My head aches with grammar conundrums. Actually I thought conundrum was both singular and plural. But apparently the plural is okay. What about genre? That’s another one that causes my head to throb. Putting an ‘s’ on genre screams WRONG! Every time I write a book, I learn something new about #grammar Click To Tweet […]
Writing Boo-Boo’s with Similes and Metaphors
In my last post, I talked about what similes and metaphors were and how writers use them to add power to their writing. What I didn’t discuss was how writers might abuse these two figures of speech. Learning what a simile is and learning how to use them are important. Learning how not to abuse […]
Similes, Metaphors, What in the World?
Beautiful writing paints word pictures #amwriting #writingtips Click To Tweet Talented writers know how to do this without overburdening the reader. Many new writers do not understand the difference between a simile and a metaphor nor do they understand how to use these figures of speech. Let’s first look at what in the world a […]
When You Just Gotta Laugh
I’m sure few writers will tell you that they enjoyed reading the critiques from their editors #amwrting Click To Tweet Most of us would rather pull our teeth than open the document that’s been nitpicked apart. But, I have to say. Some of my errors are really funny and I’m grateful to my readers for […]
4 Common Mistakes in Punctuation
Part of writing is understanding punctuation. We all know what a period means, but do we understand the meaning of commas, semicolons, ellipses, dashes? As writers, we use punctuation to help us “express” what is on the written page. For that punctuation to work, we must all understand it. Most publishers use a traditional convention […]
How Good Are You at Grammar?
Writers worry a lot about grammar #grammar #amwriting Click To Tweet When we’re in the creative mode, however, we need to put those little pesky grammar conundrums aside and just write. After that, however, grammar issues surface like ugly pimples. How good are you at grammar? Are you someone who doesn’t care when you read […]
Grammar Headaches–Grammar Tips…
All writers deal with the strange behavior of the English language. Most of us know the basic rules. But there are some grammar headaches that force me to look up the correct usage over and over. Sometimes even after I take a peak in my handy-dandy grammar guide, I’m still confused. Here are a two […]
Punctuation, What About It?
We all know it’s important to use good punctuation in writing our fiction. When we overuse commas, it distracts the reader. Conversely, when we leave out a comma, the reader may not understand what we are trying to say. Punctuation has an important place in the writing. But, is it the-be-all-end all? Recently I read […]
Lay vs. Lie vs. Help!!!
One of the most confusing words in the English language is lay (or is it lie?). Most of us have no idea about the rules that make lay and lie so difficult. We probably use them incorrectly all the time. As we move from the present tense to the past, lay, laid, lain, things get […]
I Couldn’t Care Less That you Could Care Less
Another grammatical dilemma facing writers is the common expression: I couldn’t care less vs. I could care less. A colleague once asked me which way I used this expression. I had never thought about it until she brought it up. Apparently, the expression, I couldn’t care less has frustrated writers for quite some time. According […]
