Ethics vs Morals

March 20, 2012

 These two words are often used interchangeably and the meanings confused. Yet at the same time you will hear people referring to “ethics and morals.” Question is, do they know the difference or have they just gotten used to saying the phrase? Ethics refer to a set of principles; the philosophy or theory relating to [...]

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What Is Irony?

March 7, 2012

 The definition of irony has been trampled on in the 20th century, and more often than not people using the word “ironic” actually mean “coincidentally” or “by chance.” So it’s time to clear this up. First we will look at the dictionary definitions and then simplify irony with clear-cut examples. Let’s start by clarifying that [...]

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How To Use The Past Tense

March 6, 2012

English is a difficult language, that’s for sure, and the one area of English writing that tends to confuse people is using tenses. In this post we are going to explore the past tense through 8 common variations of the past tense. 1. Simple Past This is the easiest form. A sentence describing an event [...]

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Writing A Thank You Letter

November 26, 2011

Thank you letters have become increasingly rare over the years, and one might argue that this is due to a decline in politeness. However, this rarity means that when you do send a thank you letter, it appears as an extra special gesture. Thank you letters can be sent for both personal and business related [...]

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Word Repetition – Using The Same Word Twice In A Row

November 25, 2011

 “He came in in a state of shock.” This writing behavior looks weird and feels weird, yet it is actually perfectly acceptable to repeat words in this fashion. If you read a lot of books you will often see words doubled up by seasoned authors who care not that it may look a bit silly [...]

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4 Reasons To Get Off Your Bottom And Start A Blog Today

November 18, 2011

Blogging is becoming a rite of passage from amateur to professional writer. In fact, the phrase “professional writer” is redundant these days. No longer do you need to take the path of news desk runner to junior journalist, or publishing company tea girl to author. Instead you can carve out your own path using mass [...]

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Don’t Abuse The Exclamation Mark!

November 17, 2011

When writing on Facebook or Twitter, or exchanging emails or text messages with friends, you might feel compelled to use exclamation marks at every opportunity, and that’s fine, but when it comes to your serious writing endeavors you must not abuse this poor fellow. The exclamation mark rule: Only use the exclamation mark to express [...]

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Sentence Fragment – What The #@*$?

November 16, 2011

I feel your pain, and I know how it feels when that annoying grammar checker in MS Word keeps highlighting fragmented sentences. When you break it down it’s an easy one to solve. First let us start by looking at the meaning of the word fragment: Fragment Definition: an incomplete piece; something detached; a portion [...]

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Program or Programme

November 15, 2011

Often confused, program, or programme, is one of those words capable of making you think twice halfway through a sentence, causing a mad Google search and interrupting the writing of your masterpiece. So let’s jump straight into it and look at the basic rules concerning this word. American English, regardless of the circumstance, always uses [...]

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How To Write Faster – 5 Tips For Speed Writing

November 9, 2011

1. Do Your Research First If you are writing a piece that requires the inclusion of statistics, facts, truths and or general knowledge, then get the research done before sitting down to write. Holes in your research will have you scratching your head and pondering; not good for speedy writing. I find it is best [...]

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