You must never end a sentence with a preposition! How often did you hear this in school? I have good news: you can end a sentence any way you choose to. Ending sentences with prepositions is something I looked into. Thoroughly.
Let’s define a preposition. It’s a connective word that shows the relationship (in terms of [...]
Have you ever wanted to become an expert on alliteration? If nothing else, it’s such a beautiful word! Seriously, when one uses alliteration properly–especially in publications–it is subtly effective.
If you work on Web sites, e-zines, or print newsletters, this may be a good time for you to brush up on the amazing world of alliteration.
DEFINITION*:
Main [...]
Have you ever wondered if it’s okay to say, “The corporation had their records audited” or whether you should say, “The corporation had its records audited”? This is basically a subject-verb agreement issue. Let’s begin by reviewing what style guides say regarding this issue: “Is a corporation a single entity or a group of people?”
Let’s [...]
Do you get confused when the plural of a word doesn’t end in “s”?
“Criteria” is plural (like “phenomena”), while “criterion” is singular, like “phenomenon.” You have one criterion or many criteria. It’s easy to be confused, since some words (e.g., “data” and “media”) are the same whether singular or plural.
Examples: Elsbeth Oggert detailed the six [...]
My maternal grandmother, Sue Crocker Boynton, loved writing poetry. It is wonderful that in recent years, in Bellingham, Washington, the Sue C Boynton Poetry Walk and Contest was established.
A blog has been started to feature the wonderful, innovative works of people who entered the contest this year. And to honor a spunky little woman [...]
Fear does not respect you and you know it.
One of my writing and editing heroes is Tom Bentley. I met him on Triiibes, and we’ve worked together on a project or two. In addition, I get to learn from him as we jump into the many discussions on Triiibes.
I recently browsed through his blog, and came across this wonderful post: Round out your [...]
Are you a writer who is frustrated by the difficult path that leads from writing to publishing? Or are you an aspiring writer who doesn’t have a clue about the writing/publishing process?
Pat Ferdinandi is an Internet friend, and one of those generous people who provides many resources for people using the Internet. Get Published [...]
The subject of using one space or two between sentences, especially for people used to typing exclusively on typewriters, often creates colorful conflict.
Here’s the history: when monospace (fixed-pitch) fonts, like Courier, were in wide use, it was traditional to leave two spaces between the period and the start of the next sentence. There were definite [...]
Maybe you’ve wondered about how to use the word “maybe.” Okay. Maybe, the compound word, is an adverb meaning “perhaps” or “possibly.”
The two words “may be” comprise a verb phrase meaning “might be” or “could be.”
Examples:
Maybe I will go out tonight.
I may be going out tonight.
If you’re uncertain about using the word [...]
