For Students, Researchers, Business Professionals and Writers
Do not use certain words if you can help it – they turn readers off – and here are the top five baddies.
IF – BUT – COULD – SHOULD – MAYBE
What on earth have I got against these poor souls?
They do not activate or invigorate or motivate – they are conditional – I WANT READERS TO ACT ON MY CONTENT !
Read this because it’s for you – yes, YOU!
You’re here because you write and are looking for some perspective and resources. I know that because this is a writing site and blog – easy enough for me to know who you are.
Now ask yourself this question – Why are you reading this NOW?
It’s a dominating, eye-catching headline for this post so you read the first line above – the first line reiterates this post is for you again. Now we are getting into why you’re still reading this post.
You’re still reading this post because the headline caught your eye, you managed to get engaged with the first line of the post and you became intrigued or hooked just enough to continue reading.
My Point is Simple!!
I’m a fan of Sir Winston Churchill and his acidic quips. I was delighted to find a new Churchillianism as I was perusing The Cassell Guide to Common Errors in English by Harry Blamires. I wasn’t looking for Churchill but engaging in some grammatical self-improvement to pass the two extra hours spent at gymnastics on a Friday evening. My eldest daughter has developed “talent” requiring extra coaching. Only one word to describe that – “Bugger”!
Prepositions are are words such as “of”, “for”, “by”, “with”, “before”, and “after” and are used with nouns and pronouns to provide some grammatical context. These are the most common words in the English language and without them we would sound something akin to Tarzan leaping through the grammatical jungle in search of Jane.
[Read more…] about Preposterous Prepositions
I read The Fight by Norman Mailer in 1993, and quickly followed up with The Naked and the Dead and Deer Park.
I was hooked on his work from there on and moved on to other works of his and his peers, particularly Truman Capote and Tom Wolfe.
It was announced a little over an hour ago that Norman Mailer had died, aged 84.
I don’t feel anything personal for Norman, I never met him and never knew him so a feeling of loss is not something I can claim. However, as a practical example of how writing can reach out and touch someone, I can say I feel saddened that someone who wrote so eloquently and passionately on real topics of interest has indeed passed on.
[Read more…] about Norman Mailer – In Requiem
Getting things wrong is just a fact of life so build a bridge and get over it.
Thomas Edison failed over 1,800 times before suddenly he had a light bulb switch on inside his brain and guess what – he invented the working light bulb!
My greatest successes have always had deep roots in past failure and I have never allowed the odd mishap to derail me from producing something I consider to be up to scratch. While this is not going to be a post on how ERH has messed things up so very badly, there is a lot to be said for failure and making mistakes.
Treating your mistakes as learning experiences will help you appreciate the lesson far more deeply than if you just followed advice or a guide book. When you encounter a mistake, and often in my case it is brought to my attention after the event, analyse what has happened. After I have thrown my teddy in the corner and had a fit, I always consider what has happened, what led to the error, why I did whatever caused the problem and more than that, how do I make sure it doesn’t occur again.
[Read more…] about Why I Enjoy Being Wrong!
Analogies, similes and metaphors work because they allow a writer to present a complex idea by reference to something that a reader is already likely to know.
Plato wrote a work about 2,500 years ago called “Allegory of the Cave” in which prisoners are duped into believing that shadows cast on a wall are in fact reality. The allegory in this instance is that Plato used this picture of a cave with duped prisoners as the basis for explaining a series of philosophical concepts dealing with our perception of reality and what we consider to be real. Hollywood took hold of this and created The Matrix as a modern day retelling of the tale but without imparting any real meaning by use of analogy.
The difference between Plato’s work and The Matrix is an excellent example of good and bad use of analogy.
Plato used analogy sparingly and ensured that the concepts he was attempting to impart to his readers formed the core of his content.
The Matrix uses analogy until it is done to death and leaves the viewer confused so it’s just as well the special effects were pretty good along with Trinity and her latex covered backside.
[Read more…] about Using Analogies, Similes and Metaphors