25 Writing Competitions You Should Enter

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CAUTION: Merging Words

The lines between some word pairs like suit and suite, motive and motif, are beginning to blur. Here are six such pairs that may be worth your attention.

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How Spelling Diverges Between American and British English

As George Bernard Shaw is said to have said, “England and America are two countries separated by the same language.” It’s easy enough to find books and Web

3 2024-11-29 11:54 查看原文

The Art of Storytelling and Captivating Readers through Effective Writing Techniques

Storytelling is an art form as old as language itself. Every culture, every civilization, has its unique approaches to narrating stories and engaging the

2 2024-11-30 15:47 查看原文

Intrusive Misuse of Colons

Writers often mistakenly introduce intrusive “colonization” where it is not necessarily. In each of the following examples, as explained in the discussion,

3 2024-12-19 20:07 查看原文

3 Cases of Superfluous Semicolons

Semicolons serve one of two purposes: A semicolon can act as a weak period to separate two independent clauses so closely associated that dividing them into

3 2024-11-27 08:25 查看原文

3 Types of Erroneous Use of Dashes

Dashes, like semicolons, are basically commas with superpowers. However, while semicolons take the place of commas to set off independent clauses or separate

1 2024-11-29 21:19 查看原文

5 Cases of Insufficient Punctuation

In each of the sentences below, the omission of one comma (two commas, in one case) obscures the intended meaning. Discussion and revision following each

1 2024-11-29 14:18 查看原文

3 Sentences with Punctuation Problems

Commas serve a vital function as a fundamental organizing tool within sentences, acting as buffers that keep syntactical elements in place and as signals that

1 2024-11-29 08:54 查看原文

3 Common Types of Phrasal-Adjective Hyphenation Errors

One of the most ubiquitous categories of error in written composition is failure to provide a visual clue to readers that two or more words preceding a noun

1 2024-11-27 14:35 查看原文

5 Functions of Quotation Marks

This post discusses the use of quotation marks to distinguish dialogue, parts of compositions, phrases as phrases, scare quotes, and epithets.

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7 Types of Punctuation Errors

Each of the following sentences below demonstrates a specific type of error involving internal punctuation, usually involving a problem with a comma.

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3 Cases When Hyphenation Doesn’t Help

Writers are often confused by the complexity of hyphenation rules, mistakenly omitting them when their presence would help clarify meaning and inserting them

1 2024-11-30 15:46 查看原文

3 Types of Superfluous Use of Semicolons

Proper use of semicolons is sometimes seen as such a challenge that some teachers of composition recommend not using them until one develops a more

1 2024-11-30 10:06 查看原文

3 Sentences with Hyphenation Problems

In each of the following sentences, one or more hyphens is missing from a phrasal adjective, but another solution is available: A relaxation of the syntax is

1 2024-11-28 19:17 查看原文

3 Errors in Using Parentheses

Parenthetical marks can cause difficulties for writers—and, as a result, for readers. In each of the following examples, parentheses are misused; discussion

1 2024-11-27 06:02 查看原文

How to Write a Great Blog Post

Blog posts might look straightforward, but if you’ve ever tried to write one, you may have found it was harder than you expected.

1 2024-11-27 14:34 查看原文

The Language Police

Lovers of language and literature, especially those with children or grandchildren still in Grades K-12, will find The Language Police by education historian

2 2024-12-24 04:55 查看原文

Useful Stock Phrases for Your Business Emails

When I wrote a post on email etiquette, one reader, Juan, left a comment to ask for some advice (I’ve changed his punctuation a bit for clarity’s sake):

2 2024-11-29 02:12 查看原文

Classic vs. Classical

What’s the difference between classic and classical? Both words, befitting their roots in the word class, refer to quality, but the meanings are distinct.

1 2024-12-23 19:03 查看原文

Five Reasons Why Blogging Leads to Writing Jobs

Daily Writing Tips has already covered Five reasons why blogging improves your writing. But once you’ve polished up your skills, and grown used to writing

1 2024-11-29 09:54 查看原文