Commas are confusing because they are used in many ways. However, the basic principle to using commas is simple: Use commas to separate clauses and phrases within sentences that have their own meaning.

The “rules” for commas below are broadly, but not universally, accepted. However, a careful writer considers two central issues:

• Reader understanding and
• Consistency.…

A…

Geek to Author is exactly what it means, a career Geek (me) taking a journey to being an Author, a writer, a creator of something meaningful that will last. There are many sites out there on the Internet on how to take charge, make yourself marketable, how to generate traffic to your blog(s), but rarely do you find anyone that details these words of wisdom in actual practice outside those advise sites.



Geek to Author is going to do that. Document what I do, what I…

       For the first time in my life, I’m stepping out on a limb and putting myself out there in a video. In fact, it is a video blog.

       Nervous!

       You bet, but I feel this is the next step in the evolution of the marketing of my books: A Brownstone in Brooklyn, Philly Style and Philly Profile, Ghost of Atlanta and Purple…

Paragraph quality is not determined by its length, long or short. Rather, quality is determined by how well the paragraph communicates a single idea. Long paragraphs, however, can be difficult simply because they are long.

The following 2 strategies will help you write long paragraphs that work.

Day 137: Use topic chains to create cohesive…

I love dogs, and I love a good mystery. So when I came across the Chet and Bernie mystery series, I was ecstatic. The books are narrated from the perspective of Chet, the dog. I really enjoyed this as too many times in books and movies, animals are overly anthropomorphized.

I cuddled up at night with books one and two, Dog on It and Thereby Hangs a…

Every well-written paragraph needs three parts: context, content, and conclusion. These three parts are known collectively as the 3 Cs. When you use the 3 Cs, you present information logically, you help the reader understand your message, and you demonstrate the relevance of your idea.

Context. The first sentence…

An expert academic or technical writer needs only a few basic sentence patterns to produce easy-to-understand writing. Each of the sentence patterns below will result in clear academic or technical writing. However, do not use any one pattern more than twice in a row to prevent the writing from sounding repetitive and boring. Also,…

In the middle of all these heavy topics about writing scenes, characters, conflicts and so on, it is easy to lose sight of the basics. This is about as basic as I can get: writing is like shooting free throws. Really. (March Madness is in the air…)

I’ve wanted to be a published author since I was a little girl. Like most girls my age, I read every Judy Bolton and Nancy Drew mystery; they were among my most prized possessions. When I was ten years old, I submitted a poem I’d written to my Sunday school magazine. I can still remember how thrilled I was when I saw my name printed under the title. My first byline! Now, many years later (no need to tell how many), I feel…

I hate writing.

This confession will be astonishing to most people, as the sole overriding desire of my entire life, the one constant from about the time I was ten years old until today, is a burning desire to be a writer. This, of course, requires me to write. But as anybody who has ever tried to do it will tell you, writing isn't easy . Many people (who have never written a complete paragraph and think it's perfectly acceptable to use "U" when you mean "YOU")…

Here are three tips from 300 Days of Better Writingabout how to understand your readers and give them what they need.

Day 110: Be prepared to work hard at your writing.

Easy reading is damned hard writing.

(Nathaniel Hawthorne)

(Please excuse the curse word. It may indicate Hawthorne’s frustration with the work necessary to produce…

Signup now at http://www.adamleipzig.com/seminars/ for a live, one-time only telephone seminar, led by Adam Leipzig, publisher of Cultural Weekly. He will interview Hoyt Hilsman, award-winning novelist, screenwriter, playwright, journalist, and expert at how to get your book published this year, your way…. because he’s done it himself.

This event will fill quickly.

You’ll learn:

• The advantages & disadvantages of…

You have two adjectives together. Do you or don’t you put a comma between them? If they are coordinate adjectives, you do. This follows Zen Comma Rule P.

Comma Rule P: Put a Comma between Coordinate Adjectives.

Definition of Coordinate Adjectives. Adjectives are…

Sometimes, things are not as good as you expect. Sometimes, the truth hurts. Sometimes, you are not perfect. And you have to write about it. These three strategies will help you write about bad, or embarrassing, information in a way that makes the bad information sound better than it is. You need to tell the truth; that's a given. But you can tell it in a way that produces a positive, or less, bad reaction from your reader.

Day 146: Put a positive spin on negative…

Concise writing is clear writing. By definition, concise writing communicates in as few words as necessary. Everything in a sentence other than the subject, verb, and object is description. Descriptions cause most of the “fluff” in sentences, but, fortunately, some simple strategies will help you write concise descriptions.

Simplifying…