Tag: copyediting
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Spelling: Dialects (Regional)
Sometimes you may see words that are spelt differently from what you’re used to. This might be a case of a different locale. Some words have different spellings whether the dictionary used is American English, British English, Canadian English, or even Australian English. American and British are the most dissimilar, while Canadian and American English…
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Punctuation: The Slash
Definition: a punctuation mark (/) once used to mark periods and commas, the slash is now used to represent division and fractions, exclusive ‘or’ and inclusive ‘or,’ and as a date separator. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or…
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Punctuation: Brackets
Definition: a punctuation mark; a pair of square brackets [ ] used to set apart certain words and sentences, mainly in quotations to add extra information that wasn’t in the original quote. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or…
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Spelling: Capitals
To capitalize or not to capitalize? The answer isn’t as philosophical as to be or not to be. In other languages, capitalization rules can vary drastically, but the rules for English are, I’ve found, fairly straightforward. Beginning of a Sentence Capitalize the first word of every sentence. *Note: dialogue tags do not count as their…
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Punctuation: The Apostrophe
Definition: a punctuation mark (’) used to indicate either possession or the omission of letters or numbers. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or incorrect marks, it cannot do much else. While I still recommend using these AI checkers…
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Punctuation: The Exclamation Mark
Definition: a punctuation mark (!) indicating an exclamation. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or incorrect marks, it cannot do much else. While I still recommend using these AI checkers while you’re writing, I insist that you also trust…
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Punctuation: The Question Mark
Definition: a punctuation mark (?) indicating a question. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or incorrect marks, it cannot do much else. While I still recommend using these AI checkers while you’re writing, I insist that you also trust…
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Punctuation: The Semicolon
Definition: a punctuation mark (;) indicating a pause, typically between two main clauses, that is more pronounced than that indicated by a comma. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or incorrect marks, it cannot do much else. While I…
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Punctuation: The Colon
Definition: a punctuation mark (:) used to precede a list of items, a quotation, or an expansion or explanation. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or incorrect marks, it cannot do much else. While I still recommend using these…
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What is Copyediting?
Copyediting is what people generally think of when they hear “editing”. Falling under the umbrella of “technical editing”, copyediting doesn’t care about the story itself. Rather, it focuses on a magnified view of the document. A copyeditor doesn’t look at your characters, your plot, or any of your world-building (other than for the reasons of…