Self-publishing: more useful, basic tips for authors.
Self-publishing is becoming more popular and accessible, and many authors now prefer to edit their own work. All writers are aware that we cannot simply rely on the ‘auto-correct’ system on our computers. Sometimes it takes spelling, grammar and punctuation out of context and suggests an incorrect alternative. And sometimes it’s just WRONG!
To support anyone in the task of editing, I offer a further selection of common pitfalls, with some simple explanations. (See previous blog.)
In this blog, I shall concentrate mainly on words which sound the same, but are spelt differently.
To, too, two:
‘To’ would be used most often, except when we require a number, ‘two’, or wish to mean ‘also’ = ‘too’. Comparison also requires ‘too’.
e.g. My two friends are going to the beach, too, unless it’s too hot.
Who’s and whose:
Who’s simply means ‘who is’ (?) or ‘who has’ (?). Once again, the apostrophe denotes a missing letter or letters.
‘Whose’ really means ‘of whom?’ or ‘belonging to whom?’
e.g. “Whose idea was it to suggest who’s attending?” * Computer auto-correct just INCORRECTLY underlined (‘who’s = who is attending’), suggesting ‘whose’!!
Your, you’re:
‘Your’ shows possession or belonging.
‘You’re’ means ‘you are’. Again, an apostrophe denotes a missing letter: e.g. “You’re going to miss your train.”
Also consider: you’d = you had/you would
You’ll = you will/you shall (mostly used in dialogue).
“You’d better be quick or you’ll miss your train!”
Similarly, we’ve = we have,
we’ll = we will/shall,
we’d = we had/would
Where/were/we’re:
Where (?)= in/at/what place?
Were = past tense of ‘to be’.
We’re = we are
e.g. “We’re visiting the house where you were born.”
Past/Passed:
past = former / on(wards)/beyond
passed = the past tense of ‘to pass’.
e.g: At half past two, having just passed her driving test, she reluctantly walked past the patisserie.
Practice (noun)/ practise (verb).
e.g. She went to piano practice. / She likes to practise the piano. (UK)
Effect (noun)/affect (verb).
e.g. His mood is beginning to affect his work. / His mood is having a negative effect on his work.
I should like to finish by mentioning three very familiar errors which make me cringe.
Less/fewer.
To put it simply, ‘less’ is ‘to a smaller degree’. It usually reflects comparison.
e.g. “He is less intelligent than his brother.”
‘Fewer’ = a smaller number.
e.g. “10 items or fewer” is the correct phrase for the fast check-out in a supermarket. (Again, auto-correct thinks it should be “are the correct phrase” having picked up the word ‘items’.
e.g. She has less homework because she is studying fewer subjects.
‘Would of’ is completely wrong. It should be ‘would have’. Hooray! Auto-correct has underlined ‘would of’!!
e.g. He would have arrived earlier, but his train was late.
‘Off of’: These two words do not go together. Either word can be omitted.
Essentially, ‘off’ is the opposite of ‘on’, or signifies ‘no longer attached to, or associated with someone/something’.
A ghastly example is: “I can’t take my eyes off of you.” “I can’t take my eyes off you” is fine.
Which sounds better? “When I get off of work.” “When I get off work.” Neither? (Auto-correct is about to blow up at this stage, with green lines all over the place. It has, in fact, underlined the correct phrase!!)
‘Of’ means ‘from’ or ‘belonging to’ or specifies amount or quantity.
e.g. His mistakes are of his own making. He drinks a litre of vodka a day!
To show I am by no means perfect, I will leave you with a howler I spotted in my own work.
“It was a wait off his mind.” “It was a weight off his mind.” I am sure you can see which is correct!
R.S.Charles.
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