Reading time: About 4 minutes In a panic over Christmas gifts for writers in your life? (Or wondering what to ask for, yourself?) Here’s a whole list of ideas, most of them reasonably priced. Christmas is approaching and the panicked buying is about to begin. If you are purchasing a gift for a writer (or […]
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Viewing time: 31 mins 47 secs Here is the original text of blog post for which I did a substantive edit in the video shown above. Even if you don’t watch the video, I suggest you scroll to the end of this post to read my concluding notes. You might also wish to download the
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Reading time: Just over 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of metaphors and similes from Alison Wearing…. An award-winning Canadian writer, playwright and performer, Alison Wearing (pictured above) knows her way around memoir. I recall enjoying her remarkable first
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Reading time: Less than 1 minute Increase your vocabulary and you’ll make your writing much more precise. That’s why I provide a word of the week. Today’s word: etiolated…. I encounter a word, every once in a while, that I’m sure I must know. It sounds familiar and yet, when I read it in a sentence,
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Reading time: Just over 4 minutes Looking for some recommended books in time for Christmas gifts or wintertime reading? Here’s my semi-annual roundup of books I’ve read this year. I aim to read at least 52 books every 12 months and my habit is to post a complete list of the names of them for you, in
Recommended books: winter 2020 Read More »
Viewing time: 54 minutes Here is the original text of an early chapter in a book by an academic writer for which I did a substantive edit in the video shown above. (Note that I have removed the footnotes in the version below.) I realize that the video is very long and may be of
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Reading time: Just over 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of metaphors from Maria Konnikova… My reading affections are more or less equally divided between novels and non-fiction. But in the latter category, I have some clear preferences: memoir
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Reading time: Less than 1 minute Increase your vocabulary and you’ll make your writing much more precise. That’s why I provide a word of the week. Today’s word: rubicund…. When I’m reading, I’m always looking for new or interesting words. Sometimes, I’m surprised to find thoughtful and sophisticated books almost bereft of such language. Other
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Reading time: Just over 5 minutes Here are my 10 favourite articles or posts from last month, focusing on the most useful, helpful and healthful pieces for writers. As American Thanksgiving approaches, Black Friday looms and we start preparing for Christmas, perhaps it’s time to step back and consider our good fortune in having the
PubCoach top 10: November 2020 Read More »
Viewing time: 33 minutes Here is the original text of the piece of short fiction for which I did a substantive edit in the video shown above. Raj Kishore by Pankaj Tandon Naresh knew that his father, Raj Kishore Taneja, had seen action during the Second World War. He was an officer in what was
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