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Author Archives: Norm Friedman
Fine Points
See if you can make a slight refinement in each of these sentences from the Bridge Bulletin, the monthly magazine enjoyed by members of the American Contract Bridge League. 1. Masterpoints, as they are presently constituted are meaningless. 2. Watch … Continue reading
Getting Started
Whether we’ve resolved to write our first screenplay in 2017 or simply craft better emails, we benefit from mindfulness that writing is a three-step process: pre-writing, writing, rewriting. Too many of us focus almost entirely on writing itself, largely neglecting … Continue reading
Posted in Flair & Finesse
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Two Complementary Resolutions
Let’s put aside the usual fine points regarding grammar, punctuation, and word use in favor of two broader ideas for improving our writing in 2017: 1. Make sure our writing reflects the way we talk. 2. Look for opportunities to make … Continue reading
Posted in Flair & Finesse, Tone
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Softballs
To get in the swing of the season, I’m extending five gifts – five errors that should be a cinch to spot. Identify them all to bat 1.000. 1. I could of hitched a ride with Carrie, but I decided … Continue reading
Plus/Minus
To ensure clarity, some of our most valuable writing skills are ability to organize the message effectively, identify with the reader, avoid unnecessarily long sentences and paragraphs, and use jargon with discretion. But have you ever thought about the need … Continue reading
The Full Course
Among the points covered in last week’s post was the difference between outside and outside of. That brief explanation was your appetizer. Now let’s see how you handle the full course by making nine choices involving prepositions followed by of. 1. … Continue reading
Keep Your Eye on the Ball
With the Cleveland Browns now winless in 12 games, let’s reflect, mercifully, on the Indians’ run all the way to the seventh game of the World Series. This was accomplished despite a relatively paltry payroll, as noted in a Nov. … Continue reading
Posted in Brevity, Commonly Confused Words, Flair & Finesse
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Listening
I think you’ll agree that an attribute we deeply appreciate in others is listening skills. So in a fast-paced digital world, how can we enhance our written communications to show we are paying attention? Here are three tips: 1. Echo … Continue reading
Posted in Flair & Finesse, Tone
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Who?
Take a look at this sentence from an article that appeared shortly before the election: You could do a survey, which is merely a collection of answers from whomever cares enough to answer the survey. Did the author and editor get everything … Continue reading
Back Pain
We need to remember that many words beginning with re-, such as reflect, return, and revert, do not need to be followed by back: Even when I already know the story, I like hearing Grandma reflect back on her early days … Continue reading
Posted in Brevity, Commonly Confused Words, Flair & Finesse
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