Spelling and grammar for writers

My approach to learning spelling and grammar rules is based on my own experience, so it won't necessarily work for everyone. I was able to 'get a feel' for the rules without actually knowing them or being taught them. At school I was in the top class for English (out of 10 levels) and at that level they didn't teach us any grammar because it was assumed we already knew everything. Not so, in my case - that assumption that 'someone else must have already taught me' was carried right through my school years. I actually didn't even know what a verb was, but I could write correct English with all of the appropriate verb usage because I had always been an avid reader. I was also a slow reader, so I had time to notice how sentences were constructed and to notice the spellings used by an author, and that was enough to bluff my way through school and university.

So now I'm fairly sure that I understand the rules of grammar and spelling. I still make a lot of mistakes, but that's usually because I type too fast (that's my excuse for any typos on this website!). I learned the rules the same way we all learn our native language - from assimilation and naturally picking it up from the world around us. Most adults are not confident with their spelling abilities, and they think the only way to fix that is to learn a dictionary by heart. My suggestion is to relax, pick up a book, and read it. Read a book every week (preferably something similar to what you want to write - so read screenplays and scripts if that's your ambition), but read slowly and actively. Be aware of the sentence construction. Notice the spellings of long words. Notice the difference usage of their and there, its and it's, your and you're. Most adults struggle with those examples and many others like them, and they claim it's because they weren't taught the usage at school. That shouldn't matter. Just read actively and notice each time those words and phrases appear, and think about why that version of the word is used and not the other version. I'm not guaranteeing that everything you read will contain correct usage of these words - I see them used wrongly every day, even on the BBC news website (and if anyone should know better it's the BBC!). But at least the majority of printed media will have been correctly edited and will give plenty of examples for us all to learn from.

What about spellcheck and grammar checking in word processors?
These have a limited use. If anyone were to write a page and then follow all of the computer's suggestions the result would be gibberish. You have to recognise the limitations of these tools and work to the following procedure:

1. Check to see whether your language settings are for US English or International (or British) English. The suggestions and results will vary according to those settings, so get that right for your own territory to start with.

2. Look at all of the spelling suggestions. Microsoft Word underlines words in red when it thinks they might be errors. People and place names are often underlined in this way, so if you're sure you've typed them correctly right click on the mouse and choose 'add'. This will add those words to the computer's dictionary so that the underlining will disappear throughout the document. Now that there is less red in the document you can focus on the real errors. Look at the computer's suggestions by right-clicking on the underlined word. Usually the correct spelling of the word is there, but not always. Be prepared to disagree with the computer. It's not as intelligent as you are (not yet, anyway...).

3. Ignore nearly all of the grammar suggestions. These are underlined in green in Microsoft Word, and most of them are unnecessary. Where they are useful is in spotting duplicate words, missing words and excessively long sentences. Where they trip up, frequently, is in suggesting a rephrasing of a sentence in such a way that it would no longer make sense. Be confident in your own judgement as to the merits of a sentence and be prepared to over-rule the computer. The grammar checker has the following settings: casual; standard; formal; technical; custom. Changing from formal to casual settings will result in far fewer green underlinings. Make sure your settings reflect the tone of your writing.

4. Fresh human eyes are the best way to check the final draft of a document. That means someone other than you, because you will not have a fresh approach to your own writing. So give it to someone else to read. They don't have to be professional editors, just keen readers. Most readers can spot mistakes in text that they didn't write. They may even spot mistakes that your computer put in the document, thinking it was being helpful.

Want a sneak preview of How to be a Writer? It's out in paperback, and you can download a free sample right now:

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Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.com

This is a book for people who love punctuation and get upset about it. From the invention of the question mark in the time of Charlemagne to Sir Roger Casement "hanged on a comma"; from George Orwell shunning the semicolon to Peter Cook saying Nevile Shute's three dots made him feel all funny", this book makes a powerful case for the preservation of a system of printing conventions that is much too subtle to be mucked about with.

This book has been a mega-seller because it tapped into a desire to get things right, and it is written in a fun way with examples that are not dusty and difficult to grasp - they come from the media around us - television, signs, magazines etc.