Your duck + 101 Writing Tips… Merry Xmas!

Sleigh ‘em in 2010!

Give wings to your writing next year with these Golden Writing Tips that we collected from people like YOU:

Download your 101-Tips eBook (free)

People’s tips were in answer to this question:

“What writing tip, technique or strategy has saved you the most time,
made you the most money, or given you the best results at work?”

In 12 years of professional writing I hadn’t heard of some of them. This is high-protein brain food — and it’s our Christmas gift to you!

Get your gift here: “My Golden Writing Tip” eBook

What’s with the duck?

In return for your “golden” writing tips, we promised to donate $2,000 to Oxfam to buy ducks for third-world families.

We made the donation (see proof), and you made our day — we love how we all worked together to make a difference. Now that’s Christmas.

Here’s to you getting more kick from your keyboard in 2010!

Merry Christmas from all at Magneto,

P.S. Did you pass the “comma” test in the reindeer’s caption? Omitting a little comma can make a big difference!

P.P.S. Please share your thoughts below about the 101 Tips eBook. Or do you have a tip of your own you’d like to share? Comment away!

Using Google to write right

Believe it or not, Google can improve your writing.

A trainee on one of my courses asked me a tricky question recently: Should an apostrophe be used in this phrase or not?

“one night’s accommodation”

i.e. does the night “own” the accommodation?

What if it was plural, as in “five nights accommodation”?

Do you know the answer? If you aren’t sure, and want to do a quick ‘n’ dirty check, try Google.

The trick
Just Google both options, using inverted commas (” “) around your search phrase, to see which gets the highest results. So you’d first search for “one nights accommodation” (26,000 hits), then “one night’s accommodation” (114,000 hits). Clearly the latter is the most used version, and, as it happens, is correct.

But now try the plural version: “five nights accommodation” (8,000 hits) vs. “five night’s accommodation” (112 hits). Again, a resounding win for the former, this time without the apostrophe. And it’s correct. [Source: Aust. Govt Style Manual, 6th edition.]

The exception
The only caveat is that the number of Google hits must be wildly different. If similar, don’t trust them; look it up elsewhere. For example, “two night’s accommodation” yields 64,000 hits, while “two nights accommodation” gets fewer hits, 61,000, yet is correct.

This method isn’t foolproof (because a lot of fools write badly on the Web), but it is a quick way to double check your hunch. And if American vs. British spellings cause problems, use the country-specific version of Google, e.g. www.google.co.uk.

Got any other tips you’d like to share? Comment away!

To space or not two space?

At the end of your sentences, do you hit the space bar once or twice? A debate is raging about this. (Type something now to see what you’re in the habit of doing.)

Which is correct?
You should use a single space after a period, question mark or exclamation mark.

“Sacrilege! I was taught to use two spaces!”
Did you learn to type on a typewriter? If so, you may have been told to insert two spaces at the end of sentences to ensure enough space.

Most typewriters had non-proportional (“monospace”) fonts. With these, thin letters, like “i”, took up the same space as fat ones, such as “m”, as you can see with this Courier font:

However, computers now use “proportional” fonts. With these, space for thin letters is slim, compared to space for fat ones, as you can see with this Times font:

Why should you care?
With proportional fonts, the computer adds just the right amount of space after each sentence. Double spacing adds distracting gaps that make your writing look choppy and unprofessional.

Mainstream publishing has used one space between sentences for decades. It’s also backed by the Australian Government Style Manual, the MLA, APA, and The Chicago Manual of Style. I say go with the experts.

Using double spacing is like using Liquid Paper on your screen to correct errors. Times have changed! (Still don’t believe me?).

Have your say…
…below! Are you a “space” cadet? Do you disagree with the above? Go on – make your mark!

Exterminating Errors

Nothing says “I’m careless” more than errors in your document. But no matter how hard you stare at the page, sometimes you just can’t spot you’re mistakes (see?). So how to find them?

These proven proofreading tips will save your skin:

1. Fresh eyes: The Golden Rule is to put your writing aside and look at it with fresh eyes later – preferably after a sleep, during which your brain “resets” itself.
2. Buddy up: The freshest eyes of all are someone else’s! Why not become someone’s “copy buddy,” and shoot important copy (writing) to each other to check?
3. Several passes: Go through your document several times looking for one thing at a time. E.g. in one pass, just check content; then in another, check for typos; then in another, check your grammar, and so on.
4. Read aloud: Reading your copy aloud helps stop your brain skipping over mistakes.
5. Print it: Reading on screen is slower and harder. You’ll find more errors on a printout (use recycled paper).
6. Change font: Surprisingly, temporarily changing your font can help you see errors.

Classic blunders

• Report cover for UK’s “Public Guardian”: “The Pubic Guardian”
• Newspaper headline: “Iraqi Head Seeks Arms”
• Sign in foreign hotel: “The manager has personally passed all the water served here”
• In a resume: “I have good attention too detail …”

What are your tried and true proofreading methods? Found any clangers lately? Let us know!

Showdown: I vs. Me

A lady from a major bank wrote to me recently asking if I’d help her settle a $50 bet she had with her workmate about “I” vs. “me.” Which do you think is right?

1. Box a few rounds with Tyson and I
2. Box a few rounds with Tyson and me

Most people in my courses think “I” would win the round. But they’re wrong; “me” is the champ here. (So was the lady from the bank – she won her bet.)

But look out! “I” hasn’t thrown in the towel yet! Which of these is right?

1. Tyson and I boxed a few rounds
2. Tyson and me boxed a few rounds

With a sharp uppercut “I” knocks out “me” and wins!

Punch drunk? Confused? Here’s how to tell when to use
“I” vs. “me.”

The quick way: remove the other person and see if it still makes sense. So, “Box a few rounds with Tyson and I,” becomes, “Box a few rounds with I,” which is obviously wrong. Then you’d know it should be, “Box a few rounds with Tyson and me.” (Prove it works for yourself: try the same rule on “Tyson and me boxed a few rounds.”)

The technical way: it depends on whether the pronoun [I or me] is acting as the subject or the object of the sentence. [The subject is what does the action; the object is what the action is done to.] “I” can only be used as the subject of a sentence; “me” can only be used as the object of a sentence. Ditto for she/her, he/him, we/us, etc.

You’ve been saved by the bell! Now you know when to use “I” or “me” you can replace your mouthguard, climb back in the ring and sock it to ’em!

Has this helped you? Please let me know by leaving a comment below…