ISBNs: The Alphabet Soup of the Literary World
Your grocery store cashier picks up your can of chicken noodle and waves it over a little sensor before delivering it to the conveyor for bagging. You know what’s happening: The can is stamped with a barcode that indicates the item and price. Once scanned, this information tells the cashier how much you owe and updates the store on its inventory. But have you ever not...
June 10, 2020 READ MORE
The Death of the Apostrophe Society
As self-proclaimed grammar nerds, we at The Writers For Hire are disappointed to share that the Apostrophe Protection Society has officially been shut down. (Never mind the fact that we did not even know that such a society ever existed until we came across this article from the Evening Standard.) The society, which was founded in 2001, was the brainchild of retired Bri...
March 5, 2020 READ MORE
Proofreading Always Counts In 1904, dressmaker Lena Himmelstein Bryant opened a boutique in New York City. When she opened her business account at the bank, the clerk misspelled her name… and Lena simply rolled with it. [block_imgwrap_per conper="75" content="She went on to create something of a dynasty in women’s retail, establishing more than 800 plus-size clo...
February 6, 2020 READ MORE
The P’s and Q’s of Proofreading
Proofreaders don’t get enough credit – and a lot of people don’t spend enough time proofreading their own work. Proofreading is about more than just making sure to cross all the t’s and dot all the i’s. We’ve put together a list of helpful proofreading tips to make sure that your documents come out as close to perfect as possible – every time. Keep your s...
January 15, 2020 READ MORE
One of my biggest pet peeves is prepositional phrases that don't logically link to the rest of the sentence. I see this writing practice all the time, and it usually happens because: a) the writer is trying to improve sentence flow, or b) the writer is trying to cram extra information into a paragraph and can't figure out where to put it. Here's an example: "With more ...
December 23, 2019 READ MORE
Think You’re Done Editing? Take a Step Back.
A writer’s work is never done. When you’re writing, you can get so wrapped up in the proofreading and editing process that you miss a HUGE oversight or error in your copy. This goes for all writing — whether it’s a marketing letter, a web page, or a novel. So, when you think you’re done writing and editing and proofreading everything, you’ve got one more mile...
December 12, 2019 READ MORE
Rewriting: What to do when you have to rephrase someone else’s words
One of the things freelance writers are often called upon to do is rewriting. That is, they’re charged with finding new ways to present information that’s already been written about elsewhere – sometimes because the original format is not suited for the target audience and sometimes to avoid copyright infringement. This isn’t always easy. Sometimes, the source m...
September 19, 2019 READ MORE
What is the Difference Between a Nonfiction Ghostwriter and an Editor?
With so many different terms used in the process of writing a book, it’s easy to see how someone might get confused. In our previous blog, we explored what a ghostwriter is and what they do. But, how does their job differ from that of an editor? And can a ghostwriter and an editor be one in the same? First, let’s definite exactly what an editor is. An editor i...
June 28, 2019 READ MORE
12 Little-Known Punctuation Marks to Make Your Writing More Interesting
It is common knowledge that most sentences end with a period. We are all familiar with the often overused exclamation mark, and we all know that question marks help indicate that a phrase is interrogative. But, have you ever heard of an “interrobang?” How about a “certitude point?” This fascinating article from Readers Digest introduces 12 little-known punct...
June 4, 2019 READ MORE
How to Successfully Self-Edit Your Nonfiction Book
Your book draft is finally finished! Congratulations! Give yourself a pat on the back and a much-needed break—at least for a few days, anyway. You accomplished something most people will never do! But the work isn’t over yet. It’s time to move on to the next stage of the process—the editing. What’s the difference between editing and proofrea...
May 30, 2019 READ MORE
