----------------------------------------------------------------- THE BETTER WRITING SKILLS NEWSLETTER, October 2009 By Tim North of Scribe Consulting www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to the October 2009 Better Writing Skills newsletter. IN THIS ISSUE 1. Do we use a comma with "and"? 2. When do we say "how many" instead of "how much"? 3. What's the passive voice, and why should I care? 4. Just for fun Your comments and questions are always welcome. Just send e-mail to: info@scribe.com.au Cheers, Tim North (Perth, Western Australia) ----------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Do we use a comma with "and"? ----------------------------------------------------------------- My first correspondent this month, Farrah, wrote in and asked about the correct use of a comma with the word "and". I don't normally use a lot of jargon in this newsletter. I prefer, instead, to use plain English in my replies. This month, though, seems to be my month for jargon as each of my articles involves some jargon. I'm going to beg your indulgence when I start my reply to Farrah's question by defining the term INDEPENDENT CLAUSE. An independent clause is simply a group of words that could stand alone as a sentence. Consider: Today is Monday. Today is Monday, and tomorrow will be Tuesday. The first sentence contains one independent clause. The second contains two of them. "Today is Monday" is the first, and "tomorrow will be Tuesday" the second. Here then is our important rule: Use a comma before the word "and" if it comes between two independent clauses. These following sentences each consist of two independent clauses, so they DO have a comma before the word "and": This is red, and it's also green. I like this, and I would like to buy it. He's good at his job, and he's always on time. We have finished the work, and we are looking forward to the weekend. The following sentences don't consist of two independent clauses, so they DON'T need a comma before the word "and": This is red and green. I like this and would like to buy it. He's good at his job and always on time. We have finished the work and are looking forward to the weekend. The same principle applies for these other small joining words: but, for, nor, or, so, yet For example: This is nice, but it's too expensive. I like it but not enough to buy it. Notice that only the first of these needs a comma. Hope this helps. -- By the way, you'll find a full coverage of punctuation (and much more) in my downloadable e-book "Editing and Proofreading". A full table of contents is available here: http://www.scribe.com.au/editing-proofreading-2.html -- (c) 2009 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- 2. When do we say "how many" instead of "how much"? ----------------------------------------------------------------- A while ago I was asked to clarify when to say "how many" and when to say "how much". Well, first, we need two simple definitions: * COUNTABLE NOUNS are things that can be preceded by "a" or "an" and can be made plural. For example, apple (an apple, apples), man (a man, men) and egg (an egg, eggs). * UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS don't usually get preceded by "a" or "an" and don't usually have a plural form. For example, happiness, petrol, mud, rice and education. Now it's really simple: 1. We use "how many" if the noun is countable. For example, "How many apples ...". 2. We use "how much" if the noun is uncountable. For example, "How much petrol ...". Hope this helps. -- (c) 2009 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- Do you know someone who'd like this newsletter? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Do you have a friend or colleague who'd find the Better Writing Skills newsletter interesting? If so, please feel free to send a copy of this issue to them. Alternatively, please tell them they can browse back issues here: http://www.scribe.com.au/newsletter.html Thanks for helping to make this newsletter so successful! ----------------------------------------------------------------- 3. What's the passive voice, and why should I care? ----------------------------------------------------------------- I commented last month that Microsoft Word's grammar checker was "notoriously bad". One of its worst sins is putting a green wavy line under a passage of text then issuing the abrupt advice "passive voice". This is clearly of no help if you don't know what the passive voice is. Fortunately, it's not nearly as technical as it sounds. Let's find out what's going on. Sentences written in the ACTIVE VOICE have the following structure: DO-ER ACTION RECEIVER For example: John wrote the report. We misplaced your correspondence. The council reserved its decision. As you can see, sentences written in the active voice all start with the do-er of the action. Sentences written in the PASSIVE VOICE, though, don't start with the do-er. They typically start with the receiver of the action: RECEIVER ACTION BY-WHOM For example: The report was written by John. Your correspondence was misplaced by us. The decision was reserved by the Council. Okay. We've made a distinction between the two. Traditional advice has always been that it is preferable to write in the active voice rather than the passive voice. But why? Well, the active voice tends to sound simpler and more direct. Also, it often requires fewer words. Compare: John wrote the report. (Active: 4 words) The report was written by John. (Passive: 6 words) I should end by saying that I don't feel that the world is going to end if you write a few sentences in the passive voice now and then. (Certainly I do in my writing.) Nonetheless, using the active voice more often will improve your writing by making it simpler and more direct. Hope this helps. -- (c) 2009 Tim North: http://www.BetterWritingSkills.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Just for fun ----------------------------------------------------------------- This month have a look at the same-colour illusion: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Same_color_illusion http://www.metacafe.com/watch/925105/lightness_illusion/ It has nothing to do with writing, but it does lay claim to being a most extraordinary optical illusion. Enjoy. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Would you like more help with your writing? ----------------------------------------------------------------- On my web site, you'll find my range of jargon-free, downloadable e-books that will help you to become a better writer. These e-books will help you with business proposals, report writing, term papers, technical writing, grant writing, creative writing and more: http://www.scribe.com.au/ebooks.html ----------------------------------------------------------------- REPRODUCING THIS MATERIAL You're welcome to reproduce the articles from this newsletter that are copyrighted by Tim North, but please don't modify or sell them. Also, please provide a clickable link back to: http://www.scribe.com.au FUTURE MAILINGS You can prevent (or receive) future mailings by visiting this page: http://www.scribe.com.au/newsletter.html This is a GENUINE service, and you will not receive any unsolicited e-mail as a result. 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