Top 4 Common Mistakes to Avoid While Writing

Do you think an automobile mechanic can repair a car without knowing the cause of the fault? Ideally, you will agree that it is impossible. Similar to delivering a perfect essay, a student should understand how to avoid mistakes in writing. What strategies can individuals use to avoid errors in their papers? Most students depend on free or affordable writing assistant tools such as Grammarly to check and correct errors in their essays. But do you think this strategy would guarantee a well-structured paper with high sentence-level correctness? Definitely, it is impossible without an in-depth understanding of common mistakes in writing.

Top 4 Common Mistakes in Writing Essays 

1. Not following the introduction structure  

How do you start writing your essay? Basically, the first step would be writing a specific and concise introduction. So, what types of mistakes in writing do most students make in this section?

Most individuals start answering the question or addressing the topic in the introduction. What does this mean? A student should consider providing background information on the issue or subject. However, it would be best if you never forget to start with a hook. The approach to writing this sentence(s) could be having an interesting story, meaningful quote, little-known fact, or a question. After writing a hook and background information, complete your introduction with a thesis statement. Most of the students confuse it with the purpose statement. For an in-depth understanding, look at the following examples by considering the topic, “the effects and solutions of climate change:”

• Thesis statement – by substituting fossil fuels with renewable energy sources, curbing deforestation, and implementing climate-smart agriculture, countries and cities would experience fewer heat-related diseases, rising ocean levels, and wildfires.
• Purpose statement –  this paper aims to explain the effects and solutions of climate change.

The thesis statement provides the paper’s position in this case, whereas the second sentence only restates the question. 

2. Not following the structure of the body paragraph 

While you strive to eliminate grammar mistakes in writing, you should understand tips for developing a better paragraph. Technically, it would be best if you start with a topic sentence. What does this mean? Your paragraph must convey a single idea or issue. For example, if you decide to talk about rising sea levels, never incorporate anything about wildfire. Afterward, introduce the scholarly evidence to support the topic sentence. Most students think after rephrasing qualitative and quantitative facts from a source and citing is enough. You should avoid this mistake by evaluating and challenging scholarly evidence to unveil unconventional ideas and insights. Finally, do not be like students who complete a paragraph without a concluding sentence. 

3. Not following the structure of the conclusion

Some students introduce new ideas in this section rather than reflecting on the main points of the entire paper. You might also use your thesis statement to better your conclusion, but you must refrain from including any information from the introduction. One of the ways would be to show the importance of the subject or issue from a different angle. In the case of the topic, “effects and solutions of climate change,” communicate how the world would benefit. Lastly, close with an afterthought for the reader to deliberate or keep remembering what you have written. A good example for the topic in question would be, “even after knowing these solutions, collaborative efforts are necessary for funding and innovation.” 

4. Not using online services

In most cases, learning all intricacies and mastering all the rules for writing a perfect essay for college students tend to be challenging. Some even fail a simple course due to their inability to meet deadlines. If you are one of them, it would be best to consider contacting essay writing services like Custom Writings. With this professional writing service, the experts would not only avoid common mistakes in essays but also complete them from scratch. You can also capitalize on the assistance to improve your skills and excel academically. What is more, the company allows you to get help in coming up with a research topic or PICOT question, writing from scratch, editing, and proofreading, among others. Therefore, you might never achieve academic excellence if you do not order a custom service from this website. 

Common Errors in Writing to Avoid 

Incorrect verb forms

A student who fails to determine the time perspective at the beginning of the sentence and retains it throughout his or her work is more likely to use incorrect tenses. In particular, if you decide to write in the past tense, it should remain consistent throughout the paper unless otherwise. Here are examples of sentences showing the same and different time perspectives.

Example one:

• Students participated in the school games after they completed their assignments – a sentence with consistent verb tenses.
• Students participate in the school games after they completed their assignments – a sentence with inconsistent verb tenses.

In the first sentence, participated and completed are in the past tense. For that reason, the statement has correct verb forms.

In the second sentence, participate and completed are present and past tense, respectively, making the statement have incorrect verb forms. 

Incorrect use of pronouns

Whereas you might strive to ensure that your pronoun in a sentence reflects gender, you might violate some grammar rules. In particular, APA 7 recommends using the pronoun “their” instead of “his or her,” even if the subject is singular. Let us take a look at the following examples:

• Due to their commitment, the student passed the exam – “their” is a gender-neutral pronoun, which is correct.
• Due to his or her commitment, the student passed the exam – “his or her” is gender-sensitive, which is incorrect. 

Subject-verb disagreements

This mistake occurs when the verb of a sentence does not align with the number of subjects (nouns or pronouns). Here are examples of sentences that will make you understand incidents of subject-verb disagreement:

• She likes eating bananas – in this case, “likes” modifies the pronoun “she,” which is singular. Therefore, the pronoun agrees with the verb.  
• She like eating bananas – this sentence is incorrect because the pronoun disagrees with the verb.
• Fredrick arrives late in class  – this statement is correct because the verb agrees with the noun.
• Fredrick arrive late in class – this statement has a subject-verb disagreement. 

Sentence fragments 

Although the omission of words or typographical errors might result in sentence fragments, the primary cause of this mistake concerns writing a sentence with a verb or subject alone. In English, a complete or correct clause should have a noun or pronoun with a verb. Take a look at the sentence to understand this common mistake:

• This is great – it is unclear for someone to determine what the demonstrative pronoun “this” represents in the sentence. 
• Congratulations, Taylor and Britney, on your exams – it is unclear to establish the verb of this sentence. Ideally, you can say this is a sentence fragment, which Grammarly can never detect. 

Overall, writing is an art that requires practicing and learning. You might choose to seek guidance from online help services or your own experience of struggling to perfectly complete papers or essays.