Ending Sentences with Prepositions
You’ve likely heard the famous quote by Winston Churchill, prompted by an editor who rearranged a sentence of his to avoid ending it with a preposition: “This is the sort of bloody nonsense up with which I will not put.”
Prepositions such as “with,” “of,” “in” and “to” let the reader know where a noun is [...]
Writing About Music
As an editor, I have had to edit and proofread a huge variety of subjects, but never has one presented more difficulty and detail than writing on classical music. I am lucky to have a skilled partner in crime–a music lover who moonlights as a proofreader for the Foundation—but even luckier to have found what [...]
I Stand Corrected
As an editor or proofreader, there is The Line. The Line is the difference between being a capable and knowledgeable grammarian and being an unbearable know-it-all twit. Some people are able to straddle this line better than others.
Correcting those you work with has to be done judiciously if you don’t want the whole office falling [...]
Who vs. That
Don’t know when to use “who” and when to use “that”? You just need this one tip.
Most grammar issues are things that normal people really don’t care about but at least the media gets right. However, the difference between when to use “who” and when to use “that” is something I notice being confused more [...]
5 Ways to Write More
I am one of those people who have always wanted to write a book and still struggle to do so. I wrote a 90-something page story in fifth grade, but I hope I don’t go to my grave with “Chickens from the Mafia” as my greatest attempt at a novel, so I continue to write.
One [...]
The Harvard Comma
So this past summer, Newsweek announced they would embrace the serial, or Harvard, comma. (Hey, I wasn’t writing here yet, so lay off.) I’m not really sure anyone was sitting around wringing their hands and gnashing their teeth until someone came to a decision on this; it was probably a matter of consistency’s sake.
For those [...]
Quotation Marks
Quotation marks can be confusing because of the rarity with which people use what I term “expressive punctuation.” In English we use the question mark and exclamation point less often than periods and commas, so if you don’t write a ton you may forget the special rules for these two punctuation marks.
For commas, periods and [...]
Possessives and Plurals
I felt the need to do a post on possessives after a friend of mine nearly went nuts on Facebook over them. During the holidays, she kept getting Christmas card addressed to “The Smith’s” and she couldn’t take it anymore.
I don’t blame her. Misuse and mistake between possessives and plurals is everywhere, from the shop [...]
The Basics: 5 Easy Ways to Improve Your Writing
Everyone wants to know how to write better. When I work with new writers and even professional freelance writers, I usually notice the same mistakes. They are easy to fix, and the only special skill required is checking your ego at the door.
1.Don’t self-edit. When you set out to write something for the first time, [...]
The Basics: 5 Tips to Writing a Stronger Cover Letter
Everyone wants to get noticed when applying for a job, and cover letters are supposed to do that for you. For those who don’t consider themselves strong writers, it can be a bit daunting to make sure you express yourself the best you can.
Here are five tips that will make your cover letter work better:
1. Be professional. [...]
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