Are all Freelance writer online good in Grammar?

Philippines
December 16, 2009 7:55pm CST
Hello Myloters, I just want to ask everyone this kind of job online because I always wanted to do some writing but as you can see my English and Grammar are not good at all. But are all writer online specially thus one who work with Micro Workers etc are really good in grammar and English? If i want to participate on writing article what should I do to improve my grammar? Thanks Myloters
8 responses
@mensab (4200)
• Philippines
17 Dec 09
i would say that your writing is fine. i think you can do writing jobs online. there are many opportunities here. some sites have their own editorial team that will screen errors, either in grammar or spelling. i think your worry about your proficiency in english writing and grammar should not stop you from writing and sharing your thoughts to the world. writing in the first place is a creative exercise, and not a rule-based exercise. goodluck!
• Philippines
17 Dec 09
Thanks for that Mensab, make me feel more enthusiastic now to join article writing online. Will maybe I will start writing something but first just to show to my friends and get there comments. I also wanted to do this not only for writing articles but also gain confidence when I respond to some professional email. I always worry wither what I said is write or the word I use is write and always have to wait for my partner to check it for me before I send theme. Its getting better though but I am still not satisfied.
@jazzsue58 (2666)
22 Dec 09
What I would say is, to earn decent money writing online, you do need to be proficient. People confuse editors with proofreaders. It's a proofreader's job to check for spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors and correct them where necessary. They are needed - otherwise people like David Beckham couldn't get their autobiographies published (he thinks a ghost writer is the bloke who penned "Christmas Carol" ) Editors may change the odd typo, but they're not proofreaders. Their job is to shuffle about what you've done, check keyword counts etc - in other words, get it ready for the page it's going to be on. My knowledge of the industry is, to be an internet journalist you are expected to proofread your own work. An editor will overlook the odd mistake, but they're v.v.v. busy people, and if the copy is unreadable, they'll just send it back. There are some badly written sites out there - generally the writers are on a dollar a whack, and plagiarise other people's work to get their "content", putting it through a mash-up program that inserts totally nonsensical synonyms. I have experience of this.
@Turn_on (23)
• Indonesia
17 Dec 09
Olaaa, i love to be a writer too (..
@jasmeena (846)
• Indonesia
27 Dec 09
Where r you from?I am from Indonesia, and actually i am an English teacher but sometimes i make grammatical error too LOL..i like writing and i`d like to write for several writing sites,but sometimes i don`t feel confident too
@arcideaco (1257)
• Singapore
17 Dec 09
Hi, I have been writing articles for quite some time now and earning from the articles that I had written. And of course, they are all flawed with grammatical errors, some critics even used the termed 'grammatically challenged' for my articles, but I still get to earn. The gist here is to share the knowledge. As long as the message that you wanted to brought across are perceivable, I guess it is alright. Usually the problem lies with writing the articles hurriedly and just submit them as soon as they are written. Complacency plays a very big part. Sometimes I would go back and edit those articles to correct those grammatical errors. But most of the time, I was too lazy to do it. Just take it as a artistic flaw. Life goes on. Cheers and hope you all the best in your quest to earn from freelance writing.
@jazzsue58 (2666)
22 Dec 09
Do you ever see glaring mistakes WHEN IT'S TOO LATE? I'm good at cutting and pasting sentences and then forgetting where the joins were. Or else I'll write something, decide I can write it better a different way, and then - grrr - forget to take the first version out! I only ever find it after I've posted them off by email ...
@abhi_bangal (5516)
• Ahmednagar, India
17 Dec 09
Writing and cheching your write up for the technicalities like spelling and grammar is entirely two different things. Writing is a creative work while checking for errors is a technical thing. Technicians, not always are cretive. And neither it can always be vise versa. Suppose, if I write something creative, which always I do, I cannot always point out what the faults in the grammar are. Which tenses should I use and what is there combination. So, that would not always be possible. The writers might need to hire grammar specialists too who can tell them as to what the right combination of sentences should be if it comes to the ifs and buts in the narration.
@jazzsue58 (2666)
22 Dec 09
That's where collaboration with a proofreader comes in useful! Proofreaders generally are rather technically minded and not very creative, whereas writers are creative and just "go with the flow." I reckon - put the two together, you've got a blockbuster!
@PastorP (1170)
• United States
19 Dec 09
Greetings eve301345. In regard to improving your grammar, visit some web sites that most likely will have proper grammar and spelling. I say most likely because English is difficult to learn correctly. Some sites you might want to check for US style are those that end in .gov and most that end in .edu . I have found that these sites usually have it correct. British, you might try their .gov sites too. Look into the BBC, British Broadcasting. Years back I could have told you to read news copy--AP, Reuters, etc. However, I don't know about Reuters, but AP is getting sloppy! Imo, it's a shame.
• Canada
7 Jan 10
A lot of writers depend on the grammar and spell check to find their errors. As a result, many writers feel that proofreaders are no longer necessary. I always cringe when I read a book or an article with a lot of errors, especially errors that could so easily have been corrected by an experienced proofreader. Many writers seem to have the idea that as long as readers understand what they are trying to say, grammar and punctuation are not really that important, but many readers are very distracted by errors and, therefore, are unable to concentrate on the content. I am an experienced proofreader and love to help writers improve their work.
• Philippines
17 Dec 09
Hi. I believe that freelance writers are generally good in grammar...but not always. I have seen a lot of articles online with some grammatical errors. I believe that even the professional writers commit some grammatical mistakes as well. The only difference is that most professional writers employ or engage the services of editors to check on their grammars and the likes. So if you like to write and share your generous supply of ideas with others but not that confident with your English, better engage the services of professional editors. If you don't have the resources to pay for editors, you could ask your friends or relatives to read/proof-read your articles first and ask for their comments or suggestions for improvements. That way, you could improve your writings for free. By the way, I'm not a freelance writer. But I'm interested to do it in the near future. Like you, I don't trust my English yet...but I'm trying. LOL!
@Nameless_ (1180)
• Australia
17 Dec 09
Personally, I am already blogging on my blog, and I have lots of grammatical errors. I was never someone to be able to fully master my grammar, but I am still trying. What I can suggest you to do is to accept the job, and then ask your friends or family to proof read it. And perhaps in time you will be able to see what is the right word to use, and what is wrong. Cheers, nameless_