20 more words you need to stop misspelli...

by Laura Hale Brockway Last week, I posted an article about 50 commonly misspelled words (such as inoculate, susceptible, bellwether). At the end of the post, I asked PR Daily readers to share words they have trouble spelling. Turns out, there are nearly two-dozen other words giving you grief: 1. Campaign 2. Carburetor 3. Commission 4. Contributor 5. Counterfeit 6. Definitely 7. Gauge 8. Hors d’oeuvre 9. Iridescent 10. Liaison 11. Losing 12. Millennial 13. Mise en place 14. Necessary 15. Occasion 16. Premiere/premier 17. Restaurateur 18. Separate 19....

50 words you need to stop misspelling

As writers, editors, and avid PR Daily readers, we are all above-average spellers. We’re the people others call for spelling advice; we’re the ones who kick butt at Words with Friends; we’re the ones who remember the spelling rules we learned in elementary school. And yet, sometimes even we get stumped and make spelling mistakes. I’m guilty of misspelling words. Just last week, I had to double-check the spelling of “inoculate.” I could have sworn there were two N’s in that word. As they say, admitting you have a problem is the first step. So yes, there are...

How to write for your readers — not your...

Any experienced writer or editor will tell you that the first rule of good writing is to know your audience. For whom are you writing? What motivates them to read your material? How can you make your topic relevant to your readers? This rule applies no matter what you’re writing. Whether it’s a press release, a feature article, or a blog post, begin with your audience in mind. I wish it were that simple. In the world of corporate communications, “writing for your audience” often takes a back seat to political correctness and the whims of executives. Be honest: Is...

22 filler terms we abuse every day—and h...

by Laura Hale Brockway   Have you ever been in a conversation with a seemingly smart, rational person who says something utterly absurd? It can leave one at a loss for words. “Uh-huh,” might be the only available response, followed by, “Gee, how ’bout those Cubs?” Absurd or baffling statements aside, too often we find ourselves filling silences with pure twaddle. I recently made a list of these awkward filler terms. Though they might appear to keep conversation flowing, they’re nothing more than verbal speed bumps. And when I started paying attention, I...

16 reference works you never knew existe...

by Laura Hale Brockway Being a science and medical writer at my day job, I often end up spending more time researching an article than I do writing it. And after 14 years, I’ve come to relish the research phase.  When else can I so freely indulge my inner knowledge hound? One of the greatest joys of researching is discovering unusual and obscure reference works. If you look hard enough, you’ll find a wealth of information about even the most obscure topic. Here are some of my favorites:  Benet’s Reader’s Encyclopedia — referred to as “the supreme reference...

6 incredibly useful spelling rules from ...

by Laura Hale Brockway, ELS For every rule, there is an exception—especially when it comes to English spelling. PR Daily readers are, of course, adroit spellers. We’ve been writing and editing for so long, spotting spelling errors is a reflex. But examine how certain English words are spelled, and you’ll pick out more inconsistencies than a fact-checker reviewing a Hunter S. Thompson article. In English, we have words that sound the same but are spelled differently (such as “their,” “they’re,” and “there”); words with letters that have nothing to do...