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: skep…. As a fan of the writer Maggie O’Farrell, I was excited to learn she had a new novel published this year. Titled Hamnet and Judith, the […]
Reading time: Less than 6 minutes (and easy to scan) Are you stressed and worn out — too tired to write another word? It might be time to consider indulging in some self-care for writers…. The phrase “self-care” has always sounded slightly suspect to me. It makes me think of wealthy people justifying their trips
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Viewing time: 32 mins 54 secs Here is the original text of a chapter for a business book 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
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Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about figurative language from Olaf Olafsson…. The Icelandic writer Olaf Olafsson has been a recent discovery of mine thanks to a New York Times review of his very fine 2019 novel The Sacrament.
More figurative language from Olaf Olafsson…. Read More »
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: frangible…. I found the Alison Wearing memoir, Moments of Glad Grace to be exceptionally easy to read. Featuring mostly short sentences, plenty of active voice, and lots
What does the word ‘frangible’ mean? Read More »
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
Substantive edit – blog post (video) Read More »
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,
What does ‘etiolated’ mean? Read More »
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 »
