Not Varying Sentence Structure In A Piece

DIFFICULTY: Easy

There isn't too much difficulty when it comes to diversifying your sentences. The best way to check that you don't have a bland, simple sentence-filled work is to read aloud each paragraph and make sure you don't feel bored with how the sentences are formatted. If each one sounds exactly the same, you need some more spice.

On the other hand, there are some cases in which your sentences may be too complex to read one after the other. I had a huge problem with this a few months ago because I would simply skim through my works after finishing, only looking for grammatical errors. Everything was punctuated properly, but once I later went back and tried reading what I wrote, I became lost in the slew of words I wrote. In a situation like this, give your reader(s) a mental break. Slip in a few simple sentences.

Formatting Dialogue Improperly

DIFFICULTY: Easy

This is one of the few errors that really irks me when it shows up, so here's a sample conversation that encompasses most of the basic dialogue rules.

"Welcome!" she exclaimed as the man walked into the shop. "Hope you've had a good morning!"

"It's sure been a good morning," he replied, "but I don't know what to order."

"Have you tried this before?"

She handed him a small spoon with a sample for him to taste, and he squirmed merely at the sight of what sat on the plastic utensil.

"Is there something else I could possibly try?" the man asked, prepared to run out when he realized every food item looked the same.

Using Commas In A List Improperly

DIFFICULTY: Easy

If you're told to use an Oxford comma when listing items or concepts, you will add a comma right before the conjunction that comes before the last item in the list. Otherwise, when told that you cannot use the Oxford comma, you will not add a comma before the conjunction that precedes the final item.

When writing in AP Style for both the school yearbook and for Odyssey, it was extremely difficult for me to adjust at first because of tiny differences between the two. I would repeatedly confuse myself when it came to just the Oxford comma, and I remember once getting points off an in-class paper for forgetting a comma where MLA style would have wanted it to be.

Not Knowing When To Use Semicolons

DIFFICULTY: Easy

A semicolon can be a powerful punctuation mark, but when used incorrectly, it can create some funny-looking writing. Use a semicolon only when you would connect clauses using a comma and a conjunction.

There was one editing session I had at around midnight because I was in need of something to do, and my laptop was right in front of me. I began reading through a paper I was in the middle of drafting for a class, and there was this one pesky semicolon that popped out against the rest of the paper. In place of a normal comma, I had inserted a semicolon. To anyone else, it probably would have seemed like a careless mistake, but to me, it meant the end of the world.

Spelling Words Incorrectly

DIFFICULTY: Easy

Of all errors I have seen (as both a reader and an editor), the most annoying have always been the spelling errors. With spellcheck already present in most writing platforms, there is no way a typed piece can have mindless spelling mistakes. Another big help is to always search a word online before typing it out. It's perfectly fine to forget the spelling of an elementary word and to need help getting it right again, so just search it up before you type it up.

Misusing Homophones

DIFFICULTY: Easy

The most common examples of this problem include "their/they're/there" and "you're/your," but at some point, there has to be a way to distinguish among all homophones you're fairly familiar with. Even if you find yourself forgetting for a second, just sound out the contractions first, and then state the purpose of each homophone in the mix. Especially for late-night writing sessions, slowing down to identify each word helps extensively.

Using Improper Tense Changes

DIFFICULTY: Easy

Whenever I want to switch up writing by using present tense instead of past tense, I'll stop after half an hour and realize I've somehow changed to my usual past tense style. Going through and fixing all the verbs affected by the transition is such a painstaking process, too.

This error may seem too simple to be that common, but when it appears, it completely takes away from the piece. As a reader, it's even more noticeable because there's no extra thinking needed when reading instead of writing. This person will pick out the mistake as soon as it shows up.

Not Knowing How To Maintain A Formal Tone

DIFFICULTY: Medium

Now entering into "medium" difficult territory, maintaining formal tone is a bit strange.

You have the easy fixes, like when using first person or contractions when strictly told not to do so, but you also have subtle detractors that require more analysis to find. As an example, take colloquial speech, which is in the "hard" difficulty category. You can find it in a piece of writing, but conditioning yourself to avoid such words is difficult when you use them commonly in informal conversations.

We focused more on formal tone in class this past semester, and when our teacher explained some of the tiniest details that immediately destroy a formal work, I thought back to every instance of informal tone I'd left hanging in serious essays.

Being Redundant

DIFFICULTY: Medium

If you ever want to increase the word count in an essay you're typing up at the last minute, you'll somehow use redundant phrases to elongate sentences. Those are easy to spot.

Certain concepts within your essay can be redundant, though, and in the case that this happens, you'll only know if you proofread. So proofread. Otherwise, you won't know that your fifth sentence is just your third sentence reworded until it's too late.

Not Including Enough Context

DIFFICULTY: Medium

I personally think this is a "medium" difficulty concept because there's no set rule for when context is supposed to be included. You just have to know what information is necessary for a reader to know to understand what you're writing. A helpful tip that I learned from one of my English teachers is to read your entire draft over as if you are someone who has never heard of the concept. If you ever have to stop yourself out of confusion or because you haven't gathered enough information to understand what's going on, there needs to be more context.

One problem I had on the first essay I submitted in my Language Arts class this year was with context because I had not provided enough for the analysis of each paragraph to be effective. Try including two to three sentences before delving into complex analyses if you want all readers to understand your thinking.

 Improperly Using Commas To Separate Ideas

DIFFICULTY: Hard

There are so many rules that have to do with separating ideas using commas, and even if I don't go through this specifically, here's a list of rules with commas that's sure to help out.

People always say to insert commas in places where there are chances of miscommunication, such as the classic example with, "Let's eat Grandma" instead of "Let's eat, Grandma." But people don't talk about what happens when you insert too many commas. Sometimes a paper can have more commas than all other punctuation combined, and it becomes so difficult to understand.

Commas are beautiful and can make life so much easier to see on paper, but please use them sparingly. Cutting down on these can save you from both making horrible communication errors and from sounding like you don't know what you're saying.

 Using Simple Or Colloquial Language

DIFFICULTY: Hard

The reason why this is not an easy skill to master is because you use colloquial language in informal conversations you have with people, and for a vast majority, these conversations take up the bulk of the speaking and writing done in a day. Whether through texting or by ranting, these almost "immature" talks encourage the use of words like "things" and "stuff" along with others that one should not use in a formal submission.

What did shock me more than refraining from those two words, though, was the fact that "alright" and "even though" are not proper terms to use. "Even though" is to be replaced with "although," and "alright" is the incorrect spelling for the phrase "all right." People don't talk about these examples often because we've become accustomed to saying them to the point where it's widely accepted to use them in formal contexts.

 Having Too Many Clichés

DIFFICULTY: Hard

A cliché does not mean a situation in which the nerdy girl and the star athlete fall in love forever and ever. The word "cliché" implies that what you've just said has been overused to the point where it completely lacks interesting detail. It detracts entirely from what you're saying because so many people have said it in the same way already.

Clichés extend to similes, metaphors and idioms that people use excessively, such as a concept being "a piece of cake." Ironically, say it, but in any other context, why? The phrase is so often used that it's lost all meaning, and anything similar to this feels the same way.

For a strong argument, paper, article, piece or anything of the likes, clichés are not the way to go to pull in readers (unless you want that special comedic effect).