Ali Hale Are you hoping to go further with your writing this year? Whether you want to launch your freelance writing career, write and publish a book, or start a successful blog, these ten resources could help. I’ve split them into three different categories: learn, write and market. If you’re fairly new to writing seriously, then you’ll … Read more
Would you like to learn to write great non-fiction – perhaps long-form articles or even full-length books? Then Malcolm Gladwell’s MasterClass might be for you. If you’ve read my previous MasterClass reviews about James Patterson’s class and Margaret Atwood’s class, you’ll already know how the MasterClass format works. If not, here’s a quick recap: What’s … Read more
Do you struggle with spelling and grammar? Even if you’re a native English speaker, there might well be grammatical rules that confuse you – and you may find that you spend a lot of time poring over your draft text, trying to figure out what needs to be edited. This is where grammar checker apps … Read more
What is Creative Writing? Creative writing is anything where the purpose is to express thoughts, feelings and emotions rather than to simply convey information. I’ll be focusing on creative fiction in this post (mainly short stories and novels), but poetry, (auto)biography and creative non-fiction are all other forms of creative writing. Here’s a couple of … Read more
Do you know how to use punctuation marks correctly in English? While some might seem straightforward, you may come across punctuation marks that you’re unsure about … so this post is designed to serve as a handy reference. You’ll find “further reading” suggestions for each punctuation mark, if you want to explore it in more … Read more
Are you looking to make some extra money, perhaps to fund your studies or travels? One great way to do that is by teaching English online. This can be a flexible, enjoyable job that works well around other commitments, as you can work from anywhere with a good internet connection and minimal background noise. If … Read more
Two terms you might come across when you’re learning English or studying grammar are “predicate nominative” and “predicate adjective”. They’re both types of “predicate complement”. This might all sound complicated, but the good news is they’re actually quite simple to understand and use. Before we dig in too deep, though, let’s quickly revise a couple … Read more
Would you like to learn English and improve your grammar without getting off the sofa and without cracking open a textbook? Google Home could be just what you need. It’s a device a bit like Amazon’s Echo (though created by Google, not Amazon) that connects to the Google Assistant to let you get answers and … Read more
Whether you’re self-publishing a book, or you’ve got a deal with a traditional publisher, you’re going to need to do a lot of the marketing. Unless you’re an A-List author, your publisher isn’t going to have the budget to spend a lot on promoting you and your book. Twenty years ago, marketing a new book … Read more
Do you need to master English to a certain standard? Perhaps you’re going to be entering an English-speaking university, or maybe you’re hoping to emigrate to an English-speaking country. If so, there’s a good chance you’ll be taking the IELTS exam. If you’re preparing to take the IELTS exam, you may already know the basics … Read more
If you’re learning English as a second language, you might want some extra help and support beyond your regular lessons. Alternatively, you might decide to dispense with lessons altogether and learn from websites or apps. There are loads of great apps out there, whether you want an entire course of tuition or simply a bit … Read more
If you’re presenting two alternatives, you’ll often use an “either … or” or a “neither … nor” construction. Here’s how those work: You can choose either cereal or toast for your breakfast. My friend’s car is neither green nor brown. Either is used in the affirmative sense, when you’re presenting possibilities that are both true … Read more