Grammar vs Writing Style: Finding the Balance in Writing

You want your sentences to follow the grammar rules and sound clear. But sometimes, too much reliance on grammatical practices results in dull or stiff write-ups. This situation often makes writers feel stuck between crafting correct content and writing how they intend to. If you are one of those writers, this blog post is for you.

Here, we’ll help you balance your writing by achieving a perfect blend of grammar and style. For that, we’ll discuss various practical tips and tricks. Before delving into our topic, let’s first understand both things!

Grammar: Understanding the Concept

Grammar is the foundation of any language. It’s a rulebook defining and dictating how different words must combine to form meaningful and accurate sentences. Without grammar accuracy, words are meaningless, as they cannot communicate anything at all. 

To lay the structural foundation of the language, it relies on the following subcomponents:

  • Syntax
  • Punctuation
  • Spelling
  • Word Usage

With the proper usage of each sub-element, grammar usage helps people accurately follow the intended message. Here is an example that best explains how the correct usage of grammatical practices enhances the clarity of a write-up: 

Incorrect practice: They is playing football.

Correct practice: They are playing football.

Writing Style: What Is Meant by?

Style refers to a unique tone or voice that a writer uses to deliver the target message. It helps beautify an entire write-up and makes it more engaging to read by adding a unique personality and flair.

Like grammar, style also relies on its subcomponents to achieve its intended purpose. Some of its common sub-elements are as follows:

  • Word Choice
  • Sentence Rhythm
  • Tone
  • Strategic Bending of Grammatical Rules

Consider the following sentence:

Example of Writing Style: They were just hanging out, when suddenly – bam! – they started kicking the ball around, and the game was on!

As you can see, the combination of informal tone and fragments formulates a lively write-up that is easier for everyone to follow. So, that’s how writing style contributes to the personality and flow of a text piece.

Why Is It Essential to Maintain the Balance Between Grammar and Style?

Both style and grammar usage add value to the writing in different ways. So, they both are essential. But, if that's the case, why is it necessary to strike a balance between these? Well, the answer to this confusion resides in the following points:

Impact of Focusing Too Much on Grammar

When you place too much emphasis on grammar, your writing becomes formal and rigid. This rigidity eventually diminishes the overall engagement of the write-up. Therefore, over-reliance on grammatical rules may work for content pieces of technical niches, but it does not serve the causes of creative or informal write-ups. 

Consequences of Focusing Entirely on Writing Styles

Implementation of writing styles without proper grammatical conventions gives rise to misunderstandings. For instance, if you start relying entirely on the writing styles and overlook grammar practices, your content will be confusing and unclear. And when readers will have a hard time following your point of view, this will frustrate them.

How to Find and Balance the Grammar and Style in Writing?

You have understood why balancing grammar and writing style is essential. If so, let’s now discuss how to find that balance. 

  • Analyze Your Audience

The first ever thing that you must consider before writing is your audience. Once you know your readers, you can make informed and accurate decisions regarding your content. For instance, if your readers are a general audience who love reading engaging content, you can show your creativity and experiment with the language. On the other hand, when writing for a formal audience, strictly follow grammar rules.

  • Use Grammar as a Guidance

Grammar is a structured guide that helps communicators effectively communicate their message. Therefore, all writers must adhere to grammar rules to convey their message. If they don’t, they might not communicate at all.

As a writer, always use grammar as a guiding tool to improve your writing. However, if you lack understanding of different grammar rules, you can also get assistance from our grammar checker. With its advanced algorithms, you can quickly locate and fix various writing issues in all types of content.  Grammar & punctuation play a crucial role in professional writing. Proper rules ensure clarity, prevent misinterpretation, and enhance your content's overall readability.

  • Use Styling Components Accordingly

Apart from the readers, your content’s purpose should dictate your writing style. For example, writing blogs, social media posts, or video scripts use a relaxed and conversational tone. In contrast, research articles, theses, contracts, and policies require formality and structured writing. When you write any of these things, adhere to all grammar rules and ensure clarity.

  •  Always Give Preference to Readability

No matter what type of content you write, the goal is to craft readable content so the audience can easily understand it. For instance, a lengthy sentence may be grammatically correct, but readers generally have difficulty understanding such phrases. So, it’s best to avoid them. However, if you have trouble breaking up chunky sentences, you can use an AI rephraser. This tool lets you quickly revamp your complicated sentences for better readability and engagement while keeping their original intent alive. Whether you need to simplify rephrasing, maintain a consistent tone, or refine sentence flow, rewriting can help to improve writing effortlessly.

  • Be Consistent

Always maintain consistency, regardless of whether your audience and content suggest favoring grammar or adopting a more free-form writing style. This means that while crafting a content piece, you can either be excessively strict with grammatical norms or use a more flexible writing approach, not both.

Conclusion

As of now, grammar and style are two essential elements of writing. Both of them play a crucial role in communicating messages. If you want to craft outstanding content, keep a perfect balance between them. However, to understand when to prefer a particular element, understand your readers and the purpose of writing. Moreover, always prioritize readability. These simple yet effective strategies will surely uplift your writing skills.