Katharine's Writer's Block

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 touched on commas in a general lesson about punctuation, but I feel the topic warrants its own lesson for a better focus. As initially mentioned, a comma is a punctuation mark that indicates pauses or connections within a sentence. If you’re not already acquainted with the eight basic rules of comma use, here’s a little more about where and how to use them. Commas and phrases are emphasized where necessary. Between dates, addresses, titles, and numbers When writing out ful

A study from Stanford University identified the top twenty errors found in undergraduate writing. The number one error is using the wrong word in a certain context. As explained in a previous lesson , the confusion stems from the fact that many words have such close similarities or subtleties that spelling, pronunciation and/or usage are the main ways to tell them apart. A word’s spelling and pronunciation should be self-explanatory. While a word’s usage pertains to one of e

Lately, I’ve been practicing cooking pancakes. I’ve learned that cooking them on my mini-griddle makes them really thick but not done in the middle. I get the slender size and circular shape that I like when I pour right into the middle of a hot, open skillet, but the batter has to be the right amount and consistency as well--not too little and not too runny. There’s a delicate balance to it. Writing with English vocabulary has a similar delicate balance. One wrong word can c

A cooking hobbyist may read cookbooks to learn new recipes or techniques. In the same way, a writer is suggested to read to improve their craft. The reasoning behind it includes: Reading makes a habit out of creative consciousness. If you’ve ever done a close-reading exercise/study , engaging that consciousness is what it intends to do. Reading exposes you to different writing styles and new ideas. Reading makes writing lessons out of entertainment. Reading improves vocabular

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

I'm celebrating my first wedding anniversary the weekend of this writing! Inspired by my one-year milestone of married life, I've written...

In my previous lesson , I introduced a recipe for good writing. All that’s needed is a variety of complete sentences expressing common ideas in a logical arrangement, appropriate punctuation, details that paint a clear mental picture, and a generous amount of proofreading. Proofreading is an important thing to do for the success of your written message. Failing to proofread makes it less presentable, like not icing the cake or not cleaning up the mess in the kitchen after y

For my first Lessons & Advice post, I'm reviving some notes from an old lesson I wrote during my time in education. I taught a middle school English class my recipe for good writing! If nowhere else, the basics are a good place to start... Ingredients: complete sentences that express relevant ideas correct punctuation logical organization of ideas interesting word choices and details that support the main idea editing and revision Complete sentences A complete sentence= a sub