Basic spelling and grammar advice

[hardykitty]

hi i write mostly umm ok all most all rape fic but the all have fluff but all most all my sex sence are the same and if you haven't noticed my spelling sucks. well any advice you can give i would truly appreate it thank you

SIGN

KITTY

[Iggy_lovechild]

Okay, I must be reading this post wrong, but I'll try. Does it really say you only write rape fics but your stories are all fluff?

*is confused* Please try to be more clear.

[NinjaGaijin]

Hi Kitty,

First advice: Fix your spelling. There is no excuse for a writer in that matter.

[EveKnight75]

hi i write mostly umm ok all most all rape fic but the all have fluff but all most all my sex sence are the same and if you haven't noticed my spelling sucks.  well any advice you can give i would truly appreate it thank you

SIGN

KITTY

I already run the NE forum so I might as well take a stab at translating this.

Hi! I mostly write rape fics. Um, OK, almost all of my fics are rape fics. BUT they all have fluff! But almost all of my sex scenes are the same. And if you haven't noticed, my spelling sucks. Well, is there any advice you can give? I would truly appreciate it. Thank you!

Signed, Kitty

I didn't say it would be a perfect translation.

Well, I think you have problems with grammar too, Kitty. You already realize this and you want to try to fix this. That's a good start. I think that maybe you should take a break from writing and spend more time reading books. Not online fiction - printed books. The thing is, books are guaranteed to be proof-read before they're published, so you can trust the spelling and grammar. The more you read, the more you'll pick up, the more you'll improve.

Once you feel that your English has improved, you can try again. Meanwhile, it wouldn't hurt to search for a beta reader to go over what you've already posted to fix spelling and grammar mistakes.

And yes, I actually do understand how there can be fluff in a rape fic. Not easy, but not impossible. It has to be done carefully or it's just insulting.

[hardykitty]

Thank you, belive it or not i do read books. Grammer and spelling just come very hard for me, thank you soo much and i hope none of my fics turn out to be insulting; If they are please tell me before i make a total fool of myself. Well i'm off to practice my grammer and read more books. Thank you all soooooooo much.

P.S

Was my spelling, and or grammer better this time around?

SIGN

KITTY

Edited May 15, 2007 by hardykitty

[Nanaea]

Hello Kitty, Ms. Grammar here.

It's much better than your original post. First, let's tackle that spelling:

Believe is spelled believe (there's a lie in there - how's that for irony?). Grammar is 'AR' at the end, not 'ER' (a very common mistake, don't feel too bad about it). Some people think that adding extra vowels to a word conveys extreme emotions better, e.g., I'm sooooo tired. It's acceptable in casual conversations, I suppose, but never in formal writing.

Believe it or not, my spelling isn't the greatest either. What's the secret of my success? My best friend is a spell checker. Most word processing programs come with a built-in spell checker, so use it. If you are entering text into a text area field on a web page, you can copy and paste it into a word processing program to check the spelling before you post. Alternately, there are some online spell checkers (like SpellCheck.net) that will allow you to do the same thing. Or just download a browser, like Firefox, that has a built-in spell checker.

Now let's tackle that grammar:

The personal pronoun "I" is always capitalized, as are all proper nouns (the name of a person, place or thing: i.e., Nanaea, Ireland, Hacky Sack). Using a lowercase 'i' when referring to oneself online is, unfortunately, common practice borne of laziness. How hard is it to hit the 'shift' key, really? Not only is it grammatically incorrect, but it also speaks volumes about how self-confident a person feels. If you can't respect yourself enough to capitalize 'I', then how can you expect anyone else to respect you? (I apologize if that sounds a bit harsh, but it's a pet peeve of mine.)

Here's how your post should have been written:

Thank you. Believe it or not, I do read books. Grammar and spelling just come very hard for me. Thank you so much, and I hope that none of my fics turn out to be insulting. If they are, please tell me before I make a total fool of myself. Well, I'm off to practice my grammar and read more books. Thank you all so much!

P.S. Was my spelling and/or grammar better this time around?

I'm gonna break it apart for you and explain my choices sentence by sentence.

Here's your first lesson: A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought. Repeat it to yourself three times, out loud. A sentence always begins with a capital letter, and ends with a punctuation mark (most often, it's a period).

"Thank you," is a complete thought. You can say it by itself, and people will understand what you mean.

"Believe it or not, I do read books," is the next complete thought. You need a comma in there, after not, because I do read books is an independent clause - it has everything it needs to make sense, but the portion before it is a dependent clause, it needs the portion after the comma to make sense.

"Grammar and spelling just come very hard for me," is your next complete thought.

"Thank you so much, and I hope that none of my fics turn out to be insulting," is a compound sentence. It is essentially two complete sentences joined together by a conjunction (and). A comma always comes before the conjunction (and, but, or, nor, yet, so...) in a compound sentence. Also, insulting probably wasn't the best word to express your concern here. Offensive would have been a better choice. If you don't understand why, then look both words up in a dictionary (like Merriam-Webster Online).

Your next complete thought is, "If they are, please tell me before I make a total fool of myself." There is a comma after are because the portion before it is (I believe) an adverbial phrase (it modifies what comes after the comma). Alright, this one I'm not 100% sure on. I'm not a professional grammarian after all. Sheesh!

"Well, I'm off to practice my grammar and read more books," is your next complete thought. There is a comma after well because it is an interjection - it's shoved in front of the sentence, but isn't really necessary to the meaning. It does, however (there's another interjection!), affect the tone, so it's not completely useless.

"Thank you all so much!" is your last complete thought. I added an exclamation point to show heartfelt emotion. Oh, and you're welcome.

Last, but certainly not least, is your post script; "P.S. Was my spelling and/or grammar better this time around?" And/or gets a nifty virgule, better known as a slash around here. The virgule represents alternatives that exist simultaneously, or are offered up as possible choices.

Please note that my example is just one of several possible interpretations. The rules of grammar do have a certain amount of flexibility inherent in them.

I would also suggest a trip to the library to check out some basic grammar, usage and mechanics books. Karen Elizabeth Gordon has some wonderful books that aren't the slightest bit boring, but you might want to start with something simpler first.

[hardykitty]

OK. That was easy to understand. but what about paragraphs? I was reading a book last night and some sentences aren't in a paragraph but, just by them selves. I thought all sentences had to be in a paragraph?

[Leonhart29]

I have been guilty of this one. It depends on if you have another thought to go with the sentence. There are times when you don't and adding another sentence would confuse the paragraph beyond belief. I'm sure my high school English teacher would try and rake me over the coals for that one though.

[hardykitty]

Thank you. that was very confusing. So sentences can be by themselfs, if there one thought and can't go with the paragraph before or after.

[NinjaGaijin]

Passing comment: This thread seems to be very useful, not just for HardyKitty, which is visibly improving (that's great!), but for all writers who want to improve.

[StoryJunkie]

shifts eyes.

exactly, my dear...(narrows eyes) ...HOW old did you say you were?

*icy cold stare*....

*creeps off to read your profile*

(Later): "March 1985" Hmmm

*creeps off to read your story*

(Later):

Kit-half demon half kerin (will explain that later) 15 turning 16 born

in inuysah time but runs to kagomes time when he is ran from his village returns

with kagome but looks like a human because of a jewel he keeps around his neck. Inuyasha

doesn’t like the fact that he is so secretive

And get into a fight with him and his claw catches the necklace and breaks it

reaveling him as his half demon self right in front of koga sesshumeru and naraku his half sister kitta blabs

about his powers then latter tells inuyasha and the gang the secrets of kits past

Hm.....not getting a good picture here....

Perhaps you may get your "writing" advice from a less "adult" site.

Orochimaru doesn't think you're 22!

Orochimaru thinks you are less than 12 and more than 8!

DEFEND YOURSELF!

[EveKnight75]

NinjaGajin, this is precisely why I've changed the topic title and thread. The OP was asking for advice when it came to a change of pace in writing sex scenes for rape-fics which have some fluff in them. It quickly evolved into something else.

HardyKitty: StoryJunkie is the official stealer of souls on this forum. If you are truly a minor, she shall steal yours then torture it. I kid you not. However, if your e-mail address and b-day are truly valid, you're safe. Besides, you have the attitude of a mature adult, so I'll give you the benefit of a doubt and hold Orochimaru back... for now.

[StoryJunkie]

*pouts*

(stomps foot)

I wanted to scare the bejesus out of her Eve, c'mon!

Party pooper!

[hardykitty]

Not to worry i am 22 (I'm just immature) and i have a 7 month old little girl, named charlee shiann. (sorry mother moment)

p.s Thank you storiejunkie because my boyfriend says i act 5 so over 8 is an improvment.

[StoryJunkie]

Well then....*puts hand down from forehead at last*

I won't take your soul....for now!

However, I am now contemplating hunting down your grade 10 grammar teacher and giving her a good long spank.

[hardykitty]

Good luck droped out in 9th. I know i shouldn't have But I am going back to school soon.

[StoryJunkie]

Thwarted again!

well, in that case, any of the moderators on this forum are excellent grammar nazis. I'm sure they will help you to the fullest extent of their abilities. (well, except for any artists, but we forgive them for that). As for me, I'll be watching you. I expect much improvement.

Consider that publishing in RL requires very strict guidelines, and even the most perfect of works can be rejected for random reasons. Just because you decide to publish on the net doesn't mean those standards must languish like a dead skunk in the middle of the highway.

(edit) cute baby!!!

however, ahem, that doesn't sway my convictions in the least!

*walks confidently away, then, once out of sight, melts against the doorjamb*

(damn smiley babies! why are they so darn cute?)

[hardykitty]

Thank you. God I say that alot. I am hoping to improve