Tag Archives: English

More Sites for Writers #13

Useful and Rewarding Sites

By Annette Rey

Blog Dictionary   http://blog.dictionary.com/   This site has articles, grammar help, word trends, and quizzes.

Book Life http://booklife.com/   This site is associated with Publisher’s Weekly, an expensive subscription in both digital and paper, but is suggested for serious writers. The site offers writing tips and advice, reviews of your books, and places your book in markets. As with any commitment, you should read the fine print for what is expected of you.

Diffen   http://www.diffen.com/   This site has amazing comparisons boxes, you can plug in any word in one box and another word in the second box, and get a blank vs. blank description. This is very helpful to see relativity between two words of your choice, all in one place.

Ingram Spark http://www.ingramspark.com/   a self-publishing site. I have not used their services, but the site looks worthy to investigate.

Psychology at Wikia   http://psychology.wikia.com/wiki/Psychology_Wiki   A specialist site for the whole field of psychology. Most writers will need information on personality disorders and other conditions to write realistically about their characters. This site has a search box so you find the information you seek.

Psychology Today https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/   It is very surprising what this site has to offer. The home page lists columns of blogs of articles under categories like Addiction, Aging, Anxiety, etc. You can find a therapist or take tests in five categories. Tests assess your adventurousness, ability to manage anger, problem solving, etc. You can adapt information at this site to round out your characters.

Write at Home   http://blog.writeathome.com/index.php/all-our-free-quizzes/  writing tips, quizzes, spend a little time here  contact@writeathome.com

 

 

Writers Need Writers

By Annette Rey

Lonely Tower Dwellers Get Boring

Most writers would be happy sitting in a lonely tower, watching life passing by below their only contact with the outside world. They dream of a world where creativity is the only currency, where the necessity of promotion, advertising, cover art, synopses, queries, and other thieves of time do not exist.

But, even Thoreau had to mix with society to achieve publication. And so, we must do the same.

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Colorful, Catchy Narrative

Radio Noir

By Annette Rey

This is a repost from April 2017 in case you missed it. It is one of my favorites.

Oh, for the days language was used that slapped the listener in the head, jangled his brain, and imparted a vivid visual view in a flash of a second. Machine gun language denoting so much information the listener is running a sentence behind the descriptive narrative. Radio language was used decoratively, stretching metaphors beyond the meaning of the technique.

When I’m driving, I listen to Sirius Classic Radio broadcasts from the 1930s and 1940s. This is how I can learn from, enjoy, and appreciate stimulating script writing.

I’d like to share the following excerpts with you.

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Writers, Think Another Way

Give This a Try

By Annette Rey

Though I prefer writing fiction, I am open to any education about writing. Currently, I am reading Feature Writing by William E. Blundell. It does not hurt to add to your writing repertoire and if you can break into feature writing, you can collect some decent pay for your work.

I have an interesting exercise for you gleaned from the pages of this book which reveals an interesting fact you may not have heard before.

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Residence or Residency?

A Short Clarification

By Annette Rey

These situations come up and it is good to take a look at them. You can develop a pattern of correct word usage by being in the habit of learning the correct word origin to work from.

On the television, I heard this being said, “We maintain separate residencies.” The word choice used is the plural of the noun residency. That is not the correct derivation in this case.

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Woe to the Careless Writer

Vocabulary is Important!

By Annette Rey

Language does evolve and we should be thankful for that – to a point. I mean, we aren’t burdened with having to say “Dost thou desire a respite before partaking dinner?” We just say, “Wanna take a nap?”

But in this modern age where almost everyone has a keyboard, and they are using them, their writing should reflect some competence with the language.

I give you this example that recently showed up on social media.

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Less and Fewer

The Easy Explanation

By Annette Rey

I believe grammar is made too difficult to understand so risking condemnation from the wordy grammar ghouls out there, here is the shortcut to understanding when to use less and when to use fewer.

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Writers Using English

Refresh and Recheck Your English Skills

By Annette Rey

English and non-English first language speakers, listen up! The site mentioned below may be one of the most useful you will find to help you improve your speaking and writing of English. It will also increase your understanding of English. Understanding the core of a subject is when the light bulb shines in your brain and makes learning the rest of the material easier.

The site is:  Continue reading →

Writing Figurative Language

It Can Really Grab Attention

By Annette Rey

I came across a fabulous example of figurative language. It really caught my imagination and drew an enticing picture in my mind. But figurative language also wakes up some deeper emotion in my being. This is something you would like your readers to find in themselves as they read your writing. Your work and author name will be unforgettable if you flower your work with words that make your readers think.

Let’s have a look at the sentence I wish I had said.

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