Numbers, numbers, everywhere

Ten? 10? 1,000? one thousand? 15%? fifteen percent? 15 percent? 3/4? 75 percent? Confused on the ‘correct’ way to use numbers, decimals, fractions and percentages in your writing? Relax – we have the answers. Numbers are everywhere nowadays; it’s common knowledge that using numbers or percentages in headings will make it more likely that readers… Continue reading

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Active is better – or is it?

Many editors, style guides and university professors will ask writers to use active voice for preference, some professors have been known to go as far as forbidding their students to use the passive voice. They can’t all be wrong, can they? The short answer is ‘no’, they’re not wrong – most of the time. As the… Continue reading

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It’s February – welcome to the apostrophe!

What does February mean to you? Groundhog Day? The ‘love’ month? Lunar New Year? Spring just around the corner? All of the above? None of the above?  Love is always good, of course, unless you’re lonely, single or broken-hearted, in which case the 14th is just a very sad day that you’d love to ignore.… Continue reading

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Happy New Year!

How’s 2019 working out for you so far? The beginning of the year is a great time for forward planning; taking concrete steps towards creating your goals for the year can help you maintain some of those resolutions you embarked on so enthusiastically just 10 days ago. Practicing what we preach, we’ve planned 12 topics… Continue reading

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Why Grammar is Necessary for Clarity – Part 4 – Dangling and Misplaced Modifiers

Perhaps the most famous misplaced modifier is a joke (see disclaimer below!) told by Groucho Marx:   “This morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got into my pajamas, I’ll never know.”   Disclaimer: Quite aside from the misplaced modifier, I have to say that – to modern ears – this joke actually seems in… Continue reading

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