S is for Sentences

Back to the editing chatter. I am going right down to the nitty gritty and basics with this one. We're getting closer to the end of the month and alphabet. See how the other bloggers are doing over here.

Sentences

Definition: A sentence is a linguistic unit consisting of one or more words that are grammatically linked. A sentence can include words grouped meaningfully to express a statement, question, exclamation, request, command or suggestion.

Grammar. a grammatical unit of one or more words that expresses an independent statement, question, request, command, exclamation, etc., and that typically has a subject as well as a predicate, as in John is here. or Is John here? In print or writing, a sentence typically begins with a capital letter and ends with appropriate punctuation; in speech it displays recognizable, communicative intonation patterns and is often marked by preceding and following pauses.

Basic components:
Source = http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/completesentence.htm

First, it begins with a capital letter.
In addition, it includes an end mark—either a period [ . ], question mark [ ? ], or exclamation point [ ! ].
Most importantly, the complete sentence must contain at least one main clause. A main clause contains an independent subject and verb and expresses a complete thought.


How to edit: Depends on what needs fixed. In some instances it will be taking out the unnecessary, such as extra adverbs, weak words or in my case, the use of the word "just" 4 times in less than half a chapter. Other times, you might need to adjust the comma situation, where the independent subject relates to the verb, or how the complete thought is expressed. On the rare occasion, you will not edit something that is technically considered wrong. There are many ways to edit a sentence and the main point is the method and responsibility is up to you.


How many sentences did you edit today?