Why Spellcheck is just not enough

Doesn't everybody (and his brother!) want to write impressive letters, articles, even books? Sure!

And (of course!) 'everybody' knows that correct spelling, punctuation and grammar are vitally necessary. So, what can we do to help ourselves to write well?

The obvious things are :

• We check our work carefully.


• We apply all the grammar rules we learnt in English class (or most of them, anyway).


• We see if there are wavy red or blue underlines on the page, if we are using a computer (which is very likely).


• Then we have to decide what corrections to make, and make them, trusting our friend the SpellChecker.

Ah, there's the problem. 'Spell check' and 'Grammar check' are good utilities, but they don't cover everything - yet.

Don't believe me? Type the following on a page and see what happens:

I love hymn.

Why you not speak louder?

Tell us the bear facts.

Now, the correct versions would read: I love him. Why don't you speak louder? Tell us the bare facts.

So, we need to improve our own command of English grammar, and not just blindly trust a machine.

But what if our impressive sales letter has to be published TODAY, the campaign has to be ready this week, or the research paper is due in a fortnight? Then we need the help of an English expert - someone who already knows English thoroughly, understands the details of spelling and punctuation, can even improve our style, layout and organisation of ideas, and who is willing to take the time to help us out.

That's when we need to turn to a human being (not a machine) - an English language specialist - to help us with some editing and proof reading. That's what editors are for! Meanwhile, we need to take the time to learn as much as we can about the rules of good writing, the mechanics of punctuation, easy tricks to perfect our spelling. And there's an abundance of help available.

This blog will bring together the best resources on writing skills in English.

Have any questions you'd like answered? Have a problem with English spelling or grammar? Post your questions/comments/suggestions below.