Word count: 202 words 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: bespoke. My husband and I had a dinner party last weekend and the word bespoke came up during conversation. Our daughter asked what […]
What does bespoke mean? Read More »
Word count: 748 words Reading time: Less than 3 minutes If you’re looking for the secret formula to making writing easier, it’s time to give mindmapping another try… I was speaking at a conference several years ago and talking about mindmapping. (If you don’t know what mindmapping is, check out one of my previous columns
Why you should try this magic bullet for writers Read More »
Word count: 314 words Reading time: Just over 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 writers. Today I discuss an article written by Lee Gutkind. When my coaching students tell me they have a writing problem, I
Word count: 306 words Reading time: Just over 1 minute A great way to improve your writing is to emulate the work of others. That’s why, every week, I present a sentence that I’d happily imitate. Today, I’ve chosen one by Jess Walter. I know, I wrote yesterday about Jess Walter and his book of
Like a single raindrop… Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. Today I present a metaphor from novelist Jess Walter. I first encountered the writing of Jess Walter thanks to a Valentine’s Day gift from my husband. (He knows enough to give me books rather than chocolate!)
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Word count: 328 words Reading time: Just over 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: chaplet. Do you ever find yourself reading a book or a piece of text and letting your eyes skid by the words you
Word count: 726 words Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Have you ever had your well-made plans go completely and thoroughly wrong? Here’s what happened to me, recently… My husband and I spent a week in the Okanagan, last month, in the Canadian equivalent of California’s Napa Valley. It has rolling hills. Lots of vineyards.
Welcome to my holiday nightmare Read More »
Word count: 447 words Reading time: Less than 2 minutes This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help writers. Today I discuss an article written by Cody Walker. If you’ve read my blog for awhile, you will have noticed that
Working on captions will make you a better writer Read More »
Word count: 263 words Reading time: About 1 minute A great way to improve your writing is to emulate the work of others. That’s why, every week, I present a sentence that I’d happily imitate.Today’s comes from Kate Southwood. As someone who lives in the Pacific Coast earthquake zone, who has picked up debris from
A delicate blue that deepens quickly… Read More »
Reading time: Just over 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. Today’s comes from English novelist Jeanette Winterson. I’ve heard Jeanette Winterson interviewed on the radio several times. She’s so engaging that each interview has inspired me to pick up one of her books. First, I
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