Monthly Archives: June 2013

The Joys of Language Evolution

No one likes change. Or so they say. The English language is in a constant state of evolution. Some people think it’s a bad thing and mourn the idea of static language. I think it’s a good thing – even … Continue reading

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How Many Bananas?

  The saddest misprint is a huge misprint. I found this mistake on a huge banner at a picnic event, and the sentence above was, unfortunately, one of the selling points of the product. The “e” has been left off … Continue reading

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Sex Scenes in Young Adult Books?

Malorie Blackman and Melvin Burgess say teenagers should read books in high school which tackle realistic sexual relationships as well as realistic sex itself. Their argument is that teenagers are going to get their information on sex and what it’s … Continue reading

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What Makes Good YA (Young Adult) Fiction?

Every genre has its own characteristics, and characters in novels each have their own personalities, accents, speech patterns, etc. It’s what distinguishes them from each other and makes each character unique, turning them into believable people. YA writing goes a … Continue reading

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Falling In Love Can Be Dangerous

As writers, we love what we do. Let’s face it – if we weren’t passionate about it, would we pour our hearts and souls onto page after page, into book after book, not knowing if anyone else will share our … Continue reading

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Proofreading 101: The “Mined” Chicken Incident

Here’s a fun little typo from a restaurant menu – it insinuates that the chicken was actually mined, the way diamonds or gold would be. Funny, I always thought that chickens were farmed, not mined! 😉 That proofreading error – “mined” … Continue reading

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The Absence of Writing

Dennis Quaid said, “Good film is the absence of acting.” What a great point. If you notice the acting, you’re removed from the depth of the film itself. Actors need to be natural and to fit their roles, not to … Continue reading

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Ironic Forbes Error

This misspelling – and obvious proofreading oversight – was in a June 2, 2013 Forbes article titled, “Book Publishing May Actually Save Itself”. What’s ironic is that the error appeared in an article about publishing! And the misspelled word, which … Continue reading

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