Common Mistakes Found in Manuscripts: The Endangered Apostrophe
Posted By The Queen Of English on January 26, 2010
As a proofreader for Black Velvet Seductions, I have read several entertaining and thought-provoking stories over the past six months. I have also found some common mistakes in apostrophe use, comma use, and in dialogue in these manuscripts. It’s a well-known fact: if two writers submit well-written stories to a publisher, the writer with the more polished manuscript in the mechanics of writing has a better chance of receiving a contract than the writer who has many errors in punctuation, grammar, and spelling in her manuscript.
My writer friends ask me questions about punctuation, grammar, and usage for the same reason Laurie Sanders, editor of BVS, asked me to proof manuscripts for her – as I read, errors in those areas catch my attention, as if they jump off the page and smack me on the forehead. I can’t read anything without subconsciously looking for punctuation errors. The ones that make me want to toss my tiara are the punctuation mistakes.
I admit it: I’m a language arts geek. Being an English teacher for fifteen years has contributed to my geekiness, but I have always been fascinated by words and by how we arrange them to tell others about ourselves, about the world around us, and about worlds we create in our heads.
We all have a gift. Mine is understanding how to use the mechanics of English to effectively communicate with others. In other words, I know how to punctuate everything from a simple sentence to a complex dialogue passage. I know how to make subjects agree with verbs and pronouns agree with their antecedents. I know the difference between the verbs lie and lay – that’s a big one!
If I am stumped, I know where to find the answers. I have collected several grammar and usage books over the years. My favorite one right now is Garner’s Modern American Usage. My husband thinks my collection is a sure sign of an addiction; I consider it a sign of being prepared. My English reference shelf groans.
In this article I address APOSTROPHE use because this flying comma – that’s what a student of mine once called this mark – is in danger of becoming extinct if we don’t learn how to use it correctly. Other articles will cover other errors I see often in manuscripts, so visit the BVS Writer’s Blog often.
Let’s begin. There are only two rules for the apostrophe that writers of fiction will use often. Most people seem to understand and follow the rule for using apostrophes to form contractions, so I’ll start with that one.
Rule 1: Use an apostrophe to show where a letter, letters, or numbers have been omitted when forming a contraction.
Examples:
have not = haven’t
cannot = can’t
1974 = ‘74
I will = I’ll
will not = won’t
There are some tricky contractions, though. You must read the complete sentence to grasp their correct meanings. For instance,
He’s already gone to work. He has already gone to work.
He’s the best man for the job. He is the best man for the job.
He’d been late before. He had been late before.
He’d have liked to see her again. He would have liked to see her again.
Then you have homophones. Homophones are words that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have different meanings. Are they confusing? You bet they are! If you remember that possessive pronoun adjectives DO NOT have an apostrophe, but contractions DO have an apostrophe, you’ll be correct every time. Here are the most common homophones that involve an apostrophe.
you’re = you are – your = possessive pron. adj. = your bike
they’re = they are – their = possessive pron. adj. = their bikes
There = There are three bikes over there.
who’s = who is, who has — whose = possessive pron. adj. = whose bike
it’s = it is, it has – its = possessive pron. adj. = its bike
HINT: If you’re not sure which one of the homophones is correct, try the two words that form the homophone contraction first. For instance,
(You’re, Your) going to be late for class if (you’re, your) locker jams again.
You are going to be late for class if you are locker jams again.
You are going makes sense at the beginning of the sentence, so You’re is correct, but …you are locker doesn’t make sense, so your is correct.
HINT: Remember their needs a noun following it. In fact, all possessive pronoun adjectives and possessive nouns need a noun following it. There doesn’t. Look at this example that illustrates the hint.
Their new bikes are over there.
Bikes is a noun, and it follows their, so their is correct. You can also ask yourself, “Whose new bikes? Their (possessive pronoun adjective) new bikes.”
The second rule is the one that mystifies many writers. Either they leave the apostrophe out, or they put it where it doesn’t belong or both. This rule is written several ways: Use an apostrophe to show possession, to make nouns possessive, to show ownership. Before I give you examples, I want to show you how German shows possession (translated into English). Look at these examples.
the son of Chris
the shoes for ladies
the book of the children
In English, it would sound very strange if you asked a clerk where the shoes for ladies were instead of where the ladies’ shoes were. Now aren’t you glad English has given us a shortcut – the apostrophe?
Rule 2: Use an apostrophe to show ownership. Here are some examples.
First, Chris’s son – Chris is a singular noun, meaning we are talking about only one Chris. For all singular nouns, even those that end in an s, we add an apostrophe and the letter s to the end of the noun. Here we add an s to Chris to make Chris possessive. Whose son is he? Chris’s son.
When we make proper nouns possessive, there are a few exceptions to this rule.
Jesus’ cross Moses’ tablets Achilles’ heel Archimedes’ principle
You have probably realized that these words are ancient. I suppose words that are thousands of years old should have the right to be different.
Second, ladies’ shoes – ladies is a plural noun, meaning there is more than one lady. For all plural nouns that end in an s, we simply add an apostrophe. The word ladies ends in an s, so all we do is add an apostrophe. Whose shoes are they? Ladies’ shoes.
Third, the children’s book – children is a plural noun, but the word children does not end in an s. For all plural nouns that do not end in an s, we add an apostrophe and the letter s to the end of the plural noun. We add an apostrophe and an s to children to make the word possessive. Whose book is that? The children’s book.
Let’s consider how an apostrophe changes the meaning of sentences to show just how important using them correctly really is. Here are three pictures that illustrate the differences in meaning with and without an apostrophe and where the apostrophe is placed. As much as I love words, a picture is certainly worth a thousand words.
I know I said there were only two rules for apostrophes, but before I close this lesson on apostrophes, I feel compelled to add one more rule.
Rule 3: Never use an apostrophe to make a noun plural. I see this mistake often when I proof manuscripts. In English we usually add s or es to a noun to form the plural. Look at these examples - no apostrophes anywhere!!!
one cat - two cats one box - two boxes one city - two cities
Note the spelling change in cities.
Irregular nouns are nouns that don’t add s or es to the singular form to make the plural form. Here are some examples of irregular nouns. Still no apostrophes!!!
one child - two children one woman - two women one man - two men
Now for homework. You didn’t think I would leave without giving you any, did you?
Directions: find and correct the apostrophe mistakes in the following sentences. Some are tricky, so read the sentence carefully. Check back here next week for the answers.
1. Its such a shame that my dog hurt its paw.
2. There are very good reasons for you’re argument supporting animal’s rights.
3. The boys answers’ were very good, especially Tims and Chris’.
4. Whose going to they’re first writing conference in June?
5. Were leaving because your being unfair.
I hope that this information has helped clear up any confusion you might have had concerning apostrophes. If you have an English grammar, usage, or punctuation question, you may leave your question in a comment on my blog at queenofenglish.wordpress.com. I will answer your question in a post within a week. If you need a quicker answer, you may e-mail me at queenofenglish@live.com.
Until the next article,
The Queen of English
PS: if you find an error in punctuation in this article other than the ones in the homework sentences, please e-mail me with the error. I will acknowledge and correct it. Furthermore, I will royally punish myself by curtailing my casual reading of Garner’s book for a week. :-(
