Common mistakes to watch for when editing

Here are some of the common mistakes and inconsistencies that I have to watch for when editing my own and other people’s writing.

1. Agreement with company names

In Australian and New Zealand English, company names take a singular verb, yet many of us use a plural verb, or switch between singular and plural. This is an easy mistake to make because although we are writing about an entity, we are often thinking about the people within the organisation.

     Bonds is a well known brand. (correct)
     Bonds are a well known brand. (incorrect)

2. Capitalisation

Many people were taught to capitalise everything that seemed ‘important’, but the modern trend is to use lower case apart from titles, defined terms or proper nouns. Even worse than overcapitalisation is inconsistent capitalisation – and this is common.

     The company manages some investments for the Fund.
     The managers gave a presentation to the fund.

3. Hyphenation

It’s easy to be inconsistent in hyphen usage. You may hyphenate a word in one place, but treat it as one word elsewhere.

     semi-colon
     semicolon (my preference)

4. Numbers

Many style guides recommend using words for one to nine and numerals for 10+, yet many writers switch between words and numbers indiscriminately. Check for consistency and decide how you will deal with small and large numbers in the same sentence.

     There were 5 applicants for one job and 12 for the other.
     There were five applicants for one job and 12 for the other.

5. Punctuation in lists

Check your lists when editing to make sure you are punctuating similarly structured lists the same way. Inconsistency problems often occur when points in a list all relate grammatically to an initial statement. You need to decide whether to capitalise the first word in each point and whether to use punctuation at the end of any of the points.

You can read more about punctuation in lists at http://www.onlinegrammar.com.au/punctuation-in-lists/

6. Headings

With a long document, it is helpful to set a hierarchy of headings so you can check your structure by looking at ‘View: Document map’ in Microsoft Word.

If you repeat a heading in another section, make sure you use the same heading. When I am writing a proposal, I repeat my headings when giving prices, and am surprised how often I use slightly different wording.

7. Acronyms and abbreviations

We all use acronyms and abbreviations, but they can get out of control, especially in long documents when acronyms and full terms are often used interchangeably. The convention is to spell them out the first time and use the acronym from then on.

     subject-matter expert (SME)...
     The SME...

I find when I am reading some board papers, I am constantly googling terms. This doesn’t always work because some are industry-specific.

If you have several people working on a document, it helps to set a style list first to reduce the amount of post-work editing needed.

Learn more

If you want to learn more about punctuation and styles, sign-up for an Online Writing Training course.

The changing role of the exclamation mark

It’s hard to imagine, but the exclamation mark didn’t become a standard feature on keyboards until the 1960s. For years its usage was fairly standard and we used exclamation marks for:

• Urgent commands (Run!)
• Expressing emotions (We won!)
• Irony (‘How nice!’ she said when I told her I was working over the Christmas break.)

Yet over the last decade, the exclamation mark appears to be morphing from an expression of strong emotion to a statement of friendliness. Or in the case of spammers, to add urgency to subject lines!

However, its bad reputation as a sign of sloppy writing remains. Take these quotes:

‘So far as good writing goes, the use of the exclamation mark is a sign of failure. It is the literary equivalent of a man holding up a card reading “laughter” to a studio audience.’
Miles Kingston, Punch

‘Except in poetry the exclamation mark should be used sparingly. Excessive use of exclamation marks in expository prose is a sure sign of an unpractised writer or of one who wants to add a spurious dash of sensation to something unsensational.’
Fowler's Modern English Usage

The use of an exclamation mark to express irony seems to be dying. A more common usage is several exclamation marks in a row to express sarcasm, and some writers now express irony through emoticons, such as a smiley face or a wink.

While the exclamation mark is dying as a way of expressing irony, its use in emails is growing. Many writers who responded to my e-newsletter piece on emails, admitted to using exclamation marks in emails, though some said they tried to limit the number they used and would often delete some before pressing ‘send’.

In an article in the Guardian (‘The Joy of Exclamation Marks!’), Stuart Jeffries quotes David Shipley and Will Schwalbe, who defend exclamation marks in their book, Send: The Essential Guide to Email for Office and Home.

Shipley and Schwalbe state that ‘I'll see you at the conference' is a simple statement of fact, whereas 'I'll see you at the conference!' lets your readers know you’re pleased and excited about the event. The authors also state that email has a ‘dulling quality that almost necessitates kicking everything up a notch just to bring it to where it would normally be’.

Jeffries also quotes research by Carol Waseleski (‘Gender and the Use of Exclamation Points in Computer-Mediated Communication’), who found that women use more exclamation marks than men. Ouch! Or is that a good thing if exclamation marks increase friendliness?

I don’t use exclamation marks in formal writing, but I do in emails. When I think about why I use them in emails, it’s often because I’m writing in haste and exclamation marks are a short-cut (lazy?) way of attaching some emotion (not just friendliness) to my words. Sometimes an exclamation mark seems to soften a statement or give my writing a bit more oomph. Yes, I could write without them, but they are handy.

How is your use of exclamation marks changing?

Online punctuation course

If you want to improve your punctuation, why not do Online Writing Training's An A to Z of Punctuation?

Favourite authors who write about writing

Like most writers, I enjoy reading about writing, so thought I would share some of my favourite authors who have influenced my writing.

Joseph M. Williams was a professor at the University of Chicago and wrote several books on writing, including Style: Toward Clarity and Grace.

I am not as avid a fan as I used to be, but he was the first writer who challenged the way I thought about sentences, so I am indebted to his work.

Kate Burridge is Chair of Linguistics at Monash University. She's written several books, including Blooming English: Observations on the roots, cultivation and hybrids of the English Language.

Her writing is entertaining and I like the way she challenges some plain language tenets, such as the active voice is the better than the passive, and disagrees with Lynne Truss (Eats, Shoots & Leaves) about some aspects of apostrophes.

William Zinsser taught at Yale University and his most famous book is On Writing Well. This book has sound advice and is an enjoyable read. Will it challenge your thinking? Probably not, but you'll be reminded of some fundamental writing principles.

Luke Sullivan, author of Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This. As Amazon says, this book is a 'funny, irreverent overview of the good, the bad, and the ugly in advertising'. It's also relevant for marketers.

Robert W. Bly is a prolific writer on marketing copy. When I was learning how to promote myself, I found his information invaluable. I haven't read anything of his in recent times, but I am sure he is still worth reading. http://bly.com/

Stephen King, author of horror books and a book called On Writing. I enjoyed this book because –– – being part memoir and part writing advice – it is entertaining and easy to read.

Dorothea Brande's famous book Becoming a Writer was published in 1934. It's still a classic for anyone interested in writing fiction, reminding you how writing requires commitment and practice.

Websites and blogs

I realise as I wrote this list that I am stuck in the realm of books. So, please help me broaden my world of writing to include blogs and more websites. Comment below or email mary@themfactor.com.au Thanks.

Acronyms and initialisms

We often use the term acronym for all first-letter abbreviations, but strictly speaking, an acronym is a string of initial letters that are pronounced as a word, for example, AIDS, which stands for ‘acquired immune deficiency syndrome’.

Some acronyms have become such an accepted part of the language that they are seldom spelt out, for example, scuba, sonar and Qantas. Indeed, most people struggle to remember what they originally stood for.

scuba – self-contained underwater breathing apparatus
sonar – sound navigation and ranging
Qantas – Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services

An initialism is a string of initial letters that is not pronounced as a word, for example, FAQ, which stands for ‘frequently asked question’. In most instances, you need to spell out the full name of a term when you use it for the first time, then put the initialism in brackets directly after it.

Fire and Rescue New South Wales (FRNSW) released its annual report.

Guidelines for using acronyms and initialisms

If you are writing a document that contains several different initialisms or acronyms, consider ways to avoid constantly repeating them. For example, environmental impact statement (EIS) could become the statement, and Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) could become the program.

Alternatively, you could provide a glossary of terms at the back.

Initialisms and capitals
Many initialisms are written in capitals, but when you spell out the words, the normal rules of capitals apply.

New South Wales (NSW)
earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA)

A or an and the with initialisms and acronyms
Let the spoken word be your guide when deciding whether to use a or an before an initialism or acronym.

He made an STD call to talk to his mother.

If an initialism or acronym can be pronounced as a word (NATO, UNESCO, ASIC), it does not generally need to take the definite article (the). Other abbreviated names are usually preceded by the.

NATO has its headquarters in Brussels.
The KGB is a Russian organisation.

Plurals of initialisms and acronyms
Most initialisms are made plural by adding an s. There is no need for an apostrophe.

MPs not MP’s
ISPs not ISP’s

If an acronym ends with s, you add an s, not es, for example, SOSs (not SOSes).

Australian states and territories
Some organisations use capitals for all states, for example, NSW, VIC, QLD, but the conventional method is to use capitals for initialisms and the first few letters for state names that are one word:

ACT   
NSW
NT    
Qld
SA
Tas
Vic
WA 

Common mistakes with acronyms and initialisms

Common style mistakes are using:

• Quotation marks inside the brackets (“NSWFB”)
• Full stops between each letter (F.A.Q.)
• Apostrophes with plural initialisms (FAQs not FAQ’s)

Five commonly confused words

Online Writing Training's online program, 100 Commonly Confused Words, includes the following words.

advice and advise

If a financial advisor advises you well, you may follow the advice. Memory jog: unwanted advice is a vice.

 

 

affect and effect

The weather affects the town and the effect (result) is disastrous. Memory jog: a for action.

dependant and dependent

A child is a dependant. She relies on others for her keep.

The man is dependent on his computer. He needs it even when he's on the bus.

 

deserts or desserts?

If you receive an appropriate punishment, do you get your just deserts or just desserts?

Answer: just deserts

This word is not related to deserts of sand and cactus or desserts that are puddings. This deserts comes from the same word as deserve.

it's and its

It's a wise dog that scratches its own fleas. (Strunk & White)

It's is short for it is and its is possessive. The fleas belong to the dog.

 

Blogging fatigue - is it worth it?

Last month I started to feel a bit overwhelmed by social media and wondered how anyone managed to get anything done while trying to keep up with all the demands of social media: tweeting, blogging, updating Facebook, connecting on Linkedin and so on.

And for a while I lost sight of what I was communicating and started to focus on the stats: I must reach 30 likes on Facebook to see my stats; I must reach 200 connections on Linkedin (other people have 500+); how many people are looking at my websites this month?

I regained my sanity by reading Debbie Weil’s book, The Corporate Blogging Book. Though aimed at the corporate market rather than at individuals, it is relevant for anyone who blogs. As she says on her website: ‘Blogging is no longer optional. A blog is a next-generation Web site. A blog is the home base of your social media strategy. Think of it as the hub of the wheel.’

She says a good corporate blog is updated frequently. I am never going to meet her measure of a couple of times a week, but agree that once started, a blog needs to be maintained. In terms of writing style she says: ‘The writing voice is authentic, friendly and conversational... A good blog serves up a hard-to-quantify mix of information, opinion and controversy. Er, controversy? Yes, even if it just means acknowledging a problem with your product or service. And then listening to feedback from your readers.’

But if we’re being controversial, what about the backlash? I write about grammar and writing topics and sometimes cringe when people respond to my views on grammar. When people are commenting on the blogosphere they seem to forget that they are writing to real people and think it is OK to be really rude.

Debbie Weil says: ‘When it comes to corporate blogging, the elephant in the room is fear.’ She lists the following fears: time, legal liability, employees wasting time on blogs, getting bitten by the blogosphere, damaging your brand by allowing negative comments, poor writing, lack of business results, managing the technical aspects of a blog, and losing control.

None of those fears is enough to stop us blogging though. In 2011, NM Incite, a Nielsen/McKinsey company, tracked over 181 million blogs around the world, up from 36 million in 2006.

But what about the results? Debbie Weil says the ROI of blogging is not a return on investment that can be measured in dollars, rather a ROB (return on blog) that results in more ‘connections, discovery, information, word-of-mouse, leverage, amplification and efficiencies’. You can still measure the success of your blog, even if not by dollars, and the most obvious measure is search engine results.

What makes for a successful blog? Debbie Weil maintains the success of a blog is ultimately determined by the satisfaction of the person writing it. She quotes an AOL survey of 600 bloggers that found nearly 50 per cent reported blogging was a form of therapy.

Now, I do not intend to think of my blog as therapy, but I will take my focus off my stats and continue to write about topics that enthuse and interest me.

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Bullet points or prose in executive summaries

Many writers use bullet points in executive summaries on the basis that they are short and to the point, and because they believe that most readers prefer to read bullet points rather than prose.

It is true that bullet points can be short and to the point, but the choice between bullet points or prose should be based on purpose, not what you think people prefer.

If your summary is factual and you are outlining highlights and issues, then bullet points work well. In such a list each point is a separate fact or event and you do not need to show the interconnectedness between them. 

Writing to persuade
If you are writing to persuade, for example in a proposal or business case, prose is more effective, because you want to lead your reader through your arguments. Persuasive writing is storytelling.

For example:

• Company X does a, b and c.
• There are d employees engaged in producing a, b and c.
• The overhead costs are $e per annum.
• Other companies using our services have reduced their overhead costs by up to f%.
• X could reduce its overhead costs by using our services.

In prose, this could read as:

Company X employs d employees to produce a, b and c, with overhead costs of $e per annum.

X could reduce its overhead costs by using our services. Other companies using our services have reduced their costs by up to f%.

Should your proof come before your offer?
Looking at the above example, a colleague and I debated which should go first: what you can do for the client or what you have done for other clients?

In my opinion, people want to know what you can do for them before hearing the proof of what you have done for others. My colleague’s argument was that your credibility comes before your offer.

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