Conventions of language are standard ways of building and presenting sentences. These conventions are more typically called grammar and usage rules. While language conventions are essential for writers and readers to communicate clearly with each other, at times it's appropriate to ignore or at least relax the rules. Playing with elements of grammar, such as word order or subject-verb agreement can help you make text more interesting or give a character a distinctive voice--IF it is done with purpose and care. After all, only a writer who fully understands the rules can successfully break them in a way that creates an intriguing effect rather than confusion.
What are the most common ways a writer might break from convention? Use the tab set below to review what the rules are. Later in this lesson, you'll examine some examples of how writers have broken these rules to good effect.
Punctuation
Capitalization
Sentence Structure
Language
Punctuation refers to the symbols or signs that tell the reader where pauses, stops, questions, or omissions occur in writing. Some of the most common punctuation marks are periods, commas, and exclamation points.
Initially introduced into English as a way to guide the oral presentation of texts, punctuation tells the reader when to stop or with what expression to read the text. Punctuation can make a text sound more exciting, authoritative, or empathetic.
What rules for capitalization do you know? You have probably learned that the first word of a sentence should be capitalized as well as the pronoun I and proper nouns. Some authors use capital letters for another purpose, though--to show that a word is particularly important.
Imagine you receive a text from a friend and the entire message is written in capital letters. What would you think? You would probably think your friend was yelling at you or upset with you. Capital letters can be used to draw attention to particular words or phrases or to make a point.
Long before seventh grade, you knew the basic rules of English sentence formation. You "absorbed" these rules as you learned to speak. Once you were able to write sentences, you learned to avoid sentence fragments and run-on sentences. According to the conventions of written English, a sentence is a complete thought with a subject and a verb.
A skilled writer knows how to choose and place the words on a page so that the writing not only sounds good but also creates an emotional response in the reader.
Author Gary Paulsen once said, “Language, really, is a dance for me and I’ll do anything with it...to make a story work right.” Just as a dancer makes a series of movements to express a story or feeling, so too can a writer assemble words to "make a story work right," even if it means breaking from convention.
