How do you Spell Your Planet?

You’ve written a character who comes from another planet. She looks very much like the average Earth dweller but her language is very different. Before coming to Earth she too a crash course in several Earth languages, including English, French, Chinese and Australian. Now she is talking to another of your characters and trying to share some words in her native language.

What are the words, how do they translate and… most of all, how are they spelled? Spelling is very important when you’re writing about someone from the planet Grammara.

I’m So Tired…

I’m so tired….

If I fell into a vat of quicksand I’d be ok with it as long as it’s warm quicksand.
If I fall down I know I’m not getting back up and I don’t care.
The sensible, left side of my brain has been asleep six hours already. I’m sure I’m only dreaming all of this.
I just wrote an email that looks like I was spelling it in a foreign language.

How many unique versions of "I’m so tired…" can you come up with?

Spelling Style

Spelling is tricky all on it’s own. When you throw in different languages and cultures it gets down right complicated.

First, consider English and American spelling. Then throw in Canadian spelling, which is some combination of the two. Same for other countries in the commonwealth.

Have you seen words spelt with an s instead of a z? You would if you were English or from South Africa. Do you see words with a u in them or without a u in them? You would see them with added u if you were English or Canadian.

Which is right? How do you know which spelling to use? Will people think you just don’t know how to spell? Possibly.

But the world is a big place, if you were writing locally you would spell for your readers. But, when you are writing on the Internet, your readers come from all over the world. Which spelling should you choose?

First, talk to your publisher or editor. Find out what they use for a standard. They call those style guides. It’s a good idea for publications to have one. Not just for different spelling issues. If you’re more or less on your own as for style, go with what comes naturally to you. It’s hard to remember to spell a different way. Likely you’ll miss a few anyway. You may hear from the odd reader who thinks you don’t know how to spell. But, that just gives you something to chat about in your reply to them.

Is spelling an art or a science? I think I’ll leave that as thought fodder for you.

Mistaken Words

What are your words? The ones you always have to look up and check spelling or meanings? Looking at a book with "the most common mistakes in English usage" I found a couple of my own.

Accept and except.

These even sound about the same. Do you know which is which? When do you accept and when do you except?

Lay and lie.

For me it’s really the word lay. A chicken lays eggs. Do people lay down or lie down?

Then, there are common mistakes I see myself. Not my own mistakes but those of others.

They’re and there.

They’re going to the park on the way there.

Your and you’re.

You’re going too fast your speed is too high.

Where and were.

Where were you?

A lot and alot.

Alot is not a word. It should always be a lot.

Do you know which is the principle and which is the Principal?

When is it better to further your efforts to go farther?

No doubt those aren’t glowing examples of grammar but sometimes knowing how words fit in helps you remember which one you need at the time.

Other confused words are anything with double “0’s”. Choose chose, too to, loose lose and so on.

But my personal worst mistake is its and it’s. I still can not keep them straight. Sometimes I get lazy and just type ‘its’ regardless of correctness.

I can stick up for my laziness by saying that’s how language is built, it evolves from laziness and a need for better understanding in communication. But, I know in the case of ‘its’ I’m just being lazy when I should, or at least could, be checking my handy dandy dictionary.