Word count: 311 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: scofflaws. In my community paper this week I encountered a word that I know and love. Said the article: The city of Vancouver […]
What are scofflaws? Read More »
Word count: 697 words Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Do you ever get stopped in your tracks by writing criticism? Here’s how you should deal with that particular type of “black ice”…. I’d heard the dire warnings on the morning news. “The roads are covered with black ice. It’s a skating rink out there.”
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Word count: 252 words 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 writers. Today’s weblink focuses on the important task of revision. How much time do you spend revising your writing? If you’re like many
Throw up into your typewriter… Read More »
Word count: 281 words Reading time: Just over 1 minute A great way to improve your writing skills 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 an Anthony Lane New Yorker review of the movie Les Miserables. I’ve never read any
The camera soars on high, the orchestra bellows… Read More »
Reading time: Just over 1 minute I read widely, watch movies and listen to the radio. In today’s post you’ll see an interesting piece of figurative language I’ve encountered recently. It’s from New Yorker writer Lauren Collins. When my family and I went to Paris a year and a half ago, we had a number
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Word count: 244 words 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: obloquy. I have to confess. I’d never heard the word obloquy before reading Salman Rushdie’s autobiography, Joseph Anton. I like to think of myself
Word count: 748 words Reading time: About 3 minutes Many writers tell me they don’t have difficulty writing — they just don’t know WHAT to write about. Here’s a creative solution if that nitty-gritty problem bugs you…. I once had to interview a neuroscientist for an article I was writing. Fortunately for me, a math-disabled
Hey, fill in some blanks! Read More »
Word count: 370 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 focus on a new offering from Constance Hale. If Constance Hale writes it, I will read it. As a
Why you should vex, hex, smash and smooch Read More »
Word count: 373 words Reading time: Just over 1 minute A great way to improve your writing skills 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 the novel Capital, by John Lanchester. I hadn’t heard of John Lanchester (pictured above) but my
Even his tallness appeared a form of ease… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I read widely, watch movies and listen to the radio. In today’s post you’ll see an interesting piece of figurative language I’ve encountered recently. It’s by Elizabeth Renzetti. My daily newspaper is the Globe and Mail. In last Saturday’s edition, I read an amusing piece by Elizabeth Renzetti on
The figurative language of Elizabeth Renzetti… Read More »
