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Proofreading 101 10

Presented by Erin Maguire

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Proofreading 101

The what, why, how, and when of it all Consistency is key Spell check and grammar check Punctuation Numbers Capitals Hyphenation Commonly confused words Miscellany Where to go from here

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Proofreading 101

What Why How When

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Consistency Is Key

As important as correct spelling and grammar In a particular document In all documents produced by person, department, or

company Even if you’re wrong, be wrong throughout

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Spell Check & Grammar Check

Always use, but always double check Helpful, but not infallible Should be an integral part of your work Turn on email software’s spell check prior to sending

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Punctuation: Commas

Separate elements in a series– I bought lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and celery.

Connecting 2 independent statements with a little conjunction (junction what’s your function…)– I bought the lettuce, but forgot the tomatoes.

Introduction of elements– Dashing into the grocery store, I realized I left my wallet in the

car.

Set off parenthetical phrases– The grocery store, which is in the next town, really needs

to be updated.

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Punctuation: Commas

Separate adjectives– Erin would like to be a tall, leggy blonde, with the IQ of a fern.

Quotes– Momma always said, “Life is like a box of chocolates.”

Phrases of contrast– That money is mine, not yours.

Avoid confusion– Outside the parking lot was covered in leaves.– Outside, the parking lot was covered in leaves.

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Punctuation: Commas

Typographical reasons– City, State

• Alexandria, Virginia, is considered a good place to live.– Date and the year (January 10, 2013)

• July 4, 1776, is regarded as the birthday of American Liberty.• July 1776 is regarded as the birthday of American Liberty.• 4 July 1776 is regarded as the birthday of American Liberty.

– Name and title• Erin Maguire, Center of the Universe

– Long numbers• My retirement plan is to win $50,000,000 in the

state lottery.

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Punctuation: Commas

Typographical reasons (continued)– Name and a suffix

• Robert Downey, Jr.• Richard Harrison, III• Martin Luther King Jr.

NOT between a subject and its verb– Being a good proofreader is the key to success

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Punctuation: Semicolons

Semicolons– Most commonly used when you link 2 independent statements

that are closely related• Some authors write on a computer; some prefer pen and

pad.– Used when you have a series of items that involve commas

• Some people write with a word processor, typewriter, or a computer; but others, for different reasons, choose to write with a pen or pencil.

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Punctuation

Semicolons vs. comma– How do you know what to use?

• Semi or comma?

–The cow is brown, it is also old.–The cow is brown; it is also old.

–The cow is brown, but not old.–The cow is brown; but not old.

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Punctuation: Quotes

Quotes– Straight

• Straight quotes = " = an inch mark (I need 8" of rope.)

• Straight apostrophe = ' = a foot mark (I need 8' of plywood.)

– Curly• Considered more polished• Called the “published style” or “smart quotes”

– The true apostrophe (or single quote) looks like ‘this’– True quotation marks (also called “smart quotes”) look like

“this”

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Punctuation

Punctuation and quotes– Err on putting punctuation inside the quotes, and you’ll be right

more often than not– Periods and commas always go inside

• The sign changed from “Walk,” to “Don’t Walk,” to “Walk” again within 30 seconds.

• She said, “Hurry up.”• He said, “Dawn said, ‘Hurry up.’”

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Punctuation

Punctuation and quotes (continued)– Question marks – Use logic

• If quote is a question, put mark inside quotes– She asked, “Will you still be my friend?”

• Outside the quotes– Do you agree with the saying, “All’s fair in love and war”?

• No double punctuation– No need to have .”?– Wrong: Did she say, “May I go?”?– Right: Did she say, “May I go?”

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Punctuation

Punctuation and quotes (continued)– Single/Double

• Use single quotation marks for quotes within quotes (and put the period inside all quotation marks)

– He said, “Tammy said, ‘Do not treat me that way.’”

– Only use quotes to set up a direct quotation• “When will you be here?” he asked.• He asked when you would be here.

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Numbers

To spell out or not to spell out, that is the question– Spell out zero to nine– Use actual numbers 10 and up– Exception: Spell out any number that starts the sentence

• Eighteen people thought this exception was silly.– Use actual number when talking about percentages (5%)

• Exception: Spell out at beginning of sentence– Seventy-five percent of the population believe this to be true.

– Sentence that contains both• There were three clients and 12 colleagues at the meeting.• They had 4 four-room houses, 10 three-room houses,

and 12 10-room houses.

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Numbers

To spell out or not to spell out, that is the question– Ordinals

• Spell them out (first, second, etc.) if they can be expressed in one or two words

– The twenty-first item in the list.– The 150th item on the list.

» Not, the one-hundred-fiftieth item on the list.

Numbered lists vs. bulleted lists– What to use?

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Capitals

When to capitalize– First word of a quoted sentence

• Rhett said, “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.”– A proper noun

• Betty and Erin drove over the Golden Gate Bridge, screaming.

– A person’s title• Chairperson Smith

– Martha Smith, chairperson of the corporation, will speak.

• Governor McDonnell– All governors are expected to attend.

– Direct Address• I need a tourniquet, Doctor.

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Capitals

When to capitalize (continued)– Points of compass only when referring to a specific region

• I had three relatives from the North visit over the holidays.– Go east 3 blocks and then turn south.

– Names derived from proper nouns• I must take English and math.

– Names of specific course titles• I have to take history and Calculus II.• I have to take American History and Intro to Underwater

Basket Weaving.

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Capitals

Lowercase– Companies vary, but in general, no need to capitalize

department or group• The department is going to deliver that document to you.• If you prepare the name, then capitalize

– The Human Resource Department (Department) can address your personnel issue.

– Names of seasons• spring, summer, autumn, winter

– earth vs. Earth• Everything on Earth• Everything on the earth

Hyphenation

Hyphenation is tricky because the experts do not agree Companies may have different styles When to hyphenate

– To join two or more words serving as a single adjective before a noun:

• a one-way street• chocolate-covered peanuts

– But, when compound modifiers come after a noun: • The peanuts were chocolate covered.• The author was well known.

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Hyphenation

When to hyphenate (continued)– Compound numbers:

• forty-six• sixty-three

– To avoid confusion or an awkward combination of letters: • re-sign a petition (vs. resign from a job)• semi-independent (but semiconscious)

– reelection vs. re-election

• shell-like (but childlike)• coworker vs. co-worker

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Hyphenation

When to hyphenate (continued)– With the prefixes ex- (meaning former), self-, all-; with the suffix -

elect; between a prefix and a capitalized word; and with figures or letters:

• ex-husband• self-assured• all-inclusive• mayor-elect• mid-September• T-shirt• mid-1980s

NOT -ly

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Commonly Confused Words

Accept/Except– Accept—verb meaning to receive or to take– Except—preposition meaning with the exclusion of

Advise/Advice– Advise—verb meaning to counsel or to inform– Advice—noun meaning recommendation or suggestion

Affect/Effect– Affect—verb meaning to influence (preferred over “impact”)– Effect—noun meaning outcome or result; verb meaning to cause to

happen Complement/Compliment

– Complement—noun meaning something that fills up, completes, or

makes perfect; verb meaning to complete or make perfect– Compliment—noun meaning recognition or praise; verb meaning

to praise

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Commonly Confused Words

Ensure/Insure/Assure– Ensure—verb meaning to make certain– Insure—verb meaning to protect monetarily against loss– Assure—verb meaning to give someone confidence

(so the “object” of this verb should be a person) Every Day/Everyday

– Every Day—adverb phrase meaning each day– Everyday—adjective meaning ordinary or customary

Its/It’s– Its—pronoun—possessive form of it– It’s—contraction of it is and it has

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Commonly Confused Words

Loose/Lose– Loose—adjective meaning not fastened or tight, having freedom of

movement– Lose—verb meaning to fail to win, gain, or keep; to mislay

Than/Then– Than—conjunction used to indicate comparison– Then—chronological adverb meaning “at that time”

or “next” Led/Lead

– Led—the past tense of “lead” (don’t spell it like pencil “lead”!)

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Miscellany

S apostrophe S?– Mr. Jones’s golf clubs or Mr. Jones’ gold clubs– Texas’s weather or Texas’ weather

Plurals– Adding “s” alone creates the plural forms of capital letters,

acronyms, and initials• Rs, PCs, IRAs, HMOs

– An apostrophe before the “s” should be used in cases where confusion could result

• Three A’s, too many I’s

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Miscellany

i.e. or e.g.?– i.e.: Latin for id est (that is)– e.g.: exempli gratia (for the sake of example)

i.e. – Used to paraphrase

• I went to my least favorite place (i.e., the dentist).– Swap with “in other words”

e.g.– Used to give an example

• I like Baroque composers, e.g., Bach, Handel, Scarlatti.– Swap with “for example”

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Miscellany

Who or whom?– Substitute he for who, him for whom

• Who/Whom propped open the outside door?• For/To who/whom should I address this letter?• We all know who/whom pulled that prank.

Either, neither, or, nor– Neither this or that…

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How Did I Miss That?!

Best way to not miss anything– Use what works best for you – we’re all different

• Read/edit online• Print it out, mark it up• Double-proof with someone else

– Double-proofing can be fun, if you have the right partner.

• Backwards

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Where To Go From Here

Marketing/Sales Department Manuals of Style

– The Associated Press Stylebook– The Chicago Manual of Style– The MLA Style Manual

Gregg Reference Manual Online resources

– Universities/Colleges– Grammarbook.com– Englishgrammar.org

Practice, practice, practice

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Parting Words

No one is perfect Sometimes you have to go with what sounds right Plant your flag Choose your battles

QUESTIONS?

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If You Only Have 5 Minutes

Scan– You’d be surprised what will jump out at you

Check client name– Client’s website– Go to their Press Room, see how they refer to themselves in press

releases

Margins– Consistency gives polish

Paragraph Spacing– Is everyone neat and tidy?

Font– One size usually does the trick

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What About –ly?

No hyphen– When an -ly adverb

comes before the adjective

– Between two or more adjectives when they are separate ideas that could each be used alone with the noun

– Do not hyphenate adverbs that follow the verb

Hyphen– -ly words can be adjectives,

and you add the hyphen when it is before a noun and forms a single idea with another adjective

– What kindly-looking eyes you have, Grandma.

– “Kindly” is an -ly adjective here

Active vs. Passive Voice

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Active– The dog bit the boy.

• Subject: dog• Action: bit

Streamlined Preferred

Passive– The boy was bitten

by the dog.• Subject: the boy• Action: was bitten

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Changing Passive to Active

Change these Passive sentences to Active– The box was mailed by Betty.– At each concert, at least one tune from a well-known opera was

sung by the soprano.– Large chunks of asbestos-laden material will be removed from

the hallways on the second and third floors by asbestos abatement teams.

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Objective vs. Subjective Pronouns

Is it “I” or “me”? “We” or “us”?– If you have 2 pronouns (or a noun and a pronoun), drop the other

noun and see if it makes sense.• Betty and me like to laugh. (If you drop “Betty and,” you have “me

like to laugh”…?)• Barb gave the tickets to Richele and I. (“Barb gave the tickets to

I”…?)• Us men like football. (“Us like football”? I think not.)

– When comparing using “than” or “as” (repeat)• He is taller than {I or me?} (am tall).

– He is taller than me am tall. (No!)

• This helps you as much as (it helps) {I or me?}.• She is as noisy as {I or me?} (am).

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Ending in Prepositional Phrase

Very common in oral and written communication Informal Popular preps

– At, but, by, for, from, in, of, to– There are too many to list on this page, but these are the common ones

Consider revising sentence to present a more formal (and, might I mention, correct) structure– Who should I give the report to?

• To whom should I give the report?

– Where you at?• Where are you? (okay, that was just for fun)

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A or An With Acronyms

Go with pronunciation– ROI (Return on Investment)

• A “are – oh – eye” OR An “are – oh – eye” – NGO (non-governmental organization)

• A “ehn – gee – oh” OR An “ehn – gee – oh” – SOS (Save Our Ship/Souls)

• A “ess – oh – ess” OR An “ess – oh – ess” – TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority)

• A “tee – vee – aiy” OR An “tee – vee – aiy”