Gasp! The horror! It’s just a poor, innocent little comma, and so many people abuse it. But I know that none of you want to be part of this terrible trend, so I thought I’d run through some of the…
Yearly Archives: 2015
Comma Abuse
Tagged with: Cathleen Townsend, comma splice, dependent clause, FANBOYS, independent clause, predicate, subject
Posted in Writing
Posted in Writing
Help! I’ve Lost My (Writer’s) Voice! A Remedy For Allegedly Lost Writers
This is yet another excellent post by the inimitable Dan Alatorre. He has some suggestions which are not only excellent for writers seeking to revitalize their voice, but also for those who are stalled in their writing. And face it,…
Interview with Alon Shalev
Alon Shalev lives and writes in two worlds. He is the author of three social justice-themed novels including Unwanted Heroes, and an award-winning epic fantasy series. He’s convinced there is a connection. In 2009, while on a family camping trip in Northern California,…
Tagged with: Alon Shalev, At the Walls of Galbrieth, From the Ashes They Rose, interview, The First Decree, Unwanted Heroes
Posted in Author Interviews
Posted in Author Interviews
Solitude–A Poem for Writers
Today is National Poetry Day. Hurray! It’s the sort of thing that gives me hope for humanity. Only problem is, I don’t have a favorite poem. I have something like forty. All I can say is go read Shakespeare, Kipling,…
Petition to Change the Amazon Review Policy
I’m making another of my forays into activism. But this should be one that any author or reader can understand.Amazon has recently begun discounting reviews on its site. I like Amazon generally for what it’s done to even the playing…
Using a Comma for Contrast or Effect
Purdue says, “Use a comma near the end of a sentence to separate contrasted coordinate elements…” https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/owlprint/607/. Like so many definitions, this one needs some explanation for it to actually make sense. As covered in More than One Adjective–Comma or…
Interview with Bianca Schwarz
Bianca was born in Germany, spent her formative years in London and just got her US passport, but she considers herself a world citizen. She lives in Los Angeles because that’s where they make movies and she used to work…
A Thing of Beauty
I enjoyed Bianca Schwarz’s A Thing of Beauty. The details are vivid, the story arc is cohesive while still leaving room for a sequel, and the characters are well-drawn and three-dimensional. They surprised me at times, but in a good…
62 Million Girls
I’m going to make one of my rare forays into something political. I’ll preface this by saying I rarely admire any politician. The very nature of their work requires too many compromises. But I believe this campaign can do only…
Cathleen Townsend 