One of the things I’d like to do with this blog, is share resources with each other, especially ones that are thorough, yet easy to understand. Most of you are probably a lot younger than I, so this might not be quite as big of a problem, but I went to high school a very long time ago…graduated in 1962, to be exact. (Your math is correct. That’s more than 50 years ago!) But my point is that my English, while better than average, probably, is far less than perfect. And for me, good grammar is essential when writing a book. Don’t ever think that people won’t notice, because they do. And they mention things like that in reviews, which are so important to the sale of your books. So, unless you are an English teacher (and maybe even then, on occasion), you are going to want to have a quick and easy reference to grammar rules close at hand.
I have my trusty copy of Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style on my desktop, of course. (I firmly believe every writer needs a copy of that.) But I often head to websites and blogs that provide quick and easy to remember ways of refreshing the rules for me. One of the most useful blogs I’ve found is C. S. Lakin’s blog, Live, Write Thrive. She has some of the best and easiest ways to remember grammar rules, plus she gives fantastic advice on plotting, structure, and other topics we writers often want to learn more about.Â
When I Google for something like “the difference between affect and effect,” say, I frequently end up on Grammar Girl’s site, too, though I have to say, the page itself has gotten a bit unwieldy for me these days, with a ton of pop-ups and a less user-friendly interface than it once had. That could just be my browser, perhaps. But there’s a lot of great info to be found there.
I’d love to know what resources you’ve found that you can’t live without. I’m talking quick and easy references here, as opposed to the larger writing forums out there. Is there a blog, bulletin board, or website you use regularly? Inquiring minds wanna know! 🙂
The Write Stuff 
It isn’t grammar, but I find that I keep thesaurus.com open when I’m editing. I commonly notice that I’ve used the same word twice in one sentence, and the obvious replacement doesn’t pop onto the tip of my tongue until I skim over a list of possible synonyms. (I don’t look for words I don’t know there — just words I’ve forgotten.)
If I’m not 100% certain I’m using a word right, rather than going to the dictionary, I type “define:word” in google (where “word” is the word I’m looking for. In most cases, a quick definition pops right up in its own box. I also tend to use google if I can’t decide whether a term needs to be hyphenated or not — even if they don’t have it in their internal dictionary, if 400,000 hits come up for the hyphenated version and 2 million for the unhyphenated merged word, then I leave the hyphen out.
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Hi, Waldeneffect. I do some of that, too, especially a quick Google definition. Very helpful. As for a thesaurus, I love the one in Word. I can click on a word I feel I’ve overused, or that sounds uninspired, and it pops up to the right of my document, so I can scroll through the list for something that might work better.
Hyphenated words can be a problem though. Maybe the 400,000 hits are all people using hyphens correctly, and the two million are folks who haven’t a clue? 😯 Haha. I see your point, though. Still, usually I can find info on those pesky hyphens from one grammar blog or another. And my editor, Caitlin, is really good with them, too. So I trust her to fix those when I goof.
I honestly don’t think I’ve opened a print dictionary in five years or more. It’s much easier to google for a straight definition, I absolutely agree. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Hope we hear from some more folks with favorite grammar/punctuation/spelling blogs. I love Live, Write, Thrive’s way of giving me an example I can remember, so I not only get my answer I need, I learn how to remember it for the next time. I heartily recommend her blog to anyone who loves learning a more simple explanation for things than you learned in English class. And her writing tips are strong, too.
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I too keep a thesaurus handy along with my trusty word processor. I do subscribe to Live Write Thrive and saved a few others but I don’t visit them as often as I should. Someone once told me to write like I talk. Well considering I do not speak English that well either, that would not be a good idea!! 😀
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Hi, Patty. I keep the MS Word Thesaurus open in the window beside my document. I have to say, I haven’t opened my PRINT thesaurus in a long, long time. This is faster. 🙂
As for writing like you talk, I think that depends on what (or who) you are writing. In dialogue, for instance, proper grammar at all times might not be a very realistic way to go. Idiom and just the normal short cuts we use when we speak to each other wouldn’t be all that perfect. So, in the case of dialogue for certain characters, your natural way of speaking might be exactly what you need. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by! Have a great Sunday.
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good point, I never thought of it that way.
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