Grammarly

[Vernon77]

For all those who struggle with grammar like myself, consider getting a subscription to Grammarly.com. I just got one and it helps so much. It even explains why you should make the correction.

 

[LeandraNyx]

Deleted

 

[ElectricBlue]

For all those who struggle with grammar like myself, consider getting a subscription to Grammarly.com. I just got one and it helps so much. It even explains why you should make the correction.

I got the freebie but it doesn't work on my kindle, so I've not bothered with it any further. LeandraNyx is not the first to say it's a bit "too" structured and regimented. I suspect I'd ignore its suggestions most of the time.

Spell check is always on to get my finger fumbles as I go. At best I'm a six finger typist, never did learn to touch type. And now I've got a predictive touch pad which is mostly OK. I wish it was a bit faster sometimes....

 

[sr71plt]

In a previous AH thread on this topic (which I can't find now), posters asked for sources on grammar usage. I've just received a copy of the second/updated edition of the Writer's Digest-published Grammatically Correct: The Essential guide to Spelling, Style, Usage, Grammar, and Punctuation by Anne Stilman. I haven't used it yet, but, since Writer's Digest has issued it, it probably is a good guide for commercial writing.

 

[NOIRTRASH]

John O'Hara cautioned people speak without benefit of grammar. A fact editors refuse to believe.

 

[SimonDoom]

In a previous AH thread on this topic (which I can't find now), posters asked for sources on grammar usage. I've just received a copy of the second/updated edition of the Writer's Digest-published Grammatically Correct: The Essential guide to Spelling, Style, Usage, Grammar, and Punctuation by Anne Stilman. I haven't used it yet, but, since Writer's Digest has issued it, it probably is a good guide for commercial writing.

I know this topic has been beaten into the ground on previous threads, but if you had to pick one moderately comprehensive reference guide for grammar and style for commercial fiction, what would it be? I know grammar pretty well and am familiar with a variety of guides, but I don't have any first-hand knowledge about standards and guides for published fiction. Would this be a recommendation for that?

 

[sr71plt]

On grammar, I couldn't say. I have quite a few primers on that and go through them to find something that seems to be the same issue I have and that gives an understandable answer. Much of what I have and use are handouts from the master's programs I did in editing and publishing. I gave a pretty long list on the AH thread I can't find (this thread was moved here from another forum). Zinsser, Bernstein, Sharp and Gunther, American Heritage's book on English usage, Gordon, Daniels, Ehrlich, etc.

I had my own Writer's Digest top hundred Web site on grammar, style, and publishing for a decade but closed that when I closed down my editorial business. That said, I don't usually google for answers as there's no telling what the source/authority is for Web sites.

For style, it's the Chicago Manual of Style for nearly everything I write or edit. For newspaper features, I consult the AP guide or the New York Times Manual of Style and Usage.