Suzanne Raymer has suggested a post on parley versus parlay. Both words may be used as either noun or verb. As a noun, parley can mean “speech” or “conversation.” Its most common use is to mean speech between opposing sides, a conference with an enemy to discuss terms. As a verb it means “to discuss … Read more
Sometimes agents and publishers list “literary” fiction as something they handle: Fiction areas of interest: Action/Adventure, Experimental, Family Saga, Glitz, Historical, Humor, Literary, Mainstream, Mystery/Suspense, Religious, Thriller, Women’s. Cruise the web and you will find various definitions of the term “literary fiction.” Some agents and publishers don’t even try to define it, saying simply that … Read more
An amusing egg-corn that has just appeared on my radar is that of writing in the throes of as “in the throws of.” A protagonist in the throws of madness Plaster cast of a Pompeii resident in the throws of death Iraq is in the last throws of insurgency… AMD in final death throws? … … Read more
A reader asks: 
 Is there any rule for when to use ‘semi’ and when to use ‘half’? The Latin prefix semi– means “half.” The earliest “semi-” words documented in English are semicircular (1432-1450 and semi-mature (c.1440). Both William Langland (c.1332-c.1386) and Chaucer (c.1343-1400) use “semi-” constructions. According the OED, In the 16th-18th c., the … Read more
Martin Benvenuto writes: Could you please settle a discussion concerning Democrat vs. Democratic. It is my contention that Democratic is not the plural of Democrat. Is this correct? Democrat is a noun. Democratic is an adjective. The plural of democrat is democrats. This question put me in mind of the incorrect way that the noun … Read more
Whenever I come across an unusual misspelling, I do a search to see how common it is. This misspelling of in lieu of caught my attention: …so i can run keynote in leu of having to use powerpoint. A Google search for “in leu of” brought up about 23,600,000 hits. The bank is asking if … Read more
Phil Dragonetti writes: One of the things that bug me about English usage is the use of a”cute” word instead of the proper word. One such “cute” word is “myth”…[which] many use … instead of the word “misunderstanding” or “misconception” I received this comment while I was writing a post for my teaching site. The … Read more
In cruising the Writer’s Market and similar references, you will come across the “experimental” genre: Fiction areas of interest: Action/Adventure, Experimental, Family Saga, Glitz, Historical, Humor, Literary, Mainstream, Mystery/Suspense, Religious, Thriller, Women’s. One definition of an “experimental novel” might be “a novel without much story.” Writers of experimental fiction are more interested in being innovative … Read more
Although I read Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons (2000), I don’t recall having noticed the word ambigram. When I watched the film based on the book, however, I did notice it, and found myself becoming vaguely annoyed by the frequency with which Tom Hanks says it. I thought he was intending to say “anagram”: anagram: … Read more