Tools and Insights – Page 9

Writing with Others in Mind

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:26:28-05:00

Writing with Others in Mind We typically write in solitude, immersed in our own thoughts and surrounded by our own things. Interruptions – intrusive conversations, incoming emails, needy colleagues – are generally unwelcome in these moments, unless, of course, we are not really in a mood to write. But when we single-mindedly focus on the sheet or screen before us, it is difficult not to be self-centered; not to view the world through the lens of our own needs and expectations. Yet, the more we withdraw into ourselves, the less likely we are to take our readers' unique identities into account. Their [...]

Writing with Others in MindStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:26:28-05:00

The Troublesome Apostrophe

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:28:36-05:00

The Troublesome Apostrophe In Everyday English: Getting to Grips with the Basics of the Language, Michelle Finlay writes, "Despite its diminutive size, the apostrophe has managed to create havoc in written English." Or, rather, we have created havoc with this punctuation mark, whose primary function is to denote possession, as in the "dog's paws" (not to be confused with the "dogs' paws" in the case of multiple dogs), or omission, as in the contractions "don't" and "it's." In response to this disorder, an Apostrophe Protection Society – believe it or not – was established in the United Kingdom in 2001, and [...]

The Troublesome ApostropheStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:28:36-05:00

Josh Ritter on Libraries

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:29:22-05:00

Josh Ritter on Libraries At a time when many question the utility of libraries, musician and writer Josh Ritter offers a robust and beautifully expressed defense of their enduring value in the age of wikipedia.org and amazon.com. His words can be found, fittingly enough, in Know the Past, Find the Future, a collection of essays marking the centennial of the New York Public Library's Fifth Avenue flagship in 2011. Here is an excerpt: "There is the reading, of course. That is the given reason for going to a library. "But I think that there's another. I think that sometimes we go [...]

Josh Ritter on LibrariesStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:29:22-05:00

All Greek to Me

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:30:08-05:00

All Greek to Me One of the great strengths – and joys – of English is its diverse linguistic origins and the abandon with which it incorporates words from other languages. As David Crystal puts it in The Story of English in 100 Words, "English is a vacuum-cleaner of a language," so much so that "several hundred languages have contributed to its lexical character." However, the problem with loanwords, as these borrowings are called, is that their meaning can be lost on those who do not know their language of origin. A classic example is "hoi polloi," a Greek term that [...]

All Greek to MeStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:30:08-05:00

Making a Good Impression

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:30:48-05:00

Making a Good Impression As Professor of Psychology Alexander Todorov has demonstrated in the context of the human face, we are wired to form snap judgments, making durable inferences in a fraction of a second. Although we are cautioned not to judge a book by its cover, we routinely do so, which is why dust jackets are as much a marketing tool as a protective covering. In the words of one Goodreads discussant, "It is the very first thing you notice about a book and in 5 sec you decide whether to pick it up or move on to the next [...]

Making a Good ImpressionStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:30:48-05:00

Any Color but Purple

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:31:29-05:00

Any Color but Purple Colorless writing may have its place in certain contexts, but when we need to capture the attention of our readers; when we need to create word pictures that will, as William Shakespeare put it, on their "imaginary forces work," a splash of paint is very much in order. We can draw inspiration from Charles Dickens, who was blessed with extraordinary powers of description. Here, from the opening pages of Great Expectations, is his depiction of the escaped convict Abel Magwitch: "A fearful man, all in coarse grey, with a great iron on his leg. A man with [...]

Any Color but PurpleStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:31:29-05:00

Avoiding Excess

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:32:13-05:00

Avoiding Excess If, as William Zinsser argues in On Writing Well, "Clutter is the disease of American writing," then complex prepositions are among the culprits. These word groups often crowd out simple prepositions, lengthening the time it takes to reach the preposition's object. Why state that the Friend Center is located "in the vicinity of" the Engineering Quadrangle when one can say it is "near" the EQuad? Why is "prior to" superior to "before"? In The King's English: A Guide to Modern Usage, the prolific British writer Kingsley Amis takes aim at a prime offender, namely, "in excess of": "This dreadful [...]

Avoiding ExcessStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:32:13-05:00

What’s in a Name?

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:32:49-05:00

What's in a Name? For better or worse, our names outlive us – in public records and private mementoes; in brick-and-mortar archives and the boundless vaults of cyberspace; and for a time, at least, in human memory. Some names retain a measure of familiarity, affixed to buildings, streets, and even entire communities. Others are invoked by pundits and debated by historians. But, in the fullness of time, most monikers slowly "fade away," as Douglas MacArthur said of old soldiers. Our best shot at immortality lies in the dictionary, where names – now eponyms – transcend the bodies of their owners, defining the epochs in [...]

What’s in a Name?Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:32:49-05:00

James Thurber on Fillers

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:35:51-05:00

James Thurber on Fillers There is nothing more vacuous in the context of spoken English than fillers – sounds and words that take the place of pauses and, if repeated often enough, are tantamount to vocal tics. "Uh" and "um" have as much meaning as the clearing of one's throat and can therefore be ignored with some success, but when otherwise serviceable words such as "like" and "so" are repeatedly employed as fillers, they are downright distracting, while reflecting poorly on the speaker's verbal fluency. On December 31, 1960, the great American humorist, James Thurber, writing in The New Yorker, took aim [...]

James Thurber on FillersStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:35:51-05:00

A Poetic Perspective

Stephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:38:16-05:00

A Poetic Perspective In this poem by the late Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney, a journey that every writer must be prepared to make – from intimidation to liberation – is given metaphorical expression through the troubled history of Northern Ireland, the poet's birthplace. From the Frontier of Writing The tightness and the nilness round that space when the car stops in the road, the troops inspect its make and number and, as one bends his face towards your window, you catch sight of more on a hill beyond, eyeing with intent down cradled guns that hold you under cover and everything [...]

A Poetic PerspectiveStephanie Whetstone2020-01-14T14:38:16-05:00

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