Ever lost time humming and hawing over a comma? Or simply wished 'further' and 'farther' were more straightforward? Or wanted to investigate how a truly great novel describes its setting? Since July last year, I've indulged my inner writing geek and tackled these … [Read more...] about Could I help you write? My Big Blog Directory
English grammar
Oh, dash!
Grammarly.com compares dashes to Swiss army knives. They can stand in for commas, colons, and parentheses, as well as doing jobs of their own. There are, however, two things that unite everything dashes do: they interrupt, and they demand attention. When they’re used instead of … [Read more...] about Oh, dash!
Semicolons—What in the world do they do?
Welcome to week two of our foray into punctuation marks I wish were easier to use correctly. Last week, we figured colons out, and you can read that blog here. This week we’ve got semicolons to deal with. They’ve got three uses—one that’s somewhat tricky to navigate, and two that … [Read more...] about Semicolons—What in the world do they do?
Colons—How in the world do you use those?
If I could have it my way, three punctuation marks would have permanent how-to guides hovering above them. Colons, semicolon, and dashes. Ever felt that way yourself? Well, over the next three weeks we’ll do the best we can—in the absence of hovering how-to guides—to lay out … [Read more...] about Colons—How in the world do you use those?
What is passive voice?
‘Avoid passive voice.’ That must be one of the most common pieces of grammar advice. And one of the most valuable ever. So, how terrible would it be if you had to ask, ‘But what is passive voice’, and no one had a simple answer? That’s what I’m here to provide today. … [Read more...] about What is passive voice?
