What “Would You Rather” do?

On long car trips, my kids will often play “Would You Rather?” If you haven’t played, the game poses a question beginning with, “Would you rather…” and then offers a choice between two good options or a choice between two equally unattractive options. Answering “neither” or “both” is against the rules. With my kids, their questions mostly involve superpowers (Would you rather be invisible or be invincible?); eating things (Would you rather eat a bug or moldy bread?); and school activities (Would you rather be in the science lab all day, or in art class...

There’s a journal for that?

My youngest sister is in graduate school, earning her PhD in neurobiology. She is surviving the “publish or perish culture” and her team’s work has been published in a number of research journals. This week, I was reading one of her papers when I became intrigued with the titles of the academic and research journals in her citation list. It seems there’s a journal for every topic, no matter how obscure or specialized. So I set out to find exactly how obscure and how specialized, and these are the journal titles that I found. Antipode (offering a radical analysis...

13 inspiring quotes from Westworld

The winter months are a great time to catch up on TV series and movies that you never had time to watch. During my recent break, I discovered “Westworld .” “Westworld” is a western/science fiction series based on Michael Crichton’s original 1973 screenplay. The show is a writer’s dream. It features well-written, quick-witted, pithy dialogue. Literary allusions are everywhere as characters routinely quote Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll and Mary Shelley. Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the series: 1. “These violent delights have violent ends.” —...

21 hilariously mangled metaphors

Let’s look at a figure of speech that—when used incorrectly—can leave your readers dazed and confused. A metaphor is a figure of speech that describes an object by comparing it to another unrelated object. Our workplace had become “Westworld,” but with sloppy programming. When used correctly, metaphors help us paint pictures with words, adding depth to our writing. When used incorrectly, the result is quite the opposite. Here are examples of mangled metaphors: That’s a kettle of fish of a different color. You’ve buttered your bread, now lie in it. Never...

5 signs you’re a bad listener

Ask anyone if he or she is good listener, and that person will invariably say yes. However, research shows that most people overestimate their skills in this area. How do you know if you’re a good listener? I assess listening skills when I interview candidates for employment by asking this question. Ideal answers include, “I turn off my inner voice and focus on the person I’m listening to,” or, “I focus on that person’s words only.” Someone who does this probably has the traits of a good listener. Many of us don’t do turn off our inner voices or focus on...

6 tips for new writers

Writing is not an easy task. I’ve been writing and editing professionally for more than 15 years, and I still struggle. At least once a week, someone will catch me in a writer’s stare, focused intently on a blank screen, unable to call up the right words. I’m always looking for ways to improve my skills, so I often jump at the chance to help others with their writing. In helping my kids with their English homework or my sister with her fellowship admission essay, I hone my knowledge by offering advice that I haven’t tapped into for years. In the interest of helping...