Writing

Saying goodbye to Microsoft Word is a little like parting with an old friend. Over the long years, Word has helped me in study, business, and writing books. When ebooks first appeared, often the only way to publish them was to use a Word Doc file. But so much has changed in recent years, and…

The fourth person point of view (POV) is not necessarily new, but it is still rare to see it in writing. All writers are familiar with the first, second, and third person points of view. They are pretty much the standard ones we use in most forms of writing. But the fourth allows a writer…

Most writers try to avoid it, but when should you use the passive voice in your writing? The best answer is when you have a good reason for doing so. I’m sure you have read a lot of advice about using the active voice as much as possible, and this is true. But there are…

What are vague or unclear words? They are words that are imprecise, undefined, or lack explicitness, which can fail to convey a clear meaning and may lead to misunderstandings or confusion for a reader. Depending on the context, they can sometimes make it challenging for readers to understand your message clearly. You can improve the…

All writers know that confusion in writing can cause a lot of annoyance or frustration for readers. When parts of a text are unclear or difficult to understand, it weakens your message or story. However, most of the leading causes of confusion are usually relatively easy to fix. The key to solving most problems and…

Neutral language register, sometimes called objective writing, is a style of writing that presents facts in a non-emotional and business-like form. Its most common use is in scientific or academic texts and also for business and technical writing. The main characteristics are that it is objective and contains no personal opinion or emotion. On the…

Clarity in writing helps make what you write easy to read and understand. You want to eliminate possible ambiguities or confusion to convey your ideas to your readers more clearly. But it doesn’t mean simplifying so far that your writing lacks depth and substance. You want your writing to remain intelligent and informative. Writing clearly…

We all know that palindromes read the same in either direction. The most common forms are words like civic, mom, or mum and dad. But as a literary device, a palindrome can be far more complex than single words. It can also be phrases, sequences, or word-playful poems. I doubt that you would give them…

The questions new writers ask usually fall into two general categories. The first is about trying to find a starting point. In other words, how can I become a writer? The second group of questions is often about confidence. Am I good enough? Over the years, new writers have asked me so many questions that…

When you describe the weather in writing, you set the scene for your story or a part of your story. It’s an opportunity to show readers the setting rather than tell them about the weather using a couple of quick adjectives. Using highly descriptive or figurative language and a variety of grammar structures helps you…