Use an apostrophe to replace missing letters in a contraction.

We like to say that apostrophes are PC. We don’t mean that they’re politically correct. Rather, we mean that they’re used for possessives and contractions. For contractions, the apostrophe replaces any missing letters. For example:

The apostrophe in they’re replaces the missing “a” in they are.

The apostrophe in you’re replaces the missing “a” in you are.

The apostrophe in isn’t replaces the missing “o” in is not.

The apostrophe in it’s replaces the missing “i” in it is.

We are surprised when we see the apostrophe in the wrong place or more apostrophes than necessary. If a letter isn’t missing, then no apostrophe is needed in that place.

One last note: The apostrophe always points or curves to the left, even when at the beginning of the word. Your word processor may automatically reverse the direction, so be careful with this.

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Quote books in the present tense and writers in the past tense.

When you take a quote from a book, you have to decide whether you are attributing the quoted material to the author or the book.

If you are attributing a quote to a book, use the present tense. Because the information is always present (i.e., always available right now), use present tense verbs, such as states, notes, claims, and describes. For example, you may write the following:

“The book Ten Habits of Unhappy People claims that the main reason for disappointment is a lack of communication.”

On the other hand, if you are attributing a quote to the author, use the past tense. Because the author wrote the information at a specific time in the past, use a past tense verb, such as stated, noted, claimed, described, and wrote. For example, you may write the following:

“James Patterson, author of Ten Habits of Unhappy People, wrote that the main reason for disappointment is a lack of communication.”

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This is the strategy for day 41 in 300 Days of Better Writing, available at Hostile Editing in PDF, Kindle, and paperback formats.

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Thus and therefore statements should follow logically from the previous statements.

The topic here is non sequiturs. Non sequitur is a Latin term meaning does not follow. A non sequitur is a problem with logic; it is a conclusion that isn’t logical, based on previous statements.

A non sequitur looks like this:

Idea A is true.
Idea B is also true.
Thus, Idea C MUST be true.

The fault in this logic is assuming that C is true just because A and B are true. In this case, C might be true, but it certainly isn’t true just because A and B are true. It is a non sequitur.

When you start a sentence with thus or therefore, you are saying that the statement you are about to write is the logical conclusion of the previous statements.

If the thus/therefore statement isn’t true based on the previous statements, you have created a non sequitur. Let’s look at an example.

A: People love to eat beef.
B: Beef comes from cows.
C: Thus, people love cows.

The first two statements in this sample are true. The last statement might also be true, but it is not the logical conclusion of the previous statements. It is a non sequitur.

Here’s the point of this tip: When you start a sentence with thus or therefore, make sure the statement logically follows from the previous statements. If it doesn’t, your reader will reject your ideas.

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Choose the correct pronoun in elliptical sentences.

An elliptical sentence is a sentence that leaves out implied words. For example, if I am writing about two boys, I can write “The two left school early.” The word “boys” is implied and not written.

Generally, this doesn’t cause problems. It gets tricky when using elliptical sentences making a comparison that end in pronouns. Consider these two sentences with very different meanings.

“Sue likes cake more than I.”
“Sue likes cake more than me.”

Both sentences are grammatically correct. Depending on your meaning, you will choose one or the other. Here’s how you decide.

“I” is a subject pronoun, which means that it needs a verb. The verb is not here. Given the context of the sentence, the implied action is “like cake.” “Sue likes cake more than I (like cake).” This works for other subject pronouns, too.

“Me” is an object pronoun, which means that it is the recipient of an action. The implied action here is “like.” “Sue likes cake more than (she likes) me.” This works for other object pronouns, too.

Here’s the point. When choosing the correct pronoun for this type of sentence, consider what words you are implying, and then choose a subject pronoun or object pronoun to match the implied words.

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This is the strategy for day 294 in 300 Days of Better Writing, available at Hostile Editing in PDF, Kindle, and paperback formats.

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