Tools and Insights – Page 5

Grammar Saves the Day! by Stephanie Whetstone

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:25:28-04:00

Grammar Saves the Day! by Stephanie Whetstone In this time of divisive rhetoric and vitriol, it's nice to know there is a place where we can find scintillating conversation and common ground, in spite of our many differences: at the Grammar Table. Though many think grammarians are stuffy introverts hiding in ivory towers, some grammar gurus, like Ellen Jovin, are literally on the street, reaching out to help fellow writers in need and to bond with other language lovers. On campus, Princeton Writes stands at the ready to help you solve grammar conundrums, but when you're in New York City, just [...]

Grammar Saves the Day! by Stephanie WhetstoneStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:25:28-04:00

A Journalist at Heart by Gwen McNamara

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:30:33-04:00

A Journalist at Heart by Gwen McNamara In this guest post, Gwen McNamara, Communications Coordinator for the Pace Center for Civic Engagement, shares her affection for newswriting and affirms its power. Nothing beats a well-crafted lede. No, that’s not a typo. I’m talking about a lede – the opening sentence or paragraph of a news story. Headlines may grab our attention, but it’s the lede that supplies the details. Good ledes give us the who, what, where, when, why, and how in one tight package. Great ledes draw us in and urge us to dig further. Take this example from a 2018 Pulitzer [...]

A Journalist at Heart by Gwen McNamaraStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:30:33-04:00

How to Read a Poem by Cate Mahoney

Cate Mahoney2020-03-19T12:18:16-04:00

How to Read a Poem by Cate Mahoney For those who find poetry opaque, graduate student Cate Mahoney, Princeton Writes' University Administrative Fellow, has this advice. OK: first you actually read it. Read it twice: first to enjoy it, second to feel it. Then, if you want to analyze it—if you like it, or if you need to for a class—look for a few things. I start with imagery, word choice, rhythm, and sound. Basically, you want to figure out what images the poem is making and how it’s doing that, and if that narrative changes through the work. [...]

How to Read a Poem by Cate Mahoney Cate Mahoney2020-03-19T12:18:16-04:00

Writing at Its Best by Anita Kline

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:43:48-04:00

Writing at Its Best by Anita Kline This is the latest post in our series of reflections on the nature of "good writing." Anita Kline, manager of the Center for the Study of Religion, is intrigued by the creative potential of homonyms -- words that are pronounced the same way but have different meanings. "Such vulnerable, messy terrain," she writes, "is where new writing ideas roam, as well as some considerable discomfort, to be sure." Thinking about what makes good writing and searching for fruitful writing ideas make me think of my two-year-old granddaughter, Eloise, not only because, well, most things do these days, but [...]

Writing at Its Best by Anita KlineStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:43:48-04:00

We’ve Got You Covered by Stephanie Whetstone

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:06:32-04:00

We've Got You Covered by Stephanie Whetstone Congratulations! You’ve made it to graduation! Once you’ve put your cap and gown away, framed your diploma, and packed your boxes, people will begin to ask you the dreaded question: “What’s next?” Maybe you already have a job lined up, and you’ll happily tell them about your future plans. If you don’t, that’s okay. Tell them you’re keeping your options open and taking a much needed break; then begin to work on your cover letters. If you’re not sure how to begin to write a cover letter, Princeton Writes can help. Here are a [...]

We’ve Got You Covered by Stephanie WhetstoneStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:06:32-04:00

Saying No by John Weeren

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:49:26-04:00

Saying No By John Weeren The hardest emails to write are those involving no -- no to an idea, no to an opportunity, no to a request, no to an invitation. Unless one is an unreformed Ebenezer Scrooge, negatives do not come easily. As The New York Times put it in an article on the art of saying no, "Humans are social animals who thrive on reciprocity. It's in our nature to be socially obliging, and the word no feels like a confrontation that threatens a potential bond." This is especially true in an environment such as Princeton's, which places a [...]

Saying No by John WeerenStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:49:26-04:00

Writing at Its Best by Maureen Riggi

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:10:19-04:00

Writing at Its Best by Maureen Riggi This post continues our series of reflections on the nature of “good writing.” For Maureen Riggi, Forbes College's office coordinator, poetry at its best creates a connection with the reader. Poetry has a pretty imposing stigma. But really, how do you decide whether anything you encounter is “good”? It mostly boils down to opinion. You know what TV shows you think are good, what books you feel have literary merit, and what music you think is better than the rest. So why do people get tripped up on poetry? There seems to be a [...]

Writing at Its Best by Maureen RiggiStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:10:19-04:00

Tell Me a Story by Stephanie Whetstone

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:57:54-04:00

Tell Me a Story by Stephanie Whetstone Spend time with any toddler, and you will inevitably be asked for a story: to tell one or to read one, then another and another. You may even be asked to tell the same story over and over! Little humans crave stories, perhaps because stories teach us how to be human and how to interact with other humans (or, in the case of science fiction, how to relate to creatures from another planet). Scientists such as Paul Zak have recently shown that stories teach our brains to favor empathy. Perhaps that is why we [...]

Tell Me a Story by Stephanie WhetstoneStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T12:57:54-04:00

Putting PowerPoint to Work by Stephanie Whetstone

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:18:19-04:00

Putting PowerPoint to Work by Stephanie Whetstone Most of us have been there. We attend a conference or come to hear a talk, only to be faced with mind-numbing boredom. The information may be interesting, but the presenter is reading us a dense paragraph of words that we can barely make out from the back of the room. It doesn’t have to be this way! No matter how specialized the information in your presentation, you can always make it appealing and easy to absorb. This will endear you to your audience and make sure they remember your work instead of sleeping [...]

Putting PowerPoint to Work by Stephanie WhetstoneStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:18:19-04:00

Hello from the Other Side by Stephanie Whetstone

Stephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:27:09-04:00

Hello from the Other Side by Stephanie Whetstone Formal business letters and hand-written notes may be on the wane, but in the course of a typical work week, emails can pile up. In the crush of incoming correspondence, we are often so compelled to clear out our inbox that we opt for efficiency over courtesy. Some writers even dispense with the salutation, or greeting, at the beginning of the email altogether and just get straight to the point—after all, there is a lot to do. Leaving out the “Dear Ava,” the “Hi, Joe,” or the “Good Morning, Rachel,” may seem like [...]

Hello from the Other Side by Stephanie WhetstoneStephanie Whetstone2020-03-19T13:27:09-04:00

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