My high school English teacher called them “deadwood.” I’ve heard them called “inflation words,” “filler,” “fluff,” “clutter” and “couch potato words.” You probably have another pet name for them. They’re the words you almost never need in a sentence. They occupy space, trip tongues and take readers down a long, winding path when a short, […]
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Who cares about the Oxford comma? The answer historically has been grammar nerds, Strunk & White and those who follow the infamous Chicago vs. AP writing style guide debate. After this lawsuit a few years ago, we added dairy driver to the list. That’s because an appellate court ruled in favor of Maine dairy drivers […]
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“My memoir is 270,000 words long.” I heard these words during a breakout session I led at a local writers conference. An editor friend of mine, Shayla Eaton with Curiouser Editing, was sitting in on the breakout. We gave each other knowing glances, and because I didn’t want to break this poor memoirist’s literary heart, […]
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You did it! 2020 is (almost) OVER. Here comes the big question: Whose words helped you sprint across the finish line? In January, we’re continuing our tradition and publishing a seventh edition of the 100 Best Websites for Writers in 2021 — but we can’t do it without your worthy feedback. Whether you visit them […]
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As writers, we know that the process of writing is composed of work and worry. The work is a grind of word counts and applied methodology, but the worry — a mix of fear, doubt, stress and resistance to the process — can be more difficult to navigate. During the four long years I spent […]
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Writers rarely spit out their best copy on the first draft. If you meet a writer who claims to have the secret for doing so, please let the rest of us know! First drafts — and second drafts and sometimes thirds — exist to hash your ideas out on paper. After you’ve revised your book, story, […]
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We often use euphemisms to talk about subjects that are unpleasant or uncomfortable to broach. Well, actually, we use them to avoid talking about unpleasant and uncomfortable subjects. In my career, I’ve written about death, money, sex and all kinds of personal development. I’ve become comfortable speaking plainly. To do otherwise is a disservice to […]
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Do fiction and nonfiction writing have anything in common? After all, their goals are fundamentally different. One wants to entertain, the other one mainly educates. But take a look at Hunter S. Thompson’s work and you will know better. Thompson was a master at crafting tight, compelling fiction, and he used these very same fiction […]
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Whether you’ve heard of it before or not, you’re using the concept of “register” in your writing. Register is the level of formality in a piece of writing. It’s slightly different from what we might call tone or style. You could see it as a sliding scale, from formal language (for example, a legal document) […]
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Want to feel inspired? Look what we pulled out of the archives: Elizabeth Gilbert’s TED talk on the nature of inspiration and genius in writing. The author of the popular travel memoir Eat, Pray, Love has amassed nearly 4 million views of this talk on YouTube. It’s worth 20 minutes of your time! In the video, […]
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