While you can make the case that Donald Trump is a fascist or a racist, one thing is certain: he’s an aggressive, belittling bully. And bullies don’t stop until authority figures stop them. Bullies recruit supporters and then use that power to establish an “us vs. them” narrative, demeaning and hurting others. Trump’s recruits are the people he perceives as “true” Americans…
California middle school teacher Leilen Shelton wants her writing students to eschew simple words like “good,” “said,” and “fun,” according to the Wall Street Journal. To demonstrate the problems with this dumb idea, I rewrote a news article about terrorism, replacing all the mundane words with longer ones. Misguided writing teachers are responsible for much of the bullshit…
When William Zinsser died in May, his obituaries praised his his book On Writing Well, originally published in 1976. It sold 1.5 million copies and, according to the back cover, was “[c]ited by critics as the natural companion of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style” (of course). So I read the copy I found for a…
Christopher L. Gasper is a Boston Globe sportswriter. His metaphors startle the reader, jarring you from the trance of reading and making you say “wha?” Learn from his excesses. I’ve recommended that you avoid cliches in your writing. Don’t say “dumb as a post” if you can say “dopey as Sarah Palin.” But there’s a limit. When…
I am strongly, deeply, and clearly opposed to the terrorist attacks in Paris. Sounds strangely flat, doesn’t it? Why state what everyone knows? Shouldn’t I be writing about thoughts and prayers, or the causes of terrorism, or vengeance, or something? As I watched the flood of messages on social media this weekend, I became fascinated by…
BenBella Books occupies a unique position in the publishing business. Rather than pay high advances, BenBella offers a collaborative process with more upside for the author. It’s an attractive alternative to the publishing options I’ve showcased before. Here’s an interview with BenBella’s CEO and publisher, Glenn Yeffeth. What sets BenBella Books apart from other publishers? BenBella…
I got a PR pitch last week that I liked. The site they pitched me on is as clear and punchy as the pitch they sent. It’s proof of my maxim that short, clear writing stands out. The site is called Finimize. Here’s the pitch they sent me: Hi – I noticed your blog post on…
An International Air Transport Association study was unable to find a connection between passenger “happiness” and airline profitability. But that’s boring. So the travel news site Skift reported it as if happy passengers don’t matter. The lack of a finding, like a vacuum, sucked up the truth. Skift’s article, by Marisa Garcia, was titled “IATA Study Finds You…
The Republican National Committee suspended its relationship with NBC News, alleging bias and disrespect in the recent debate on CNBC. My analysis shows that only 54% of the questions were about legitimate policy issues. So the RNC has a point. Debates featuring a scrum of ten people are a poor way to judge candidates; they mostly show the candidates’…