52 transitional phrases to keep your wri...

Years ago, I attended a medical writing workshop where I received an incredibly useful handout for writers: a list of 50 transitional words. I kept this list on my desk and referred to it every day without fail. Transitions can make or break your writing. Good transition words connect sentences and paragraphs and turn disconnected writing into a unified whole. Transition words help the reader (and writer) move from idea to idea. Transitions can also be tricky. Sometimes you need to use words other than “but,” “however,” and “in addition.” That’s why my list...

10 capitalization rules every writer sho...

If you were standing outside my office door, you would hear a loud banging noise. That’s my head banging on my desk out of sheer frustration. The reason? Capitalization. I have documents to edit that are filled with words that shouldn’t be capitalized—such as “federal,” “state,” “statutes,” “deadlines,” “laws”—but are uppercase. I have documents to edit that are filled with words that should be capitalized—such as “West Texas” and “Supreme Court”—but are not. So to keep the head banging to a minimum, let’s go through the rules...

11 apparel items for language lovers

Today is National Grammar Day. To celebrate, we’ve compiled some apparel that’s perfect for grammar and language lovers, including more than enough shirts for a week and totes to accessorize them. For those who take grammar very seriously: Available at: Shirt.Woot Can’t forget about “Eats, Shoots and Leaves.” Available at: Shirt.Woot There’s a cure for writer’s block? Available at: Shirt.Woot Raise your hand if you do this: Available at: CafePress This is actually true. Available at: Zazzle My kids gave me this one for Christmas: Available at:...

Many famed writers were no fans of the e...

Last week, I wrote about the rampant overuse of the exclamation point and looked to style guides for guidance. The consensus was to use these punctuations marks sparingly. This week I wanted to share some quotes from authors and grammar wonks who have some strong words to say about the beleaguered exclamation point.   Laughing at your own jokes “Cut out all these exclamation points. An exclamation point is like laughing at your own joke.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald Mark Twain also said the use of exclamation points was like laughing at your own humor, “all of...

Stop the madness! Rules for using the ex...

A recent study reported on PR Daily found that “43 percent of online daters consider bad grammar a ‘major’ turnoff.” So I think it’s safe to say that bad grammar can affect relationships. And so can punctuation. Does anyone remember the “Seinfeld” episode in which Elaine breaks up with her boyfriend over his failure to use an exclamation point? In case you missed it, Elaine’s boyfriend had written down some phone messages, one of which said that her friend had baby. Elaine found it “curious” that he didn’t think someone having a baby warranted an...

8 creative alarm clocks to rouse you ear...

A recent post on PR Daily offered some great insight into everything you can gain by waking up earlier. You automatically give yourself more time for just about anything — breakfast, reading, exercising, an easier commute. I used to be an early riser—rise at 4 a.m., get to work by 5 a.m. — and experienced all of these benefits. But today I could no more get up that early than I could stop using the serial comma. Getting out of bed to go to work is excruciating. I’ve tried going to bed earlier. I’ve tried not reading before I go to sleep. I’ve tried drinking...

27 expendable phrases to slash from your...

Wordiness is everywhere—in emails, ad copy, press releases, and websites. Even as more people skim and scan than actually read our content, we have clients and bosses who think the more words the better. But readers are busy. Unnecessary words slow them down. Every word should matter. Some words and phrases do no work; they’re slackers. Deleting them doesn’t hurt your meaning; it often improves the readability of your content. Consider this sentence: I am bewildered by your inconsistent use of the serial comma. Tacking on any of the expendable phrases below would...

“Grimm” lessons for corporat...

Recently, my favorite author Philip Pullman published a new version of “Grimm’s Fairy Tales.” Pullman is best known for his fantasy trilogy “His Dark Materials,” but his work includes other genres, such as historic fiction and parodies. I read his work voraciously and always take away something inspiring when I read interviews with him. In his recent book, “Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm,” I was struck by his description of how fairy tales are different from modern fiction and how these differences make the stories work. Pullman writes: “There is no...