On March 4, 2023, I had the honor of interviewing Ellen Jovin, author of Rebel with a Clause: Tales and Tips from a Roving Grammarian. In this lively discussion we talked about her adventures with the Grammar Table, her approach to language, and the wonders of the English language. Upcoming interviews can be joined […]
Zombies are fueled by mindless hunger, and this mindlessness is part of what makes them scary. If you have a choice between reasoning with a zombie and bashing one in the head with a shovel, the latter approach is more likely to help you avoid becoming one of the undead yourself. Zombie rules in grammar […]
Online grammar quizzes pop up all over the place, and I often find them hard to resist. I’m a copyeditor, so why bother with quizzes I should breeze through? Isn’t it like shooting fish in a barrel? Yes, but it always feels good to ace something, and people working outside traditional office settings often need […]
Quite some time ago, I was critiquing catalog write-ups, some of which I’d written, in a roomful of writers and marketers. A particular piece contained a phrase that read something like this: “A tale where such and such . . .” I made the suggestion that we change “where” to “in which.” One of the […]
The hyphen is an unassuming little bugger, isn’t he? He’s happy to break a word between lines, but he doesn’t expect you to take much notice of him. He seems content to say, “The rest of the word is down there, on the next line.” The hyphen practically waves his hands in the air, bashful […]
Early in his career, English footballer Michael Owen celebrated goals by rubbing his hands together in a joyous “Goody! Goody! Goody!” show of enthusiasm. Book lovers feel something similar when learning of a book that captures their imagination and produces a swell of anticipation that is almost inevitably more expansive than whatever pleasures the book […]
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