Part 13- Grammar, the serious version

One of the biggest reasons that people won't continue a fanfic after a foreword, other than the fic just not being interesting, is that the grammar of the story, even in the foreword, is terrible. Grammar is one of the most complicated things to master, and I think there aren't that many people that have. I sure haven't, but I try my hardest. I am going to try and help anyone that cares with their grammar.

Ex. So I wAs ToTaLlY tHiNkInG oF wRiTiNg ThIs WhOlE tHiNg LiKe ThIs, BuT iT iS a PaIn In ThE aSs To Do.we try to right correctly,but sometimes we miss the mark. AND I WAS LIKE OMG, NO WAY! 1 fic was really getting on my nurvs and i wanted 2 4get it all. Like we do himself sometimes all day we love.

First of all, all sentences must start with a capital letter. Maybe other languages, Korean for instance, don't have capital letters, but English needs to have one at the beginning of every sentence. Capital letters will also go at the beginning of names like Yunho, Taeyeon, Seungho, names like that. They will also go at the beginning of proper nouns. A noun is a person, place, or thing, a proper noun is something that... is a title or location name, like Russia, Almighty Key, Great Pyramids of Giza.

English always needs to have capital letters at the beginning of a sentence, for proper nouns, and names.

Next is punctuation. At the end of every sentence there needs to either be a period (.) a question mark (?) or an exclamation mark (!) to show that the thought has ended. This is to avoid sentences meshing together and becoming confusing.

To make a sentence longer you can make it compound or complex.

A compound sentence is a complete sentence with a comma added on and a FANBOYS word with a second complete sentence. FANBOYS are the words FOR, AND, NOR, BUT, OR, YET,  and SO. These words are added after another sentence and a comma to make a proper compound sentence. If there is not a FANBOYS word then a semicolon is needed instead.

Ex. I like Jaejoong's voice, and find Heechul's personality entertaining.

Ex. I like Jaejoong's voice; I find Heechul's personality entertaining.

Most of the time it is better to use a compound sentence with FANBOYS, but be careful about putting commas when they are not needed.

Ex. I like Jaejoong and Heechul.

Technically, you are not supposed to start a sentence with one of the FANBOYS because they are only meant for the second half of compound sentences as they add onto the thought presented originally. It is acceptable to write a fic with For or But start the sentence, but it is improper. On a formal document keep in mind that you should never do that. For fics, use it less frequently because everything but dialogue should be written correctly. Dialogue is allowed leeway for the person of character dialect.

A complex sentence starts with words like When, As, Before, Until, If, While. Those words going at the beginning of a sentence make an incomplete thought.

Ex. When I was still a child...

To finish this sentence a comma is needed and a complete sentence after.

Ex. When I was still a child, I thought my closet was haunted.

Funny thing about complex sentences is that you can write a converse of that, or flip it around.

Ex. I thought my closet was haunted when I was still a child.

Compound and Complex sentences add variety to the story and makes it more interesting to read. Without them the story because sort of like a list of events.

Ex. I woke up this morning. I put on clothes. I slept on my couch. My dad woke me up. He drove me to school.

Ex. I woke up this morning, and I put on clothes. I slept on my couch, but my dad woke me up before he drove me to school.

Another thing to keep in mind is that after every punctuation mark (. , ? ! ; :) there needs to be a space.

Ex. School might be canceled on my birthday.My friends might not be able to give me my presents.

Ex. 2 there is a lot of ice on the roads.cars might get in a lot of wrecks,and that would make me sad.

If there isn't a space then it becomes one word, and that is incorrect.

Now we are moving on to spelling. Spelling is also a very hard thing, especially for people that don't speak English originally. The best thing to do is to try and use a dictionary if you don't know how to spell a word. Often times I just use a word that means a similar thing if I don't know how to spell it. When typing a fic, use word or some writing software that will correct your spelling. If you don't have access to something like that, on AFF there is a spell check button. It is a little glitchy, but it works most of the time. The internet has a spell check option.

A beta reader could work too. If you aren't sure which word is correct, precedent or president, then get an English speaker or someone you know has reasonable grammar skills to check your work. I have wanted to offer being a beta, or actually sending a corrected copy of the fic to the author many times, but that is too much work and I don't want to do that.

Making up words is okay as long as you use them right and the slang is something that is recognizable.

A hard thing about English is really that words sounds alike and are spelled differently or spelled the same and sound different. There are a lot of simple errors that can be made, and this is extremely hard for someone that doesn't originally speak English to keep track of.

This is something I have put up before, but it fits nicely into this topic.

Allusion- reference to something
Illusion- unreal image

Breath- (noun) a lungful of air you inhale
Breathe- (verb) the act of taking in air *now I will allude to G-D's Breathe. "I can breathe. I can breathe..."*

Conscience- a sense of right and wrong
Conscious- to be awake and alert
Conscientious- to be dutiful and hardworking

Desert- a place with little or no rain like the Sahara or Antarctica
Dessert- the sweet goodness of yum you eat at the end of meals and everyone loves them except anorexic people and guys that won’t admit that they like sweets so even they love them

Lose- to misplace or suffer the loss of (to lose your head)
Loose- moveable; not fastened (your head is loose)

Principal- of great importance (the principal reason) or the head of a school
Principle- a value or standard

Regardless- despite everything
Irregardless- NOT A REAL WORD, regardless needs to be used instead

Their- a possessive pronoun (shows ownership)
They’re- conjugation of ‘They are’
There- over yonder, a directional term (hither is here)

Number- is when referring to something that can be counted
Amount- is when referring to something cannot be counted

Aggravate- to make a situation worse
Irritate- to annoy

Alternate- a substitute
Alternative- a choice between two or more things

Effect- (n) a result of outcome
Affect- (v) to influence or change

To- preposition; (to the shore, want to, to be of)
Too- also *tambien*
Two- the freaking number 2

Could of- improper grammar, use Could HAVE
Should of- improper grammar, use Should HAVE

Whose- possessive (glad I finally know the difference)
Who’s- who is

Your- the possessive form of ‘You’
You’re- conjugation of ‘You are’

Famous- a well known person
Infamous- notorious, famous in a bad way (like poor Jessica)

Advice- (noun) counsel given to someone
Advise- (verb) to give counsel

Than- used to introduce the second part of a comparison
Then- next in order

Can- to be able (Can I go to the bathroom? I don’t know, can you?)
May- to have permission to (May I go to the bathroom? Hurry, don’t pee yourself.)

Access- to gain entry of control of
Assess- to note and evaluate
Excess- too much of

Course- a class, a way of
Coarse- rough, harsh

This is all I can think of at this moment. I'm not actually looking at any fic and thinking, 'that is wrong,' because I am doing this only to avoid projects. If you think of anything else you want me to address, please ask because I am the daughter/ granddaughter of English teachers.