Do I use one word or two?
This happens a lot: People misspell a lot by making two words (a lot) into one word (alot). There is, in fact, no word spelled alot. So use a lot - but not too often, especially in formal writing.
Did you know this already? And did you know the difference between already and all ready? If not, here it is: All ready means "completely prepared." Already means "previously." So, if you are all ready already, you are prepared in advance.
Now, I'm going to prepare you in advance for a few more situations in which you might wonder whether to use one word or two.
I cannot say that cannot is any better than can not. That's because, according to grammarians, either is acceptable (though your spell-check may declare war on can not).
I can say that kickoff, backup, and printout are all spelled correctly, but only if used as nouns, as in: A kickoff is required to start a football game, while a backup of your printout is optional. If you want to use any of those three nouns as verbs, however, you have to split them in two, as in: He can kick off a football, back up his computer files, and print out a document - all before breakfast!
There's not a lot more to say.
Neil Chethik, aka the Grammar Gourmet, is writer-in-residence at the Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning (www.carnegieliteracy.org) and author of FatherLoss and VoiceMale. The Carnegie Center offers writing classes and seminars for businesses and individuals. Contact Neil at nchet@aol.com or 859-254-4175.