Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about some metaphors from Rachel Friedman… The book’s subtitle says it all: On Creativity, Potential and the Imperfect Art of Adulthood. A tiny, perfect book by Rachel Friedman, published under the main […]
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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: zoonotic… I read the story in the New York Times because the headline grabbed my attention. “Mothers All Over Are Losing It,” the headline read. Written by
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Reading time: Less than 3 minutes If you think sunk costs are a topic suitable only for economists, read on to learn how this issue affects writers as well. Do you ever do any of the following: Work for a client who belittles you or who pays you poorly? Accept writing or editing contracts for
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Like many people, I occasionally have problems with pronouns — words like he, she, it, and they. For example, I might write, “The folder was on the bus, but now it’s gone.” Do you see how that sentence is not clear? Generally speaking, this type of problem is referred to as an unclear antecedent because
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Reading time: Less than 2 minutes I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about similes and metaphors from John le Carré… I don’t read much “genre” fiction so it might surprise you that I consider myself a John le Carré fan. Although he is famous
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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: fossicking…. When I read the marvellous novel Hamnet and Judith by Maggie O’Farrell, I learned a laundry list of new words including scrofulous, flensing and skep. And
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Reading time: Just over 4 minutes (but very skimmable) Here are my 10 favourite articles or posts from last month, focusing on the most useful, helpful and healthful pieces for writers. While my Texan friends are digging out from the snow and trying to re-establish their essential connections, I’m reminded once again of the wonders
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If you need to edit a big project — and, by that, I mean a thesis or dissertation that is north of 50,000 words or a book that is 70,000 or more— DON’T freak yourself out. Editing a project of that size is by definition intimidating. But so is learning to cross a busy street, learning
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Reading time: Less than 2 minutes I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of similes from Suleika Jaouad… Suleika Jaouad (pictured above) was just 22-years-old when she was given the grim statistic that her odds of survival were no greater than 35
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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: hortatory… I read the Ben Lerner novel The Topeka School for three reasons. First, I’d enjoyed his earlier novel, Leaving The Atocha Station and found it be
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