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How To Avoid Common Grammar Mistakes Bloggers Make

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When you have your own blog as your forum to publish your writing online, sometimes it can be easy to quickly write your words and hit publish, but you still need to remember one critical step in the writing process: EDITING! You can have a great story, an amazing message, tips that will make a huge difference in your readers’ lives, but failing to edit your work to make sure you haven’t made any of the most common grammar mistakes can decrease the likelihood that your readers will understand – and share your words.

Edit before you hit publish. Common grammar mistakes can decrease the likelihood that your readers will read and share your words.

Avoid Common Grammar Mistakes Bloggers Make

1) Relying on technology to edit your work

This first mistake isn’t a grammar mistake on its own, but it’s still something we’re all often guilty of committing in this day and age with all the tools that technology provides for us. You should not rely on automated spell checks and grammar checks alone to check your work. They’re great tools that you should use for a first pass of your work, but they aren’t perfect and can easily miss something. Take the time to proofread and edit your own work.

2) Forgetting to press enter

Break up your words into paragraphs, lists, etc. I find that particularly when reading words on a screen (any screen), readers need a break. Don’t get so carried away in your story that you forget to press enter every once in a while to make your content easier to read. Feel free to throw some amazing pictures in between your paragraphs to make your posts even more visually appealing.

3) Using a word incorrectly

You know those graphics you see all over Facebook and Pinterest and everywhere else about the correct use of your old school favorites like “their, they’re, and there?” (15 of the most common grammar mistakes can be found here.) Incorrectly using one of these words can immediately turn off your readers and distract from your words. In addition to these common word errors, if you’re tempted to use a word you wouldn’t normally use, but aren’t certain that you’re using it correctly, use a dictionary to look it up and verify.

4) Failure to properly punctuate

Make sure you know how to properly use punctuation, and when you proofread your work, pay attention to more than spelling. Sometimes reading your words out loud helps you determine if you are using the proper punctuation. If you feel a need to pause when you’re reading it out loud, you may need a comma in the written words.

While you probably won’t ever hear a reader praise you for your excellent spelling and grammar, you are likely to hear from someone if there are noticeable mistakes in your writing. Taking the time to edit also makes your work more professional, which is critical if you’re looking for paid blogging opportunities.

Keep Reading:

Are you looking for more grammar and writing tips? Here are a few posts you’ll find helpful:

 

About Tracie Nall

Tracie lives in Arizona with her husband, teen daughter, and more books than her shelves will hold. She spends her days writing and editing. Many of her words end up on her blog, From Tracie. Find Tracie on Twitter @FromTracie and on Instagram where she takes pictures of things that are yellow.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. sahil jani says

    Make a mental note to avoid that mistake in the future, or heck, just bookmark … 30 Common Grammar Mistakes to Check For in Your Writing …. or something through a phrase,

  2. Chris Roy says

    well, as a blogger I used to make mistakes in the early phase of my blogging journey. But with some practice I get rid of this situation. Thanks for your suggestions as well.
    #Chris

  4. jay shah says

    The post uploading by you is really great …
    i enjoyed and impressed..
    will bookmark and share this…
    keep it more….

  5. Vatsal Gupta says

    Well, Thanks a lot for such an informative post Katie.
    As a blogger, i have made some of these mistakes in the early phase of my blogging, but now i know the importance of grammar in Blogging.
    The points that you have focused upon are really worth reading.

  6. Jamie G says

    Thanks for the tips. Putting paragraph breaks and pics in between sections of text is my lifeline for keeping my blog easier to read!

  7. Sky says

    Yup… Sometimes I’m amazed at the lack of skill on display out there in the blogosphere. Particularly from native english speakers – that’s the saddest thing. We’re used to seeing horrific comments – but if you’re writing the original post, would at least a quick read-through kill you prior to posting your work?

  8. Pankaj says

    Hi Katie,

    You mentioned some valuable points here, I guess choosing wrong word is very easy mistake to commit. That is why proofreading your article is really essential so that you publish only good written article.

  9. Gary Kerr says

    I have to say that there are number of silly blogging mistakes to avoid article but this is one of the best article.Good grammar is a necessity when writing a piece.Your article plays a good role to guide me and many bloggers.

  11. Tammi says

    Terrific list and a timely reminder. Spell check is a wonderful tool, however, it cannot interpret the context of a series of words (sentences). Spell check can only look at each word and take an educated guess at the correct use. Thanks for these great reminders.

  12. Lisa {Amateur Nester} says

    Yes! So glad to see an article like this. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve stopped reading someone’s post because the chunks of text were too long or there were so many errors that it became distracting. It’s so important to edit and proofread!

  13. Jenny says

    I do agree, I really think having an outside eye to proofread your work is key. Sometimes, we’re blind to our own mistakes.

  14. Debbie Rodrigues says

    English is not my mother tongue, but I do not use it as an excuse for making mistakes. Sometimes, it is better to stick to the basics than disturbing readers with major errors.
    Great sharing!

  15. Joy says

    I completely agree! No matter what your message is, it’ll definitely get lost and not be delivered at all, if the presentation and grammar leave much to be desired. Just yesterday and this morning, I read two shared blog posts. I didn’t bother finishing both because one had way too many grammatical errors that I reached a point where I couldn’t figure out anymore what she was trying to say. The other one had the word ‘effect’ when it should’ve been ‘affect’ and I just got turned off. So yes, these are great reminders!! Thanks!

  16. Elizabeth says

    I do agree that editing is key. I find that I have to take a break from my work and then reread, because I miss mistakes in my own writing. Otherwise, I go back and read and then I see the mistakes after it is published!!

  18. Charlotte says

    Great post! And very accurate. I get very distracted when I see common misspellings or incorrect usage of a word in a blog post. Thanks for this!