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 May 2007
by Linda Emsley Roleson
After 15 years as a trainer for a national grammar and business writing training company, Janet M. Tremblay began Grammar Plus in 2005, focusing on skills she thought were essential in today’s business environment. Her 6- to 12-hour classes are designed to help employees improve overall writing and speaking skills. She covers common grammar mistakes and how to avoid them, quick tricks for easy punctuation and accurate proofreading, and proper use of formal or informal writing or speaking for a given project. At the SD/PEN May meeting, we became her students as she introduced us to her teaching style and tips. Janet led us through discussion on how to follow language trends, spelling and usage, punctuation, ending sentences with prepositions, and splitting infinitives.
Janet points out the importance of good writing and speaking skills by comparing them to table manners. Whereas it’s true that good table manners (at the fancy restaurant, giving a presentation to a new and valuable client) are not always important, knowing when to use them is. If you don’t know or don’t care about good grammar and spelling, a glaring mistake will one day haunt you and ruin the good impression you are trying to make.
Janet will be the first to tell you that she is not an expert or guru on usage, but she does acknowledge that she watches for trends and changes in the always-dynamic English language. This “certified grammar maniac” sees grammar and spelling mistakes no matter where she is or what she is reading. (Sound familiar?) Helpful resources for keeping up with change include Chicago Manual of Style, AMA Manual of Style (American Medical Association), Copy Editor (a newsletter for language professionals published by McMurry, Inc.), Copyediting-L (an online discussion group for copy editors), company-specific style guides, and the Gregg Reference Manual. The Gregg Reference Manual is recommended for nonwriters who have writing assignments to prepare. Another guide often provided by employers is Checking Your Grammar: Scholastic Guides (Marvin Terban, 1994, New York: Scholastic Reference).
Many words change or come into the language as they become popular with both the speaking public and the writing public. Asking us to spell supersede, Janet reminded us to carefully interpret dictionary citations. She pointed out that just because a word is in the dictionary does not mean that the word is correct. Supersede is the only word in American English that ends in sede. Because it is often misspelled supercede, some dictionaries include supercede and label it as variant, also, or nonstandard while labeling supersede as preferred. Janet taught us a trick for remembering the three commonly misspelled words in English that end with ceed: exceed, succeed, and proceed take ESP to remember the correct spelling. Many words have entered the language from abbreviations, such as emcee (M.C.), deejay (D.J.), and okay (OK).
Next we looked at several punctuation marks that have the power to change meaning. The position of the commas in the following sentence can change what the sentence says: “His favorite sandwiches are chicken salad peanut butter and jelly grilled ham and cheese.” Is this three favorite sandwiches, or four, or even five? Quotation marks can also be tricky for a noneditor or nonwriter trying to brush up on writing skills. In addition to the doubled symbols (“ ”) to place, single symbols (‘ ’) are used in some circumstances. The meaning and what is being quoted determine the correct placement of quotation marks and punctuation marks.
Back in elementary school grammar classes, we all probably were taught that a sentence can never end with a preposition. Today, the rules are more flexible. An informal sentence can end with a preposition, but rewording a formal sentence is recommended. (“We need a system we can rely on.” or “We need a system on which to can rely.”)
Those split infinitives? Again, what once was always incorrect is now accepted. When it sounds better, splitting an infinitive is OK (okay). The general rule is that only one, maybe two, works appear within the infinitive structure. (“I want you to personally supervise the new employee.”)
As Janet wrapped up our “class,” we shared a number of our editorial pet peeves: use of literally rather than figuratively; all about; overuse of ellipses; incorrect use of the dash, em dash, and hyphen; and confusion over use of a colon for introducing a list.
The sample class with many spelling and grammar examples made for lively discussion and shared stories on common pitfalls in grammar and punctuation. For Janet, it was “fun to talk to people who get it!”
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