So who is your character again?

As writers, we’re often told, “write what you know.” But what do we really know. If I know a single mom, are all single moms like her? Of course not. Many factors make us who we are, and as we write characters, we need to think about the myriad factors that make characters who they…

What a Grammar Nazi does not see

The goal of this blog is not to be a Grammar Nazi. Plenty of folks out there already think of themselves as self-appointed Grammar Nazis. I have some issues with this policing of language: It promotes public shaming. It focuses on grammar as aesthetics and pedantic enforcement of rules (rather than meaning). It obscures common…