It doesn’t matter what type of writer you are, you need to know the writing mistakes you need to avoid because everyone makes mistakes, and some of those mistakes go unnoticed most of the time, and that lowers the quality of your writing. That’s why in this blog, we’ll delve into the top writing mistakes to avoid, and at the end we’ll review the best writing tool that will help you craft perfect texts.
Grammar Gremlins:
- Subject-Verb Disagreement: This is a common mistake that happens when the subject and verb in a sentence doesn’t match in the number. So when the subject is in singular and the verb in plural, for example: “He (singular) are (plural) my favorite writer (singular)”
Fix It: Always double-check subject-verb agreement, especially when you’re working with pronouns or subjects connected by “and” or “or.” Sometimes you even need to rewrite the sentence to ensure clarity. - Run-on Sentences: This is a writing mistake that we often see, it creates confusion by combining two or more independent clauses without proper punctuation, making it hard for readers to understand the text. Try to imagine a marathon runner who never stops for a breath, that’s a run-on sentence because proper punctuation is what allows readers to have small pauses.
Fix It: Break long and complex sentences into two separate ones, but make sure they still carry their main point . To ensure a readable text, use a semicolon or a comma with a coordinating conjunction (like “and” or “but”) to create a compound sentence. - Comma Splices: These mistakes are similar to run-on sentences because comma splices incorrectly join independent clauses with only a comma. This creates a breathless, choppy effect that will confuse your readers.
Fix It: After the comma use a coordinating conjunction (and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet) or a semicolon, or separate the clauses into individual sentences to ensure your sentences are properly structured.
Clarity and Concision:
- Passive Voice: Passive voice weakens sentences by placing the object of the action at the forefront, and that will make your writing look unconfident, so for example, instead of saying “The report was written by me,” say “I wrote the report.”
Fix It: Try to identify every sentence that’s constructed with passive voice and rewrite them in active voice. This strengthens your writing by making it confident and clarifies who or what is performing the action, and this also simplifies your writing.. - Wordiness: One of the most counterproductive things you can do, is to hide your central message inside a mountain of unnecessary words, so always use concise language and eliminate unnecessary phrases that will only make your writing unnecessarily long and boring.
Fix It: To identify this writing mistake, try to identify sentences that look awkward or are hard to understand. And always replace bloated phrases with stronger verbs or single words that will deliver the same message in a clearer way.
Mechanics and Mishaps:
- Misplaced Modifiers: If you have misplaced modifiers, they will create ambiguity by attaching to the wrong word or phrase, and that’s a rookie writing mistake, so try to avoid it at all costs.
Fix It: Always ensure your modifiers clearly connect to the intended noun or pronoun and rewrite the sentence if needed for clarity and conciseness. - Homophone Havoc: Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings, and they can confuse even the best writers. Some examples areThere’s, their, and they’re
Fix It: Proofread carefully, and always pay close attention to homophones. It is also a good idea to use a dictionary or thesaurus if you’re not completely sure about the meaning of any word. - Inconsistent Tense:You will ensure a clear timeline if you stick to one tense (past, present, future). But this doesn’t mean that you can’t change between different tenses, you just need to ensure a concise timeline when you’re telling a specific story within your writing.
Fix It: Identify and fix unnecessary tense shifts. To achieve this, consider the narrative flow and choose the most appropriate tense for your story, and once you’ve finished writing a chapter or scene, you can change to a different tense.
Beyond the Basics:
- Cliché Calamity: Clichés are overused phrases that have lost their impact, and readers will most likely be tired of seeing the same overused phrase over and over again. So, please replace cliché sentences with fresh and original language.
Fix It: Always avoid clichés in your writing. If you want to sound more original and develop your own unique tone, you need to brainstorm unique alternatives or rephrase the sentence entirely. - Show, Don’t Tell: If you want to evoke strong emotions in your readers, you need to create vivid descriptions of the feelings your characters are experiencing. One common mistake is to only tell how they feel without describing exactly their thoughts and feelings.
Fix It: For example, instead of “She was sad,” show the reader her sadness through details like tears welling up or a slumped posture, these descriptions will paint a clear picture and spark readers’ imagination.
The Best Tool To Avoid Writing Mistakes
Every writing tools is different and most of them will help you avoiding writing mistakes, so we can’t review them all, but we can review the most complete writing tool in the market, called Script-Timer:
- Grammar Checker:When you’re focused on creating a great script, you can have some grammar mistakes that go unnoticed, but with our grammar checker, you can ensure your scripts are perfect with just one click.
- AI Script Coach: Our AI coach is trained with the best scripts of all time from the best authors of all time, so you can trust it to improve your scripts and make them Hollywood level.
- Classes and Blogs: We also offer many explainer videos so you can confidently use all of our tools, and if you’re a beginner writer, you can try our specialized classes to improve your storytelling and ensure you engage audiences around the world.
- Export Options: Once you’ve finished working on your scripts or voice overs, you can easily export them to keep your work safe at all times, or you can also save your work on our platform.
- Voice Over Creation: In Script-Timer you can create professional sounding voice overs in seconds, you just need to paste your script, choose your favorite AI voice actor, and voilá you’ll have a high quality voice over that you can download, save, or share if you need.
