Do you want to make a living as a writer? Perhaps it’s a dream you’ve always dismissed as impossible, and you’ve got a “sensible” day job, or a busy family life. But you’ve never given up your love of words. I’ll let you into a secret. You can make your writing pay. I do, and … Read more
Next to the possessive adjective its, the word definite is possibly the most misspelled word in English. If I had a nickel for every time I’ve circled the misspelling “definate” in a student’s paper, I’d have enough money to buy a house. Perhaps one way to impress the correct spelling of definite on the mind … Read more
I am happy to introduce a new biweekly column on our blog. Called “The Writing Clinic,” the column will be a collaboration with one of our old time sponsors, Gramlee.com. Here is how it will work: Our readers will submit any non-fiction written piece (e.g., a resume, a letter, an essay, a blog post), with … Read more
More proof that traditional literature is in a state of neglect is the frequent occurrence of the spelling piers when the context calls for peers. I really hope i will [win something] because I have a BIG presentation coming up and that mouse would really impress my piers! And to set the record straight I … Read more
If you’re a fiction writer, you’ll be aware of the need to grab a reader’s attention as early as possible; to hook them, preferably, on your very first page. One key technique for doing this is to start your story in medias res. The Latin expression in medias res means “into the midst of things”. … Read more
M. Arun writes: Is it correct to say “I work out of New York”- to mean that one’s workplace is in New York. Or to say “I am based out of New York” to mean you live in New York? It sounds a wrong to me! The use of “out of” described here may be … Read more
Paul Russell calls our attention to confusion between the verbs clamor [klăm’ər] and clamber.[klăm’bər]. I just found the phrase “F1’s sponsors were clambering for a presence in the USA.” One “clamors” for attention or, in this case, for a presence. Used as both noun and verb, clamor comes from Latin clamor, “a shout.” As a … Read more
Many English speakers cringe to hear the following construction: Jack has a couple tickets for the play. Counting myself among the cringers, I prefer the standard construction: Jack has a couple of tickets for the play. I prefer the latter usage because I can’t accept couple as an adjective describing “tickets.” To me the dropped … Read more
Jacob Marley wants some input on the uses of hoard vs horde: Perhaps you could take some time to enlighten us on the proper use of “horde, hoard.” For instance, [this statement from the writer of a software manual]: “I wrote it as a response to the growing hoards of people…” This just sounds *wrong*. … Read more
The term “business writing” covers any piece of writing produced in a business context. I’ll focus here on documents that are produced for internal use (such as memos and plans), and reports aimed at clients. Most jobs today involve a significant amount of writing, especially as you rise up the corporate ladder. Many of us … Read more
Commenting on the Whelps are Puppies post, Anthony Patterson, MD had this to add to our vocabulary for talking about raised places on the skin: Regarding “whelps” your article is of course quite correct. However, in medical school, I was taught it was an inappropriate substitution for “wheal” which is “a more or less round … Read more
It’s Spring and I’m busily cruising the gardening sites. This headline grabbed me: Is your Clematis Wilting? Fading? Dieing? Find out how to rescue it. English has a handful of common verbs that end in -ie: die lie (to recline) lie (to prevaricate) tie The present participles of these verbs are formed by changing the … Read more