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 other writers. Today I discuss a blog post on smartphones by Cal Newport….. Some time ago, my husband and I went […]
Reducing phone time and going “analogue” with life Read More »
Viewing time: 4 min. 21 sec. The Write Question is a weekly video podcast about writing that I started in 2017 and that ran, more or less weekly, until April 2022. This is a republication of issue #42, about how to go about building LinkedIn connections. The post first ran
How to go about building LinkedIn connections (video) 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 series of metaphors from John Boyne… I find the Irish writer John Boyne to be remarkably versatile. The first book of his I read, A History
The figurative language of John Boyne… 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: hew…. I learned the verb “to hew” when I was in grade school — as a result of the country I was
What does ‘hew’ mean? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes For whom do you write? I know your work might be for a client or for the public. But, really, you should always write for one person… I’ve received a great deal of advice over the years. Some of this advice has been silly —
Why you should write for one person Read More »
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 other writers. Today I discuss a blog post on editing others by Miss Manners, also known as Judith Martin…. I taught
Tips on editing others… Read More »
Viewing time: 3 min. 32 sec. The Write Question is a weekly video podcast about writing that I started in 2017 and that ran, more or less weekly, until April 2022. This is a republication of issue #41, about how to get better at writing in a second language. The
Do you have difficulty writing in a second language? (video) Read More »
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 metaphors from Jean Hanff Korelitz… Probably because I’m the mother of triplets, several people recommended a new novel by Jean Hanff Korelitz to
The figurative language of Jean Hanff Korelitz 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: euchred…. The sad, cautionary and yet deeply funny story of Lee Israel is one of my favourite memoirs. You may be more
What does ‘euchred’ mean? Read More »
Reading time: About 4 mins. It might surprise you to learn that the curse of knowledge is not a blessing in disguise. In fact, it’s a considerable disadvantage for writers… If you’re a writer, you’re probably a know-it-all. Not in the sense of a 6-year-old bully who says things like,
How the curse of knowledge is harming your writing Read More »
