Mark Twain observed, “The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.” And while they can never compete with lightning in dramatic eff […]

You’re thinking about hiring a professional editor for your manuscript, but every potential editor you talk to says, “Sure, send me the manuscript and I’ll quote you a price.” That gives you pause. You hesitat […]

I will read anything you put in front of me. When I was little, I’d read the back of the cereal box at breakfast if that was the only thing at hand. And I’d read the front and the sides, too, if I hadn’t finis […]

If you’re a writer, you’ve probably seen discussions on social media that argue about the value of editors. Some people (mostly editors) maintain that writers can’t edit their own work; others (mostly write […]

Doesn’t it sometimes seem as though punctuation was only designed to befuddle us and give English teachers an excuse to mark down papers? Sure, punctuation has its place, but the so-called rules can be o […]