You’d be surprised. Text Speak has taken over grammar as well as spelling. And it’s not as difficult as it seems to many. Nobody will mind if you can’t remember whether to say “Joey and I” rather than “Joey and me” in casual conversation. But in written communications, grammar is a first impression that lasts.

Your best bet – along with learning to use the language correctly – is to get a good online grammar checker. There are several available, but often people run a quick spell check and call it good. Don’t get us wrong; spelling is important too. But it does not compensate for grammar or punctuation either… because it’s too easy to pick the wrong homonym – for instance “your” in place of “you’re”. This is where grammar correcting software comes in. It knows all the strange little rules in the somewhat irregular language we call English.

There are plenty of them. In addition to homonyms and other spelling concerns, there are punctuation and capitalization issues, and simply good use of the language. Think about it. How many people know proper use of a semi-colon, or where to use that “Joey and I” example? Does one capitalize after an interjection? How about after that semi-colon… assuming the writer has used it correctly in the first place?

That’s why a grammar checker is a good idea… not so much for the big rules like common word order, but for all those little rules that most people cannot keep in their heads.