Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a simile from Margaret Talbot… My kids introduced me to young adult videographer and writer John Green about four years ago. I found his Vlog Brothers videos, which he prepares with his brother, Hank, absolutely […]
The figurative language of Margaret Talbot… Read More »
Reading time: About 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: palaver. I had never heard of the bestselling novel The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared until I saw my 20-year-old daughter wandering around the house with
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes For some people perfectionism and writing go together like salt and pepper or a hammer and nails— you don’t have one without the other. Here’s some advice on how to fix that…. I injured my arm while making Hollandaise sauce, about six weeks ago. It took me a while
How to deal with perfectionism and writing Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help other writers. Today I discuss an article written by Amy Klein….. I’m not a big supporter of most writing groups. In brief, I think they expose writers to
If the story does not move forward, there is no story… Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute Signage writing is a demanding art. Yet is looks so easy that few small companies take it seriously enough. They make this mistake at their peril… Signs are harder to write than they appear. In addition to attending to grammar and spelling, you also need to watch the unwritten messages you’re sending out.
Come in and say hello… Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a simile from Kim Echlin. Going on holiday, for me, is all about reading. Why then, did I go out of town a few weeks ago with no books and a mostly empty Kindle? I
The figurative language of Kim Echlin 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: kowtow. Shortly after getting my Netflix subscription (only so I could watch the dark but fantastic show House of Cards, starring Kevin Spacey), I discovered the lighter joys of
What does kowtow mean? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Over the last two weeks, I’ve written about why and how to paraphrase. If the thought of this still makes you nervous, here’s a guide to a faster, better approval process from the people you’ve interviewed… Many corporate communicators go crazy with what’s known, euphemistically, as the “approval process.” Usually, a
My ninja secrets to a faster, better approval process Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help other writers. Today I discuss an article about how to write funny… If I could wave a magic wand and give myself any talent in the world, I
How to write funny Read More »
Reading time: About 2 minutes What can a labour dispute teach you about communications? Quite a lot if you look at the current BC teachers’ strike as an example. A series of rotating strikes by teachers and a partial lockout by the employer (the provincial government) is crippling the school system in BC right now. It’s
How communications affects strikes Read More »
