Great Expectations and Bad Breakups
Great Expectations and Bad Breakups: How writers craft endings that justify the means and means that justify the ends. See also: Miss Scarlet, in the Conservatory, with a Knife.
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Category: Language
Sit down with your protagonist and listen to this music.
Almost a year ago my post offered links to music from YouTube, Get Your Free Music Sample Here. Then in[…]
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Writing Prompts From the Universe (Your Subconscious)
I always thought that the best kind of writing prompts are those that come from outside of my own mind and that are extremely minimal. Sometimes a single word given to me by a writing partner is all I need to get going.
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Words, Words, Words Part 2: The Natives
Last time we looked at unusual words and their origins. This time, I’m taking a look at words that our[…]
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Charles Dickens: Word Inventor
Happy Boxing Day! While Charles Dickens first used the term in The Pickwick Papers, the OED lists its first mention[…]
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Words, Words, Words. It’s No Mystery That Writers Love Wordplay
A collection of puns and word/grammar jokes to get you through the holiday stress.
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WORDS: Five We Misspell, Five We Mispronounce, and One Pet Peeve
Who cares about spelling anymore? With spelling tests in schools fast disappearing, our children are left to blunder along, trusting in technology to set things right. The upshot? In my opinion, although we may make fewer mistakes on paper, we are losing the ability to spell. And therefore to read. So, in an attempt to stem the tide of illiteracy, I humbly submit five common words just about everyone misspells followed by five words most people mispronounce and one small, very personal pet peeve.
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Orthography & My Ten-Year Battle with Spell Checker
Okay, this isn’t an epic battle like the Hundred Years’ War or the Hatfields and McCoys, but the skirmishes are fierce and the outcome, so far, undecided.
Here’s the problem: Spell Checker thinks it knows best, and so do I.
The Point of Words
Although many living things communicate with each other (my dog certainly feels a burning need to let me know the mail has arrived the very moment it does), humans, at least on this planet, are the only ones who have language. And novels. And stories. And Instagram.
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A Language Lesson
Author Raquel V. Reyes teaches us a little Spanglish today. Read her primer to whet your appetite for her upcoming cozy, Mango, Mambo, and Murder! @missdemeanors6 #cozymystery #foodiecozy #cubanamerican @latinasleuths
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