Katharine's Writer's Block

Reading, spelling, and writing and Standard English go hand-in-hand. In the double-negatives lesson , I alluded to the idea of Standard...

This lesson will be running shortly before my second wedding anniversary! In honor of another wonderful milestone, I’m again drawing inspiration directly from the love of my life, more particularly a language habit of mine that’s become a pet peeve of his: double-negatives. While English classes were not his favorite subject, one thing he retained from them was a rule discouraging their use. I’ve decided to refresh my own memory on the issue and here’s what I found. A double

I’ve often thought of myself as a better writer than a public speaker, which I’m sure is interesting considering my previous ambitions for teaching. I have a natural tendency to shyness, introversion, and occasional anxiety and/or attention deficiency. If I had to rise to the occasion, I would, but I would just need ample time and preparation first. I’m definitely not alone and you’re not either if you relate. Studies have shown that around seventy-five percent of people hav

I touched on commas in a general lesson about punctuation , but I feel the topic warrants its own lesson for a better focus. As...

In 1979, video killed the radio star . The one-hit wonder reflected on the impending shifts in music and music entertainment at the time. Its music video inaugurated the then-new MTV network. I wouldn’t be surprised to find the song among “oldies” playlists one of these days. It is a little dated, but it's still interesting to keep around. Older forms of writing and communication are the same way. While we have MacBooks and Chromebooks, we still have physical, paper notebook

Blog, blogging, blogger...these are commonplace words that have gained traction in society within the last twenty to thirty years. As such an integral part of the twenty-first century, I wanted to give them some attention so writers young and old might get better acquainted with the medium, and maybe even become better bloggers themselves. What is it? “Blog” is a shortened form of the term, weblog, an early term for online content. The earliest forms of such content allowed

Poetry is a blend of art and written or spoken word. It’s often evocative; centered on strong images, memories, or feelings. In the Netflix series Bridgerton, Benedict Bridgerton eloquently describes it as: "The art of revealing precious truth with words..." More still, poetry is a form that has stood the test of time. Connected to oral tradition, history, stories, and information were preserved with poetry before literacy was refined. Some of the earliest poems known in his

Throughout history, the act of writing has embraced many tools and mediums. Writers of previous centuries wrote with quill pen and ink. The written word went from preservation on payprus scrolls to the printing press. Writers of previous decades wrote with pencils, ballpoint pens, or typewriters. Even more recently, writers have shifted from using paper to digital forms. For all the evolution in the act of writing, the art of writing still prevails. Spelling, grammar, and eff

I touched on how punctuation is a fundamental ingredient to good writing but I only skimmed the surface of the subject. This lesson is a deeper dive into what punctuation is and how it's properly used. In addition, I’ll tell you more about my wedding! Punctuation is a collection of symbols used in reading and writing. They are meant to help us understand written communication in terms of purpose, emotion, or emphasis; the beginning or end of an idea; and connections between