Be it creative writing or not, good grammar is important. We will tell you why is it important. Take a look at the example below and observe the sentence:
“Its the team’s first win this season.”
What is grammatically wrong with this sentence?
Nothing seems out of the ordinary when you first look at it, but how about we take a closer look?
Look at the placement of the apostrophe. The word ‘its‘ used in the sentence is grammatically wrong. This is because the apostrophe is placed incorrectly, and this changes the meaning of the entire sentence. This kind of error could be the most commonly confused and mistaken word in English. “Its” means belonging to it, whereas “It’s” is a contraction of “it is”.
There is a minute difference between right and wrong, but grammar gives any sentence its right meaning.
Creative writing is one place where there is an intense use of grammar. It is an artistic expression where the imagination of the writer is conveyed through the use of imagery, drama, and narrative. The most common form of creative writing is storytelling, and it is found in genres of both fictional and non-fictional writing.
Writing is considered successful when the writer can hold the interest of their readers until the end. Despite a good plot or narrative, wrong grammar can turn off the readers. Therefore, it’s very important to eliminate any grammatical errors and allow clear communication of your imagination with the readers.
Vital Reasons Why Good Grammar is Important
Good Grammar Increases Credibility
In a vocal setting, people tend to be assessed on the way they speak. For a writer, their writing speaks for them. Therefore, to gain the trust of your writers, you must make use of proper grammar.
Your grammar skills reflect your credibility. If you aspire to be a writer and get accepted by publishers or readers, then good grammar is one essential requirement. Even minor grammatical errors could prove to be of a disadvantage because publishing firms reject creative work with weak grammar.
Communication
Creative writing is all about ensuring that your imaginations are being correctly conveyed to your readers, for it is your writing that speaks for your mind. Incorrect use of words or symbols could lead to an incorrect delivery of a message. Poor grammar also blurs the message that you as a writer wish to convey. For instance,
“His sunburn was an affect of exposure to the sun.”
The word ‘affect’ has been misused, which will lead to chaos in the readers’ minds. Affect means to influence on, and therefore the sentence is senseless. The correct word is ‘effect,’ which means a result.
Moving Forward with Good Grammar
You can’t capture the interest of others in your profession if you are unable to speak the language of the industry. Communicating with writers and editors poses a major threat if you don’t know the technical jargon.
If you need to move forward, build your place in the writing industry, you must be aware of the symbols or marks, parts of speech. Not just that, you should know all the other elements of writing and language that are related to good grammar.
Make sure you have correct grammar to ensure that your authenticity as a writer is never questioned. It is the first thing you should ensure. Moreover, if you have poor grammar, you will have to struggle a lot to even be eligible as a book author or even a content writer. Even in the content writing profession, one of the criteria for applying for a position is good knowledge and grammar.
Formatting
As a writer, you are expected to break down complex parts into simple sentences. Otherwise, your reader would be confused. That is definitely not the kind of way a writer anyone wants to be. Therefore, with hold-on grammar, you can really play around with the words and storyline without in a straightforward tone.
Formatting is one of the most important ways to make your writing more readable for your readers. Informal speech is a strict no for use in formal settings. Some organizations have specifications regarding formats, so make sure you’re following that with proper syntax. With strong grammar, you are expected to know the following most recognized formatting –
- 2” Spacing
- No extra spaces after paragraphs unless it’s needed
- 12-point font
- Centered title with the name underneath
Holding the Attention
No matter how much you try, your mind will constantly remind you of the errors in the book.
A reader wants to engage his/her/their mind in the plot and the creativity of the book or article and not the errors. However, the errors force a reader to lose interest in the write-up. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to have content free of any grammatical errors to retain your readers’ attention.
Self-Awareness
As a writer, it’s important to have self-awareness because what sense of self could you possess if, as a writer, you don’t know how to write error-free content. Take this for example:
Would you go to a mechanic who doesn’t know how to use his wrencher or hammer? What will be the first thought that comes to your mind when you see someone like that?
You will question his credibility, and just in case they say they have had customers before, you will raise questions regarding the quality of the work. Exactly like this, if you as a writer do not know how to make the correct use of punctuation marks or speech. Otherwise, the readers will question the quality of your work.
These are just some of the most important reasons why good grammar is important. As a writer who interests themselves in creative writing, you have to ensure that your writing is impeccable. To write, there is no hard and fast rule that you must follow; just write what feels right, but one conventional rule that must be followed is correct grammar.
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