Check out all these phrases that add word clutter. Question their use every time. Do you need them in your writing?
Source: www.grammarcheck.net
What phrases would you add to this list? Share them here.
How Hyphens Add Clarity to Your Writing
by Kathleen Watson
When I had boarded and settled in for a recent flight, I reached for the airline magazine in the back-of-the-seat pouch in front of me.
True to form for this ruthless editor, I selected articles for not only enjoyment but also for illumination, keeping my grammar radar on high alert. How do other writers use words and punctuation?
Two articles — one about Pioneertown, a two-hour drive east of Los Angeles, and one about Fishtown, a residential area not far from Philadelphia’s historic district — were packed with examples of well-crafted, rich descriptions of American burgs and the colorful locals who inhabit them.
Narrowing my focus, I became acutely aware of the number of compound modifiers used throughout. Because examples instruct so well, I’m listing several here.
Imagine these modifiers without the hyphen. Can you see how hyphens add clarity?
- a two-hour drive east of Los Angeles
- a cup of high-octane coffee
- a well-worn Formica counter
- a pair of steel-toed boots
- his working-class roots
- the top-floor music venue
- a whole-animal butchery
- the ever-present sound of the overhead train
- a tight-knit community
- a cash-only shot-and-beer joint
- a high-end Italian restaurant
- role-playing games
- long-term residents
- a down-to-earth approach
- largely blue-collar residential neighborhoods
- a settlement of fully functional Western-style buildings
Note in the last two examples that modifiers ending in ly don’t require a hyphen: largely blue-collar residents, fully functional buildings.
Whether you write fiction or nonfiction or for business or pleasure, reading well-written pieces by others can inspire and instruct. How often do you approach reading through that lens?
Kathy Watson has a love/hate relationship with grammar; she loves words and the punctuation that helps them make sense, yet she hates those pesky rules. A self-proclaimed ruthless editor, she prefers standard usage guidelines of The Associated Press Stylebook. Her easy-to-use Grammar for People Who Hate Rules helps people write and speak with authority and confidence.
Compound modifiers streamline the writing and reading experience. Share your own examples here. Request a one-word-or-two reference sheet by emailing editor@barbaramcnichol.com
The Incredible Power of 3
by Les Taylor (used with permission)
Editor’s note: In my writing WordShops, I emphasize tapping into the power of 3. My colleague Les Taylor explains the research behind that power.
A few years ago I started looking into Minimalism. I have always been attracted to doing more with less – getting more with less – and just simplifying in general. It’s a pursuit of mine that continues today.
Along the way I looked into simplifying as a business model – especially as it relates to performance improvement and professional development. If you’ve read my book Stop Walking in Circles: Get Out of the Wilderness of the Status Quo, you’re familiar with my three-step process for creating an Outperformers Action Plan.
I’ve proven to myself and others the value of the long-standing theory of the “Power of Three.” This theory was espoused two hundred years ago by Thomas Jefferson (life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness) and has continued to be a formula for success to this day.
Steve Jobs was a true believer in the power of three. He used this model in every one of his famous product launch events. In 2010, Jobs introduced the first iPad as a “third device” between a smartphone and a laptop. The iPad, he told the audience, would also come in “three models”: 16, 32, and 64 GB of flash storage. In 2011, Jobs introduced the iPad 2 as “thinner, lighter, and faster” than the original.
Who Cares?
So, what does the power of three have to do with you and why should you care about this phenomenal model? Research, going back to the mid-1950s at Bell Labs, has proven that limiting the number of things to remember enhances retention. This research resulted in the basic structure of phone numbers.
When someone leaves a phone number on a voice message, you’re more likely to recall the first three digits before having to listen to the message again for the remainder of the number.
I believe that limiting areas of focus to three (e.g., See Clearly – Focus Intently – Work Wisely) will greatly enhance your performance and productivity. The rule of three, like the 80/20 rule, is everywhere when you look for it. An effective presentation is divided into three parts. Looking for a new job? Give your prospective employer three reasons to hire you. Want to improve your golf game? Focus on driving, wedge play, and putting.
Spend some time this week considering how you can use the (incredible) power of three to enhance your performance, your productivity or your professional development. It will be time well spent indeed.
Les Taylor is a business owner, executive coach, award-winning author and professional speaker. He is the founder of Outperformers International, a professional development company committed to helping individuals and organizations radically increase their “performance capacity.” He can be reached at 602-478-4209 or les@lestaylor.net
How do you tap into the power of 3 in your world? Share your comments here.
Writing and Editing: You Wear Two Different Hats
by Barbara McNichol
Just as you’d wear a straw-brimmed hat in the sunshine and a rain cap in the pouring rain, remember the importance of wearing two different hats when you’re writing versus editing your nonfiction book.
One hat represents the creative process; the other deals with the critical process. Attempting to edit as you write can dampen your creativity, as I learned when working with an author recently. Because she was on a fast track to get her book printed, she had me editing the beginning chapters while she was still writing the middle and final chapters. What happened? She had to interrupt her writing flow to give me feedback on the chapters I’d sent back. It affected her ability to move forward smoothly, plus we had trouble keeping track of our progress. What frustration!
Differences Between Writing and Editing
In retrospect, we needed to put on the brakes and say, “Each task—writing and editing— demands a separate and specific focus.” Here are three reasons why:
- When editing your own work, your mind can fill in, correct, or overlook errors. It’s easy to miss things that should be corrected—like missing words and inconsistencies.
- When you put a week or two between completing a draft and reviewing it, you break the link between what you thought you wrote and what you actually wrote.
- Once a first draft is finished, if you rush in to evaluate it too quickly, you haven’t allowed your brain to “hang out in the shade and cool.” That’s when you mentally step back and “see” gaps in information, research, and logic. Taking a “big picture” look also enables you to see what fits and what doesn’t.
Create Even More Separation
What can you do to separate writing from editing even more?
- When you reread your work, reformat it by changing the font, margins, line spacing, and other elements so it tricks the mind and looks like a new document.
- Keep wearing your creativity hat and go through each chapter asking these important questions:
- Is it complete from a content point of view? What’s missing?
- Have I included all the facts and stories I want to meet my objectives for this chapter?
- Can I take out any content that doesn’t fit?
Once you have answered these satisfactorily, you’re ready for the critical process to take over. While wearing your editing hat, leave behind your content questions and look for the elements of good writing—style, grammar, spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and so on. And when you’re ready for feedback, call in an objective editor who can apply both the creative and critical process to perfecting your manuscript.
Do you agree with this thesis about keeping writing and self-editing separate? Share your thoughts here.
Writing Blunders: What Have They Cost You?
by Barbara McNichol
Writing Blunders
It only takes a moment to make a blunder in writing that sets in motion near-disastrous results. Sure, writing “best retards” instead of “best regards” can be embarrassing but some writing blunders can truly hurt.
What catastrophic examples can you cite about communications gone awry? What consequences followed?
Please share your writing blunders here. The person who submits the Biggest Blunder example earns a printed copy of my Word Trippers book. See www.WordTrippers.com
An Irish Word Tripper Fresh from the Blarney Castle
by Barbara McNichol
I simply had to share this sign from the Blarney Castle, which I recently visited on my trip to Ireland and the UK. As the creator of Word Trippers, I recognized there’s a world of difference between “Blarney” and “Baloney.”
Here’s what the quotation in the small print says:
Blarney is the varnished truth. Baloney is the unvarnished lie. Blarney is flattery laid on just thin enough to like it. Baloney is flattery so thick we hate it. I firmly believe that if the world had a little more Blarney and a little less baloney, it would not be in the mess it is today. – Monsignor Fulton Sheen
Do you agree with this Irish Word Tripper definition? Do you have a different one? Please share it here–with lots of blarney and no baloney.
More Malaprops: “It Doesn’t Phrase Me in the Least!” Part 2
By George Mason
Sometimes I prefer hearing a Pollyism (aka malaprop) without knowing the context. I like to formulate my own mental picture and then compare it to her intended communication. To take a simple example, “He is on a slight inclination” suggests the image of a man standing in the Tower of Pisa, whereas Polly was merely describing someone who favored one idea over another.
What do you envision when hearing “it looks like an optical course“? Perhaps telescope makers receiving instruction in lens-grinding? Or a pathway through a warehouse full of binoculars? Polly was referring to the clutter of toys, books, and boxes that nearly obscured the passage through her living room.
When I heard “it really got my dandruff up,” I figured Polly had finally discovered a shampoo that works. Actually, she was talking about an incident that had made her unusually angry.
Proverbs and idioms make especially interesting fodder for Polly’s mental digestive system. Her conservative slip was certainly showing when she once cautioned, “Don’t rock the apple cart!” Unable to choose between two equally appealing options, she rationalized, “It’s all the same—one half dozen after another half-dozen.” We could see why she got so discouraged at one job where she always had to “bear the blunt of it.”
History Lesson
My sister is a conscientious mother to her three children. However, I can’t help imagining the classroom embarrassment that one of the kids may someday endure by reiterating what he has learned at home. Picture an otherwise intelligent child eagerly raising his hand and announcing that a pivotal event in the American Revolution was the Midnight Ride of Paul Revere. He had signaled the approach of the British by showing lanterns from the tower in the prearranged code of “one if by day, two if by night.”
Or picture the response of her son’s model car club pals. He repeats Polly’s lesson that the narrow platform running along th
e bottom of each side of most pre-1950 automobiles is called a “dashboard.” Isn’t that what you jump onto when you’re in a hurry and dashing (or running) for the car as it pulls away? I have faith that youth will survive such faux pas.
Are Pollyisms/ Malaprops Contagious?
But what about the rest of us? I have tentative evidence that Pollyisms may be contagious. Our oldest sister, for instance, once depicted her husband seated in the bleachers at a soccer match as “cheering from the observatory.” Several family friends have also exhibited symptoms. One recently vowed “for all intensive purposes” to quit eating sugar. Another was reportedly so sleepy that when her head hit the pillow, she was “out like a log” (so she slept like a light?). A third was heard to lament that an inoperative Xerox copier was “on the blank.”
It is probably too early to tell if this mini-epidemic should be cause for alarm. In the editing profession, such a disease could prove fatal. With Polly’s philosophical attitude, however, I will “burn that bridge when I come to it.”
George Mason is an eagle-eyed, nit-picky amateur proofreader who is still waiting for The New Yorker to discover his talents and offer him a copyediting job.
Editor’s note: Chances are, you (or someone you know) colors our language with funny malaprops, too. Please share your examples here. Especially if you’re related to George Mason!
Authors and Editors: Save Time and Money with These Writing Techniques
by Barbara McNichol
* What is NAIWE?
Authors and editors, how can you employ critical techniques that copyeditors use in your own work?
Recently, I did a teleclass with slides to follow. It was hosted by Janice Campbell for members of NAIWE*.
In this teleclass, I shared tricks of my trade that can save writers time and money in the editing process. As a way to sharpen their skills, editors will benefit from listening to the class and viewing the instructional slides, too!
Download the slides here: http://tinyurl.com/kpt7coh
Note: If you have problems, email me to request the slides
Listen to the teleclass: http://tinyurl.com/o3wo8fs
* What is NAIWE?
The National Association of Independent Writers and editors is a professional association for writers, editors, and anyone who works with words.
Open to writers/editors in any country, NAIWE helps its members create multiple streams of writing income.
I am a charter member of this organization. Check out my page at http://barbaramcnichol.naiwe.com/
Authors and Editors: Consider joining yourself. Details at this link:
Would you like to build your writing or editing career? Join the National Association of Independent Writers and Editors for success and support!
Good vs. Great Business Writers: Cite 6 Differences
by Dianna Booher
Face-to-face and phone communication is fading fast from our everyday experience. We work, love, and live now by writing—Facebook posts, tweets, LinkedIn messages, Google+ posts, blogs, white papers, website copy, emails, sales proposals, activity reports, résumés, job offerings, performance reviews, reports, and recommendations.
Business writing tools
The good news: Great writing skills will give you the edge for career advancement. Having made authorship my life’s work for three decades and having presented hundreds of business writing and technical writing workshops during the same span, I’ve discovered these distinct differentiators between good and great business writers:
1. Structure
Good writers may organize, draft, think, reorganize—in whatever way works best for each project. They may end with a well-written document, but it may take them a while to do so.
Great writers have a repeatable system. They typically spend more time thinking about their writing than actually drafting.
2. Word Choice
Good writers select clear words. They avoid ambiguous phrasing that has different meanings for different people.
Great writers choose precise words. They tickle the ear with eloquent phrasing so that their sentences beg to be reread.
3. Conciseness
Good writers get to the point.
Great writers get to the point—but they never sacrifice clarity for the sake of brevity.
4. Grammar
Good writers consider grammar important; they want to get things right. They know when sentences sound right.
Great writers understand the link between grammar and clarity; they insist on getting the grammar right. They know the rules—and which “rules” are only style matters.
5. Tone
Good writers convey their message (even a sensitive email about a negative situation) in a clear, straightforward style.
Great writers communicate their message in a clear, straightforward style—but with an upbeat, conversational warmth.
6. Editing
Good writers edit their work to spot weaknesses.
Great writers rarely trust themselves to edit their own work. They welcome other opinions.
So let me paraphrase Ben Franklin as I sum up: Either do something worth writing about or write well about something you’re doing.
Can you add other differentiators in the “Comments” section below?
© 2013 Dianna Booher. Booher Consultants, a communications training firm, works with business leaders and organizations to increase effectiveness through better oral, written, interpersonal, and enterprise-wide communication. Founder Dianna Booher is the author of 46 books, published in 26 languages. Her latest titles include Creating Personal Presence: Look, Talk, Think, and Act Like a Leader and Communicate With Confidence! The Revised and Expanded Edition. www.Booher.com
When to Use “Quote” versus “Quotation”
by Barbara McNichol
One of my Word Trippers differentiates between “quote” and “quotation.” Here’s what it says:
Quotation, quote – A “quotation” is a set of words that is copied or repeated, such as a passage from a book, speech, etc.; in commerce, it is also a statement of market price of a commodity or security. A “quote” is a cost estimate from a vendor or service provider. Thus, you wouldn’t write, “Here is a quote from Shakespeare…”; it should read “Here is a quotation from Shakespeare…” instead.
However, some dictionaries and language experts state that “quote” as a noun is interchangeable with the first “quotation” definition above.
Personal preferences play a part in this one. I prefer the stricter usage that differentiates them. Which one would you choose and why?
I posed this question a while ago and am sharing a potpourri of comments received. Do you agree? Disagree? Please weigh in yourself!
I’m strongly in favor of more precise language. The more refined our use and meaning of every word we choose, in writing or aloud, the greater clarity we are able to achieve! – Laura Key
I think that common usage has blurred the strict differentiation of the two words. The change in some of the dictionaries indicates that to me. So, I will likely not be so definite when I write. – Elaine Ness
The terms in any dictionary only reflect the current usage of a word, not its original meaning only. So even when we disagree with the new interpretation, we are “obligated” to follow the lead of the dictionaries and accept the new meaning of the word. – Ginger Sawatzki
I’m certainly guilty of using the two interchangeably, but my preference is for using the stricter definition of quotation for a grouping of words spoken or written by another person. – Paulette Livers
My preference is to use the stricter usage, especially in writing so the message doesn’t get garbled. It might be OK to get away with “quote” when using Twitter since they only allow 140 characters. – Bill Short
I prefer to use quote as the verb and quotation as the noun. “To quote Shakespeare” sounds so much better on the ear than “Here’s a quote from Shakespeare.” I realize that language is always in a state of fluidity, but its nice to have a little structure to rely upon. – Jude Johnson
“Quote” has a verbal flavor to it. When you tell me “here’s a quote by Winston Churchill,” I feel like I’m getting in touch with his actual speaking the words. A hint of the kinesthetic. “Quotation,” on the other hand, feels like it’s a done deal. It’s the words he said, like here is an interesting statement of Winnie’s that is so right on! It’s an elite sentence that’s perhaps been around for a while. – Max Dixon
Quote is a verb, meaning to repeat the words of another (ideally with acknowledgement), and quotation is a noun. But what’s a part of speech these days, with everything else we have to deal with. – Ruth Mullens
