Sweet 16 Grammar Tips

Salvage Your Writing from The Wrath of Readers and Editors

There are so many books and online guides to help improve our English grammar. Photo by author.

Hey writers! Walter Bowne. For this rainy Tuesday afternoon, I have 16 quick grammar tips that may be useful. So get your handy-dandy, “Blues Clues” notebook out. How many mistakes may you be making? We’re all at different stages of grammar when it comes to the English language, right?

So you’ve entered the No Judgement Zone.

1. Unless taught in a British school system, use periods and commas inside quotations

The American system places the punctuation inside the quotations. “You are a fool,” the lady in red said. If you wanted her to state that loudly or emphatically, you would write, “You are a fool!” the lady in red said. Even better, use a better verb like “screamed.” “You are a fool,” the lady in red screamed.

Almost 75% of my American students do not follow this rule, just saying.

2. Depending on the publication and style guides, novels…