1. writer one

    writer one Member

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    General writing.

    Discussion in 'Word Mechanics' started by writer one, Oct 14, 2015.

    I am going to use my style of writing as general writing. I cannot understand using the subject and predicate only in every sentence. I am going to use the subject and predicate in the first sentence and then add the story. If that isn't correct, then I will have to find a new hobby. I am trying to use what parts of writing I understand and create my way of writing. The order will be subject then predicate and then story. I will edit the best I can in hopes when it is critqued is, I see the changes that I missed. I was considering getting a software editor and follow it to the letter, but I cannot.

    I am having serious doubt about attempting to write. I am a fanatic about words and there place within a sentence, along with editing. Writer One
     
  2. uncephalized

    uncephalized Active Member

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    I'm not sure what you're talking about. Subject, predicate then story? 'Story' is not a part of speech. What do you mean by 'correct'? Who is stopping you from writing however you like?

    I really don't get the point of this little rant. What am I missing?
     
  3. writer one

    writer one Member

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    I had another English Forum explain there way of writing, I could not understand. They claimed you must have a subject and predicate in every sentence. The word correct to me means a word in a sentence, that is the correct word that belongs there. The word story to me means ones explanation of what the writer is talking about which is called a story. Writer One
     
  4. writer one

    writer one Member

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    I was in another English writing forum and they tried to show me there way of writing. Got me extremely confused. Every sentence had to have a subject and a predicate in it. My expression of the word correct, is when one special word is the correct word for that sentence. There way of writing was stopping me from writing. You missed nothing' but my ranting? Writer One
     
  5. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    I don't understand what you're saying. While there are some grammatical errors in your posts in this thread, every one of your sentences has a subject and a predicate.
     
  6. writer one

    writer one Member

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    What were the grammatical errors? I do not understand grammar. Writer One
     
  7. NiallRoach

    NiallRoach Contributor Contributor

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    You DO need a subject and predicate in every sentence. If you don't, you've got a fragment, not a sentence (which is fine).
    The real question for me is: How is that a restriction? It has nothing to do with writing, but with language, and you obviously have a solid grasp on English.
     
  8. writer one

    writer one Member

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    Nial Roach,
    Thank you, you have made my year. To me it seems with a subject and predicate your order of writing is each sentence? I think I see. I am blaming the language with what I do not understand about writing. Mental health awaits me. Writer One :);):D

    I'm trying to say I do not understand why in each sentence there is a subject, where there just should be one subject for the whole piece, not two. If there is seven sentences then there are seven subjects and seven predicates. I will agree there should be some order with each sentence, but the word flow haunts me if there is so many words or sentences that can screw up the flow. Writer One
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 18, 2015
  9. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    You're misunderstanding what the terms "subject" and "predicate" mean in the context of a sentence. I'd suggest Googling or buying a grammar guide. A Google string that seems to work is

    grammar subject predicate examples
     
  10. writer one

    writer one Member

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    Chicken Freak,
    You are correct. I think I have it. The subject and the predicate are the flow of the story when using them. Am I correct on this thought? I now see the flow of the story. How many paragraphs does a short story curtail? Thank you. Writer One
     
  11. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    No--the subject and predicate are not at the story level. They are at the level of the individual sentence. The subject of a sentence , and the subject of a story, are not the same thing. Please google the string that I suggested.
     
  12. writer one

    writer one Member

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    There is know way I can understand the difference between the sentence and story line. The words create the story within the sentences. There is no flow after the first sentence of the first sentence. Maybe flow is the wrong word to use. Thanks for the advice.

    But I will never understand English writing your way. Writer One
     
  13. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    Yes, you can. Do you know what a sentence is? Look at a very small story:

    Joe got up in the morning. He ran to the store for breakfast. He came home and ate breakfast. Then he took a nap.

    This story consists of four sentences:

    Sentence 1: Joe got up in the morning.
    Sentence 2: He ran to the store for breakfast.
    Sentence 3: He came home and ate breakfast.
    Sentence 4: Then he took a nap.

    The group of words that starts with a capitalized word, and ends with punctuation, usually but not always a period, is often a sentence. I assume that you already know this but you are being extremely unclear, so I can't be sure.

    So, a story is made up of groups of words that are sentences. Usually, the sentences are grouped into paragraphs, but a story can be just one paragraph, as mine is.

    I say that those groups of words are often a sentence. They're not always a sentence. That's because a sentence needs at least two things: A subject and a predicate. So I break up the story some more:

    Subject of sentence 1: Joe
    Predicate of sentence 1: got up in the morning.
    Subject of sentence 2: He
    Predicate of sentence 2: ran to the store for breakfast.
    Subject of sentence 3: He
    Predicate of sentence 3: came home and ate breakfast.
    Subject of sentence 4: he
    Predicate of sentence 4: Then... took a nap.

    I might have the predicate of the last one wrong. You could find out by reading about subject and predicates.
     
  14. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    To continue, I offer groups of words that do not have a subject and a predicate and are therefore not sentences:

    The beautiful, shining car.
    Frying in the pan.
    Aging, broken clay pot.
    Wafting in the wind.

    The first looks like a subject, but it has no predicate. The second looks like a predicate, but it has no subject. The third, again, looks like a subject. The fourth, again, looks like a predicate.

    If we add the pieces that are missing, they become sentences:

    The beautiful, shining car was parked on the south side of the street.
    Six eggs were frying in the pan.
    An aging, broken clay pot fell from the balcony.
    Cinders were wafting in the wind.
     
  15. writer one

    writer one Member

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    Thanks, especially for your patience's with me. I envy you. I am slow to understand, and wonder if I am ready to write in the first place. writer one


    I see somewhat where you are coming from. Can you crituqe my writing and give me some idea on what I am doing wrong?writer one
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 18, 2015
  16. uncephalized

    uncephalized Active Member

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    Writer One, you are already writing complete sentences with subject and predicate all throughout this thread. You are not doing anything wrong (or at least, not badly wrong) at the grammatical level. It's the content of your sentences, their meaning, that is not making sense.
     
  17. writer one

    writer one Member

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    uncephalized,
    Any idea on how to fix that? What content should they be? Do they have a subject and predicate?
    What kind of content (?) am I not using? Writer One
     
    Last edited: Oct 19, 2015
  18. uncephalized

    uncephalized Active Member

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    I'm telling you to stop worrying about what is a subject and what is a predicate. You already know how to do it right, so you just need to write.
     
  19. writer one

    writer one Member

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    uncephaized,
    What about the word content? You did mention that? Writer One
     
  20. fivetoesten

    fivetoesten Member

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    You're using the wrong words to convey your meaning. Are you a native English speaker?
    for instance:
    You were looking for "entail", but you could have just asked,

    "how many paragraphs are in a short story?"

    The answer, by the way, is as many as it takes.
    :)
     
  21. Selbbin

    Selbbin The Moderating Cat Staff Contributor Contest Winner 2023

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    This thread fried my brain.
     
    Shadowfax likes this.

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