 5-inch bore, and a barrel length of 225 inches.
* There. Got that off my chest. I feel MUCH better now.
* Oh, and in modern grenade etiquette, when one throws one, the proper terminology is to mention the type of grenade, followed by “…out!”, such as “Frag out!”, or “Smoke out!”. When someone is so impolite as to roll a grenade into a room in which you’re breaking bread with your friends, the proper warning is “Grenade!”; only the most obdurate of pundits would ascertain the specific calling of the unwelcome visitor, since such a delay could thin out the ranks of one’s friends, quite messily.
* A Marine is NOT, and never will be, a soldier. A Marine is a Marine. Period.
My wee friend Angus McBite asked me to relay this…a Scottish Terrier is a SCOTTISH Terrier, or…if he’ll allow you…a Scottie.
* He is never a Scotch Terrier, unless he happens to be hopping, or using cellophane tape.
* Get it wrong, and you’ll most assuredly want to be beamed up, as Angus did not come by his surname lightly.
Down the same line, it is a Canada goose. The Canada geese that hang out by my work are not Canadian. They never make it that far north. And the one that wandered into our hospital lobby was a /#!& goose.
I personally don’t drink scottish, it makes me head swim and it also brings new meaning to wee. But I know what ya mean laddie, och, ’tis maddening. Ye can tek my freedom, but ya canna call me dog a scotch anythin.
Grenade etiquette? I had no idea. Thank you, Andrew. I will keep this in mind the next time I give or receive a grenade.
Thank you notes are always nice. 😉
But maaaaaaaaaaaybe not relevant to grenade etiquette?
Far better to give than to receive, Shirlee.
… and John poses a case where I would rephrase, because the precise use of whom deducts from the flow of the sentence and thus seems contrived.
eh, not end a sentence in a preposition, oh no that is the kind of arrant pedantry up with which I will not put ….
Eh laddie does the bullet come out whole when it leaves the hole, or does that fine fellow of such high caliber to whom you refer, imply another whole or does the whole thing fall apart when fired? Just asking. I am oft bemused by horse race-lengths – what the heck does 1 and 2/6ths of a mile look like … can’t we get beyond what was, after all, the language of those imperialists that the US beat a while ago. Track and field just made a fine adjustment and called a mile, 1500 meter race – works well enough and the runners are as tired afterwards.
Well, if it’s a sabot round, it does fall apart – the ‘carrier’ splitting to leave the penetrator (it’s an AP tank round) meandering along its merry way, at about a kilometer per second. But is’t a sabot a wooden shoe, you cry out, and the root of the word ‘sabotage’, from the precipitate actions of disgruntled peasantry tossing their footwear into the Jaquard looms? Ah, yes, but harken to my reply…I have no idea how a sabot round got its name. Any more than I can understand the grammatical justification for “to love on”.
Frankly when I lob a grenade I just shout “duck” – works for me. I would have to first ask someone what this thingy is and then it might be too late, so I say duck and if they ask me and I have time I shout back, “its just a flippin grenade happening soon, near you” – they had to shout at Lincoln, in his two-story hat, “will that idiot get down” – doubt he argued.
You and Shirlee could have an interesting game of Duck Duck Goose…
I must chicken out of duck, duck goose as I have to see the quack about an unpaid bill – gets me down. So I will waddle off now. See you on the web.
I was referring your having said the whole the bullet comes out of. But also just having gun with words.
I dont text well as I can see.
Andrew, I debated which way to write it: “to whom it belonged,” which is my personal preference, or “whom it belonged to,” which is the contemporary, conversational alternative. Thanks, as always for bringing up a timely topic. When I was an acquisitions editor in one of the larger publishing houses, we used to debate such things frequently. Editors were divided on the issue of ending a sentence with a preposition. Some editors felt strongly that readers relate better to the conversational approach. I think it depends on the content and intended audience.
I can see how your list of interesting technical details is annoying to you. It’s an education for most of us, and you may have saved readers lots of research time. I don’t know much about firearms, but in the spirit of good discussion, shouldn’t it be the hole, not whole, the bullet comes a-whizzin’ outa?
You can leave out whom altogether and just say “the person it belonged to.”
Mary, I’m so glad you explained the situation with sentences that end in prepositions. They don’t bother me, but I see writer’s saying we shouldn’t do that. And I’ve always wondered why. Yet, I see it that way in all my favorite books. I can understand for the most part, but I think it’s okay to use in dialog because that’s just how we talk. Conversational. It’s just a matter of opinion, I suppose.
I resolve the preposition at the end of the sentence problem this way: If it’s in conversation–speaking or thinking–I let the character say it the way he or she would say it naturally. If it’s not conversation, I say it correctly or find another way to say it. Anyway you think about it, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” just wouldn’t be the same if said “Whom the Bell Tolls for.”
Oh, dear.
errant ‘w’, writer’s flaw
did thus appear
to make gun’s maw
a sum, I fear!
Very good, Andrew!
Quite contrary, Mary. No ’tis a good list. I do have, however, have some problems with being too precise, as it can make the writing stilted. I will often say an hotel, but the purist will say a hotel, which doesn’t flow in the mind or over the tongue. As such, I will also tend to either write Jesus’ or resolve the dilemma by rephrasing, because Jesuses just sounds, well infantile. Sometimes I will use a non-personal pronoun for a person, if the person is well non-personal or an abstraction – so I might say the man that did this needs a kick in the … actually MSW challenged me on that and I listened. I am also aware that English is adaptive and a mature language, so although chronic is rooted in ‘time’ it has an adopted vernacular meaning closer to acute, which implies immediacy and intensity, neither of which necessarily apply to chronic. Doctors retain the distinction, but the generalized use of chronic is what it is and is also acknowledged in the dictionary, although I personally would distinguish. As for subjective tense, well, that was a tough lesson and now I rarely do it, but I do it sometimes for impact and perhaps if my character would be more likely to use it. We could go on. It is complex as you say.
Peter, it is complex indeed. But keep these factors in mind:
1. A writer needs to show an agent or editor his or her writing professionalism by following standard grammar and writing mechanics rules in the proposal and manuscript if he or she hopes to be given serious consideration.
2. Contracted authors must follow the publisher’s style guidelines.
3. Readers find mistakes in today’s list annoying too. Too many done too frequently will turn them away from reading future books by an author.
… and I value the counsel Mary. I actually have taken all care about my writing because I always felt that initially I was writing for an agent or publisher not an audience. Yet I knew there would always be a tension between the two audiences. That is a journey I will just have to experience in my time. In deference to the process I have edited extensively and taken great care, and where I have had conflicts between grammar rules and my interest, I have rephrased to satisfy both.
Thank you, Mary, for the cheat sheet! The principles of headline stylization hurt a bit. The title A River Runs through It (sorry, I’m cell phone bound) simply looks wrong. That and Moses’s will take some time getting used to.
Melinda, my reaction was the same as yours when I first learned about those changes. I know some publishers, especially those that publish Bibles, have chosen not to follow the latest CMS rule and continue to use Jesus’ and Moses’ (instead of Jesus’s and Moses’s). When you have questions about a publisher’s style, scan several of their books in a book store to learn how they treat specific issues.
Thanks, Mary, for the heads up about changes to the manual.
As a former teacher, APA and MLA were required at my school, but Chicago at my kid’s school. I have never owned a Chicago manual. Looks like it’s time.
Sheila, the CMS is the industry standard reference. It contains a wealth of information about all things having to do with grammar and punctuation.
Am I the only one tilting my head so far sideways that I had to grab the armrests of my chair not to fall over?
No?
Yes?
And what bugs me the most is I can’t say “Well, in Canada, we do it this way…”
Which word usage of grammar didn’t I know?
“Them.”
I didn’t not know alot ah’ nuthin.
“I didn’t not know a lot ah’ nuthin.” Haha. Thanks for confirming the value of grammar and word usage standards, Jennifer.
your welcomed.
Whew…now, that’s a List! (I know I just broke a whole lotta rules!)
Thanks, Mary. Definitely worth saving this cheat sheet…probably need to invest in the book too. I’m thinkin’ I need a boatload of help!!
Kathryn, it’s nice to see you back commenting on our blog. Yes, the CMS is an essential resource for a writer’s library. Once you get used to navigating through it, you can find detailed information on just about anything having to do with grammar and punctuation.
Thank you, Mary, for such a helpful post. I know what’s going on my Christmas list…if I can wait that long.
A grammar book on the Christmas wish list? With a “can’t wait” caveat? You are one serious writer!
Great idea, Meghan. I’m glad you find this cheat sheet helpful in the meantime.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! This is the stuff of my nightmares 😉 But so important. I’ll suck it up and pay attention. 😉
Jamie, the word ‘nightmare’ was on my mind, also. Nice to know I am not alone. 😉
Just asking… wouldn’t it be – “the word ‘nightmare’ was on my mind, too.”
sometimes I get confused with the usage of too and also.
Jaime, it’s well worth the time because doing these things correctly is the polish that gives a manuscript its final coat of shine.
I think the frightening thing for me is not knowing what question to ask to determine the correct punctation, structure, or style.
For example: Mass nouns followed by a prepositional phrase. The definite or indefinite article preceding a mass noun and prepositional phrase indicates if the mass noun or the number of the noun in the prepositional phrase controls the verb form. If a definite article (the) precedes, the mass noun controls, and usually a singular verb is used (The quantity of coins saved this year has increased.) If an indefinite article (a or an) precedes, then the number of the noun in the prepositional phrase controls (a small percentage of coins are added each month.)
When I’m line editing, the very concept of that isn’t even in my mind. I may strike on the correct formatting without knowing simply because one sounds better. That’s a tricky, sticky place to base my grammar on chance supposition. But, even knowing I SHOULD question something like this becomes my problem. 🙁 Scary
I think the frightening thing for me is not knowing what question to ask to determine the correct punctation, structure, or style.
For example: Mass nouns followed by a prepositional phrase. The definite or indefinite article preceding a mass noun and prepositional phrase indicates if the mass noun or the number of the noun in the prepositional phrase controls the verb form. If a definite article (the) precedes, the mass noun controls, and usually a singular verb is used (The quantity of coins saved this year has increased.) If an indefinite article (a or an) precedes, then the number of the noun in the prepositional phrase controls (a small percentage of coins are added each month.)
When I’m line editing, the very concept of that isn’t even in my mind. I may strike on the correct formatting without knowing simply because one sounds better. That’s a tricky, sticky place to base my grammar on chance supposition. But, even knowing I SHOULD question something like this becomes my problem. 🙁 Scary
You are 100% correct though. So, I’m trying to learn how to paint that final coat.
Wow, I’m not even going to try to be pithy about all of this. Hanging my head at the realization there’s a lot I need to learn. 🙂
Your cheat sheet is most helpful, Mary. I think I’ll be investing in a CMS book soon! Thanks for sharing this today.
You’re welcome, Jeanne. The CMS is a time-saving, angst-reducing reference for your writing library.
Love the reminder of easy ways to improve our stories.
Thank you, Mary. This information is helpful, and I’m sending it to my critique groups.
Sentences in scientific writing are complex, compound, and precisely designed to show interrelationships. Hence, the semicolon is my good friend. I’m working on post-Genesis edits to my manuscripts, and several of the judges told me semicolons were essentially verboten by editors. I’m editing them out, even when they make the relationship between the two independent clauses feel tighter and truly capture the feeling I was going for better than the separate sentence version. (Correction: …the feeling for which I was going… I’m already partially trained into sloppy, er, colloquial writing patterns now.)
Even though my semicolon usage is grammatically correct, should I be following the suggestions of the judges on this?
Carol, scientific writing and novel writing require different structures and rules. Yes, you should follow the direction of the Genesis judges for your fiction writing. Semicolons are acceptable in the technical writing for the reason you explained, but fiction editors consider them taboo. Their view is that the author should find a more creative way to link similar thoughts.
I didn’t get into punctuation today, but maybe that’s a topic for a future post.
Thanks for the info. I’ve also had to retrain myself to omit the implied “that” which is not usually spoken but should be included in formal writing. I’m working on not writing them spontaneously, and reading a sentence “aloud” (even if silently in my brain) with and without “that” has helped me delete the nonessential ones.
Most of these I knew, but 5.9 and 5.220–that one really bothers me. I think the verb should agree with the subject, so that’ll take some getting used to. Thanks for the update!
I agree with you on the verb-subject agreement, Robin. I’m still getting used to this too…and I still cringe when I follow this new rule.
Thank you I am going to save this to my desktop.
I’m glad it’s helpful, Cherrilynn.
I love your blogs! This was fascinating and I am pretty good at most of the rules. The hardest one is the example of The/a vs the plurality of the verb. Will keep these in mind as I write. Thank you.
Thanks, Elizabeth. I’m with you on 5.9, the verb plurality change.
This is extremely informative and the responses have been fun! Any of you who enjoy language humor might want to read Richard Lederer’s Anguished English books.
How fun. Thanks for the suggestion, Janet.
Glad to know about the possessives (historical names) … Jesus’ vs. Jesus’s. I’m so used to Jesus getting special treatment though … that may be hard for me to remember. 🙂 Consistency makes sense though … not as confusing.
I too agree with the theory behind the change in possessive apostrophe usage, Shelli, but I don’t think many CBA publishers have adopted the change.
Good to know! Thank you, Mary.
Usually I’m a little hesitant to leave a comment, intimidated by all the intelligent comments flying back and forth. Today, my only comment—for fear of goofing up—is eek! Or, should it be “Eeek”? 😉 I’m buying that book, AND sharing this blog. Thank you, once again!
You’re welcome, Heidi. The CMS is an exhaustive resource. We look forward to your comments here.
Guys, I ask your pardon in going off-topic, but I need prayers. Afternoon’s turned bloody.
You’ve got them.
Thanks. Prayers from my friends are my chemlites now, for I am so afraid of the looming dark.
Praying, Andrew.
Thanks Mary. Scared.
Mine are going up.
thanks
Praying, Andrew.
I’m praying for you, Andrew.
Andrew, this is late, but my prayers are going up. “Father God, be Andrew’s sufficiency, his help and his strength. Do what only You can do. We trust You for this because we know that You are a good God. Remove the fear. Center Andrew and his wife in Your arms of peace. Please help him. We give You the praise, honor and glory for what You are going to do.” Amen. I pray peace for you in the midst of the storm. God be with you.
Most of these make sense. But the one I find odious is the one that states that names ending in ‘s’ now require an apostrophe and an additional ‘s’ to show possession. It looks so ugly. Grrr.
Hannah, I agree, it’s awkward with some words. The overarching goal in determining the changes was consistency, but there are instances in which a global rule doesn’t fit well.
Very helpful, Mary. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Afton.
I have a BA in English and STILL make heaps of grammatical errors. I dusted off my old Harbrace College Handbook the other day to review some rules about commas (darn those pesky lil critters!) and found some rules I’d never known. How is that possible?!? Looks like I’ll also put the Chicago Manuel of Style on my Christmas list.
Funny, Jebraun. And just when we think we’ve caught up on everything, the 17th Edition will be published. We’ll be kept on our toes though, right?
My head is swimming. I’ll pass on some info that has helped me. Online proofreading/editing coursework is offered at The Christian Pen at thechristianpen.com. A yearly membership fee is required. Kathy Ide, its founder, has written a handy dandy book “Proofreading Secrets of Best-Selling Authors,” which dovetails nicely with CMS. As with anything, the helpfulness of these classes is relative to the effort one puts into learning it.