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11 Stupidest Writing Mistakes - SalesHQ

11 Stupidest Writing Mistakes - SalesHQ
Sales Tips >> Browse Articles >> Proposals and Presentations Professional writers often worry that their work is unnecessary. After all, can’t anyone with even a basic education write? The answer: no, they can’t. Of course not everyone is going to be the next Mark Twain, but career success does depend on not looking stupid. Avoid these 11 mistakes and get the job, make the sale, and write better! Constipated Clauses Reporting on the feats and foibles of the Red Sox, a writer for South Coast Today notes: “It goes without saying that these exploits take a tremendous amount of skill.” If it “goes without saying” then don’t say it. “Obviously, the sky is blue.” Comma Vomit True or false: a comma must precede any use of the word “and”? An example of correct comma use: “The game was over, and the crowd began to leave.” A comma can also precede “and” when it is used in a list of three or more items. While that is probably the most common overuse, others are prevalent. The Death of Adverbs Less vs.

Questionnaires for Writing Character Profiles - Creative Writing Help Enter your e-mail to get the e-book for FREE. We'll also keep you informed about interesting website news. "I have searched the web and used different worksheets, but none have come close to your worksheets and descriptions of (what to do and what not to do). Both courses I have taken have with Creative Writing Now have been amazing. Each time I have learned something new. The one thing I love, you take everything apart and give examples." - Katlen Skye "As usual - I already love the course on Irresistible Fiction, rewriting a lot and improving greatly even after the first lesson. “Essentials of Fiction proved that I could indeed write and I wrote every day, much to my boyfriend's dismay (waa sniff).” - Jill Gardner "I am loving the course and the peer interaction on the blog is fantastic!!!" "I'm enjoying the weekly email course, Essentials of Poetry Writing. "Thank you for all the material in this course. "Thanks very much for this course. "I'm learning so much. "Thank you so much!!

Grammar Grater | Podcasts About the Podcast Grammar Grater® was a weekly podcast about English words, grammar and usage for the Information Age. To help sort through some of the confusion, host Luke Taylor and the Grammatis Personae Players™ would linguistic bugbears and put 'em through the Grammar Grater. Archives available here: Episodes Episode 110: Pesky Plurals (Repeat episode) No other part of speech causes as much confusion—and demonstrates the continuous evolution of the English language—quite like plural nouns. Read the articleListen (64K MP3) Download Episode 33: A Sure Thing To help us distinguish the words assure, ensure and insure, we speak with special guest Ruth Weber Kelley of ING. Read the article Listen: 64k MP3 stream RealAudio Download

20 Common Grammar Mistakes I’ve edited a monthly magazine for more than six years, and it’s a job that’s come with more frustration than reward. If there’s one thing I am grateful for — and it sure isn’t the pay — it’s that my work has allowed endless time to hone my craft to Louis Skolnick levels of grammar geekery. As someone who slings red ink for a living, let me tell you: grammar is an ultra-micro component in the larger picture; it lies somewhere in the final steps of the editing trail; and as such it’s an overrated quasi-irrelevancy in the creative process, perpetuated into importance primarily by bitter nerds who accumulate tweed jackets and crippling inferiority complexes. Below are 20 common grammar mistakes I see routinely, not only in editorial queries and submissions, but in print: in HR manuals, blogs, magazines, newspapers, trade journals, and even best selling novels. Who and Whom This one opens a big can of worms. Which and That Lay and Lie This is the crown jewel of all grammatical errors. Moot Nor

60 Awesome Search Engines for Serious Writers June 20th, 2010 Finding the information you need as a writer shouldn’t be a chore. Luckily, there are plenty of search engines out there that are designed to help you at any stage of the process, from coming up with great ideas to finding a publisher to get your work into print. Professional Find other writers, publishers and ways to market your work through these searchable databases and search engines. Writing These helpful tools will help you along in the writing process. WriteSearch: This search engine focuses exclusively on sites devoted to reading and writing to deliver its results.The Burry Man Writers Center: Find a wealth of writing resources on this searchable site.Writing.com: This fully-featured site makes it possible to find information both fun and serious about the craft of writing.Purdue OWL: Need a little instruction on your writing? Research Try out these tools to get your writing research done in a snap. Reference Need to look up a quote or a fact? Niche Writers Books Blogging

Literal-Minded 50 of the Best Websites for Writers There are tons of reference sites on the web that can help you find a job or write a poem, essay or story. Here is a list of the best 50 websites for writers. Reference Websites Merriam-Webster Online - Merriam Webster is the perfect place to look up words and find information. General Writing Websites Writer's Digest - Probably one of the best all-around websites for writers, Writer's Digest offers information on writing better and getting published. Fiction Writing Websites About.com - About.com publishes a Guide to Fiction Writing with general information about fiction writing and a number of community forums for both current and aspiring writers. Nonfiction Writing Websites Bella Online - This site offers a large collection of resources for nonfiction writers. Websites for Freelance Writers and Authors Media Bistro - This site is a good place to find freelance jobs online.

Motivated Grammar Nerd Paradise : How to Write a 20 Page Research Paper in Under a Day Posted on: 10 Cado 7:0 - 5.27.29 So you've procrastinated again. You told yourself you wouldn't do this 2 months ago when your professor assigned you this. But you procrastinated anyway. Shame on you. Pick a Topic The more "legally-oriented" your topic is, the better. Make a list ...of every possible outcome that this issue could cause in...the near future...the far future...of every person that this topic affects....of any instances where this topic has come in the news....what you would do about this topic if you had the chance/power/enough-sugar...any little detail you can think ofThe important thing about this is to think of ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING, no matter how silly or far-fetched. Reorder everything Put your most obvious argument first. Then put weird off the wall stuff, regardless of importance. Put the strongest argument for your case next. Now list the incidents that will help argue for your point. It's best to keep all this in the form of an outline. Spaces Now print it out. Write

Mr. Verb English 50 Exercises for Story Writers English 50 – Intro to Creative Writing: Exercises for Story Writers Basic Theory: What is a short story? As soon as someone delivers a definition, some good writer will write a story that proves the theory wrong. About the only thing we can say for sure is that short stories are short and that they are written in what we call prose. Short stories have a narrator; that is, someone tells the story; have at least one character in them; have some action occur (or perhaps fails to occur); take place somewhere; that is, there is a setting for the action; and someone either learns something or fails to learn something (theme).With these five characteristics in mind, we can create an almost endless supply of exercises to help sharpen our techniques of story telling. Narrative Voice Twenty or so years ago, voice was the "rite of passage" into a successful writing career. NOTE: It is quite common for writers in the early stages of their careers to imitate the writers they are reading or admire most.

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