Rule: With words that indicate portions—some, all, none, percent, fraction, part, majority, remainder, and so forth —look at the noun in your of phrase (object of the preposition) to determine whether to use a singular or plural verb. If the object of the preposition is singular, use a singular verb. If the object of the preposition is plural, use a plural verb.

Examples:
None of the pie was eaten.
None of the children were hungry.

In a sentence like “None were missing,” there is an implicit noun that answers the question, “None of what?” That noun is what determines whether none takes a plural or singular verb.

Examples:
None were missing. (None of the cookies were missing.)
None was missing. (None of the pie was missing.)

Note: Apparently, the SAT testing service considers none as a singular word only. However, according to Merriam
Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage, “Clearly none has been both singular and plural since Old English and still is. The notion that it is singular only is a myth of unknown origin that appears to have arisen in the 19th century. If in context it seems like a singular to
you, use a singular verb; if it seems like a plural, use a plural verb. Both are acceptable beyond serious criticism” (p. 664).

Pop Quiz

1. None of the garbage was/were picked up.
2. None of the chairs was/were comfortable.
3. She inspected all of the plates and none was/were chipped.

Answers

1. None of the garbage was picked up.
2. None of the chairs were comfortable.
3. She inspected all of the plates and none were chipped.

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Wordplay
The man who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.

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o Writing Numbers
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The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

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• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
• Reproducible quizzes with answers

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________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

In a blog first published on August 11, 2007, I helped you understand how to use colons with lists. In this blog, I’d like to help you with other uses of the colon.

Rule 4: Use a colon instead of a semicolon between two sentences when the second sentence explains or illustrates the first sentence and no coordinating conjunction is being used to connect the sentences. If only one sentence follows the colon, do not capitalize the first word of the new sentence. If two or more sentences follow the colon, capitalize the first word of each sentence following.

Examples:
I enjoy reading: novels by Kurt Vonnegut are among my favorites.

Garlic is used in Italian cooking: It greatly enhances the flavor of pasta dishes. It also enhances the flavor of eggplant.

Rule 5: Use the colon to introduce a direct quotation that is more than three lines in length. In this situation, leave a blank line above and below the quoted material. Single space the long quotation. Some style manuals say to indent one-half inch on both the left and right margins; others say to indent only on the left margin. Quotation marks are not used.

Example:

The author of Touched, Jane Straus, wrote in the first chapter:

Georgia went back to her bed and stared at the intricate patterns of burned moth wings in the translucent glass of the overhead light. Her father was in “hyper mode” again. Nothing could calm him down.

He’d been talking nonstop for a week about remodeling projects, following her around the house as she tried to escape his chatter. He was just about to crash, she knew.

Rule 6: Use the colon to follow the salutation of a business letter even when addressing someone by his/her first name. Never use a semicolon after a salutation. A comma is used after the salutation for personal correspondence.

Example: Dear Ms. Rodriguez:

Quiz
1A. Dear Mr. Ang;

1B. Dear Mr. Ang:

2A. The noise from the car collision suggested injuries: One of the drivers was taken to the emergency room with a broken arm. The other driver walked away from the accident scene with just a few scratches.

2B. The noise from the car collision suggested injuries: one of the drivers was taken to the emergency room with a broken arm. The other driver walked away from the accident scene with just a few scratches.

Answers
1B.
2A.

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Wordplay
Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other, “You stay here, I’ll go on ahead.”

Hundreds of Quizzes at Your Fingertips

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o Subject/Verb Agreement
o Problems with Prepositions
o Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
o Adjectives and Adverbs including Good vs. Well
o Capitalization
o Writing Numbers
o Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes.
o Hundreds of Spelling,Vocabulary, and Confusing Words including Affect vs. Effect, Lay vs. Lie, It`s vs. Its

Click here to subscribe.

Hundreds of quizzes designed to help you become a better writer, student, or proofreader. Great preparation for the SAT.

A gold mine for teachers, homeschoolers, and trainers:

* self-paced
* automatic, instant scoring online
* explanations to every answer provided
* every relevant topic covered
* downloadable and reproducible
* one subscription works for an entire family, classroom, or office

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Don’t need all the quizzes at once? You can now purchase the same interactive, downloadable subscription quizzes individually.
Click here.

The Blue Book of Grammar E-Book Is Now Available!

What’s the advantage? It’s downloadable so you will have it with you wherever you have your laptop. Click here to order.

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

View entire contents online
• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
• Reproducible quizzes with answers

Discounts available for schools, bookstores, and multiple copies. Click to order.
________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

Before computers, we used our typewriters to underline book titles and we placed quotation marks around article titles. Some organizations still prefer this method. However, current style manuals recommend
italicizing book titles and magazine names (impossible to do on a typewriter) and using quotation marks around articles.

Example: I read Lord of the Flies in high school.

Example: I enjoyed reading “Become Your Own Best Friend” in Newsweek.

Pop Quiz
Choose the correct sentence.

1. A. My brother thought the “New York Times” article Homeless Team Roots for a New Life Through Soccer was fascinating.

1. B. My brother thought the New York Times article “Homeless Team Roots for a New Life Through Soccer” was fascinating.

2. A. “Light Meals for Nibblers” is a chapter in The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, one of my favorite vegetarian cookbooks.

2. B. Light Meals for Nibblers is a chapter in “The Enchanted Broccoli Forest,” one of my favorite vegetarian cookbooks.

3. A. I remember reading “The Catcher in the Rye” when I was a teenager.

3. B. I remember reading The Catcher in the Rye when I was a teenager.

Answers
1. B.
2. A.
3. B.

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  • Problems with Prepositions
  • Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
  • Adjectives and Adverbs including Good vs. Well
  • Capitalization
  • Writing Numbers
  • Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes
  • Hundreds of Spelling, Vocabulary, and Confusing Words including Affect vs. Effect, Lay vs. Lie, It’s vs. Its
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The Blue Book of Grammar E-Book Is Now Available!

What’s the advantage? It’s downloadable so you will have it with you wherever you have your laptop. Click here to order.

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

View entire contents online
• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
• Reproducible quizzes with answers

Discounts available for schools, bookstores, and multiple copies. Click to order.
________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

Wordplay
Show me a piano falling down a mine shaft, and I’ll show you A-flat miner.

Reprinted with permission by Editor Laura Lawless, http://www.elearnenglishlanguage.com/.

When talking about something that didn’t happen in the past, many English speakers use the conditional perfect (if I would have done) when they should be using the past perfect (if I had done).

For example, you find out that your brother saw a movie yesterday. You would have liked to see it too, but you hadn’t known he was going. To express this, you can use an if - then clause. The correct way to say this is with the past perfect in the “if” clause, and the conditional perfect in the “then” clause:

Correct: If I had known you were going to the movies, [then] I would have gone too.

The conditional perfect can only go in the “then” clause — it is grammatically incorrect to use the conditional perfect in the “if” clause:

Incorrect: If I would have known you were going to the movies, I would have gone too.

More examples:

Correct: If I had gotten paid, we could have traveled together.

Incorrect: If I would have gotten paid, we could have traveled together.

Correct: If you had asked me, I could have helped you.

Incorrect: If you would have asked me, I could have helped you.

The same mistake occurs with the verb “wish.” You can’t use the conditional perfect when wishing something had happened; you again need the past perfect.

Correct: I wish I had known.

Incorrect: I wish I would have known.

Correct: I wish you had told me.

Incorrect: I wish you would have told me.

Correct: We wish they had been honest.

Incorrect: We wish they would have been honest.

Pop Quiz

Choose A or B.

1.A. If I would have known you were sick, I could have brought you some meals.
1.B. If I had known you were sick, I could have brought you some meals.

2.A. If you had explained the objective, I could have completed the assignment sooner.
2.B. If you would have explained the objective, I could have completed the assignment sooner.

3.A. I wish it would have gone differently.
3.B. I wish it had gone differently.

4.A. We wish the team had scored more goals.
4.B. We wish the team would have scored more goals.

Answers

1.B.
2.A.
3.B.
4.A.

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  • Subject/Verb Agreement
  • Problems with Prepositions
  • Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
  • Adjectives and Adverbs including Good vs. Well
  • Capitalization
  • Writing Numbers
  • Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes
  • Hundreds of Spelling, Vocabulary, and Confusing Words including Affect vs. Effect, Lay vs. Lie, It’s vs. Its
• Students, boost your SAT score.
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The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

View entire contents online
• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
• Reproducible quizzes with answers

Discounts available for schools, bookstores, and multiple copies. Click to order.
________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

Wordplay

English Is Easy? (Part 3 of 4)

Thanks to Ken H. for sending these in.

Let’s face it - English is a crazy language.

There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren’t invented in England or french fries in France.
Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted.
But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And why is it that writers write but fingers don’t fing, grocers don’t groce, and hammers don’t ham?
If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn’t the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese?
Doesn’t it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend?

Perhaps you’ve wondered if and when academic degrees (bachelor’s, master’s, etc.) should be capitalized.

The Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) recommends writing academic degrees in lower case, except when using the degree as a title.

Examples:

Orlando is pursuing a bachelor of science in civil engineering.

He introduced Jennifer Miller, master of fine arts.

He introduced Master of Fine Arts Jennifer Miller.

However, CMS advises that academic degrees be capitalized when used in lists.

Example:

We are proud to announce our project team:

Jennifer Miller, Master of Fine Arts

Orlando Cruz, Bachelor of Science

Pierre Bettencourt, Bachelor of Arts

The Associated Press Stylebook recommends using lower case when referring to degrees in general but capitalizing when they follow a name.

Examples:

Orlando is thinking about getting a bachelor of science degree.

He introduced Orlando Cruz, Bachelor of Science.

My recommendation is to pick your resource and then be consistent.

Where there is agreement, however, is that abbreviations of academic degrees are to be capitalized. CMS recommends omitting periods unless required for tradition or consistency.

Examples: BA, BS, MA, MS, PhD

Pop Quiz

1. The keynote speaker tonight will be Juris Doctor/juris doctor Michael Abercrombie.
2. The keynote speaker tonight will be Michael Abercrombie, Juris Doctor/juris doctor.
3. The textbook was authored by Azizah Bakar, Master of Science/master of science.
4. Eleanor is finally reaching the end of her studies for her Doctorate in History/doctorate in history.
5. After studying hard for so many years, I definitely feel that I’ve earned my MS/ms.

Answers

1. Juris Doctor
2. Juris Doctor OR juris doctor (Either choice is correct.)
3. Master of Science OR master of science
   If you picked Juris Doctor in No. 2, then Master of Science is correct for No. 3.
   Similarly, if you picked juris doctor in No. 2, then master of science is correct for this one.
4. doctorate in history
5. MS

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  • Subject/Verb Agreement
  • Problems with Prepositions
  • Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
  • Adjectives and Adverbs including Good vs. Well
  • Capitalization
  • Writing Numbers
  • Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes
  • Hundreds of Spelling, Vocabulary, and Confusing Words including Affect vs. Effect, Lay vs. Lie, It’s vs. Its
• Students, boost your SAT score.
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The Blue Book of Grammar E-Book Is Now Available!

What’s the advantage? It’s downloadable so you will have it with you wherever you have your laptop. Click here to order.

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

View entire contents online
• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
• Reproducible quizzes with answers

Discounts available for schools, bookstores, and multiple copies. Click to order.
________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

Wordplay

English Is Easy? (Part 2)

Thanks to Ken H. for sending these in.

1. The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
2. There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
3. They were too close to the door to close it.
4. The buck does funny things when the does are present.
5. A seamstress and a sewer fell down into the sewer line.
6. To help with the planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
7. The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
8. Upon seeing the tear in the painting, I shed a tear.
9. I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
10. How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

A subscriber recently wrote in with a question that’s a good followup to last week’s Tip of the Week, Writing Numbers:
“When are hyphens used with numbers? Is it 13 feet or 13-feet; 12 hours or 12-hours?”

Rule: Generally, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea.

This rule can also be applied when a number and a measurement unit taken together form an adjective, that is, when they describe another object.

Examples:
A 22-inch monitor is too big for my desk.
Nurses work 12-hour shifts.
Anthony swung his five-pound hammer.
In the previous sentences, the measurements, such as 22-inch, describe specific objects, such as monitor.

When measurements are not acting as adjectives, hyphens are not needed.

Examples:
Suzanne won the race by 25 yards.
Twelve hours later, she was exhausted.
Anthony’s hammer weighs five pounds.

Pop Quiz: Choose A or B.

1. A. I can’t believe she wrote a 33-page treatise on how to screw in a light bulb.
1. B. I can’t believe she wrote a 33 page treatise on how to screw in a light bulb.

2. A. I can’t believe she wrote 33-pages on how to screw in a light bulb.
2. B. I can’t believe she wrote 33 pages on how to screw in a light bulb.

3. A. Harold found a 110-year-old book at the flea market.
3. B. Harold found a 110 year old book at the flea market.

4. A. Harold found a book that must have been 110-years-old at the flea market.
4. B. Harold found a book that must have been 110 years old at the flea market.

Answers

1. A.
2. B.
3. A.
4. B.

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Wordplay

A bicycle can’t stand alone; it’s two tired.

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  • Problems with Prepositions
  • Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
  • Adjectives and Adverbs including Good vs. Well
  • Capitalization
  • Writing Numbers
  • Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes
  • Hundreds of Spelling, Vocabulary, and Confusing Words including Affect vs. Effect, Lay vs. Lie, It’s vs. Its
• Students, boost your SAT score.
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This is a Q & A with Wendy Burt-Thomas, a full-time freelance writer, editor and copywriter with more than 1,000 published pieces. Her third book, “The Writer’s Digest Guide to Query Letters” hits stores December 2008. To learn more about Wendy or her three books, visit www.GuideToQueryLetters.com.

1. Q: Can you tell us about your book?

The book was a great fit for me because I’d been teaching “Breaking Into Freelance Writing” for about eight years. In the workshop, I covered a lot of what is in this book: writing query letters to get articles in magazines, to land an agent, or to get a book deal with a publisher. Since I’m a full-time freelance magazine writer and editor with two previous books, this was incredibly fun to write because it didn’t require tons of research. I was lucky enough to receive lots of great sample query letters from writers and authors that I use as “good” examples in the book. I wrote all the “bad” examples myself because I didn’t dare ask for contributions that I knew I’d be ripping apart!

In addition to the ins and outs of what makes a good query, the book covers things like why (or why not) to get an agent, where to find one and how to choose one; writing a synopsis or proposal; selling different rights to your work; other forms of correspondence; and what editors and agents look for in new writers.

It was really important to me that the book not be a dry, boring reference book, but rather an entertaining read (while still being chock full of information). I was thrilled that Writer’s Digest let me keep all the humor.

2. Q: Why are query letters so important?

Breaking into the publishing world is hard enough right now. Unless you have a serious “in” of some kind, you really need a great query letter to impress an agent or acquisitions editor. Essentially, your query letter is your first impression. If they like your idea (and voice and writing style and background), they’ll either request a proposal, sample chapters, or the entire manuscript. If they don’t like your query letter, you’ve got to pitch it to another agency/publisher. Unlike a manuscript, which can be edited or reworked if an editor thinks it has promise, you only get one shot with your query. Make it count!

I see a lot of authors who spend months (or years) finishing their book, only to rush through the process of crafting a good, solid query letter. What a waste! If agents/editors turn you down based on a bad query letter, you’ve blown your chance of getting them to read your manuscript. It could be the next bestseller, but they’ll never see it. My advice is to put as much effort into your query as you did your book. If it’s not fabulous, don’t send it until it is.

3. Q: You’re also a magazine editor. What is your biggest gripe regarding queries?

Queries that show that the writer obviously hasn’t read our publication. I’ll admit that I did this when I was a new writer too – submitted blindly to any publication whose name sounded even remotely related to my topic. One of the examples I use was when I submitted a parenting article to a magazine for senior citizens. Oops! A well-written query pitching an article that’s not a match for the magazine isn’t going to get you any further than a poorly written query.

4. Q: There’s an entire chapter in the book about agents. Do you think all new writers should get agents?

Probably 99% of new writers should get an agent. There are lots of reasons, but my top three are: 1) Many of the larger publishing houses won’t even look at unagented submissions now; 2) Agents can negotiate better rights and more money on your behalf; 3) Agents know the industry trends, changes and staff better than you ever could.

5. Q: You’ve been a mentor, coach or editor for many writers. What do you think is the most common reason that good writers don’t get published?

Poor marketing skills. I see so many writers that are either too afraid, too uninformed, or frankly, too lazy, to market their work. They think their job is done when they write “the end” but writing is only half of the process. I’ve always told people who took my class that there are tons of great writers in the world who will never get published. I’d rather be a good writer who eats lobster than a great writer who eats hot dogs. I make a living as a writer because I spend as much time marketing as I do writing.

6. Q: What are some of the biggest misconceptions that writers have about getting a book deal?

That they’ll be rich overnight, that they don’t need to promote their book once it’s published, that publishing houses will send them on world book tours, that people will recognize them at the airport. Still, you can make great money as an author if you’re prepared to put in the effort. If it wasn’t possible, there wouldn’t be so many full-time writers.

7. Q: What must-read books do you recommend to new writers?

Christina Katz (author of “Writer Mama”) has a new book out called “Get Known Before the Book Deal” - which is fabulous. Also, Stephen King’s “On Writing” and David Morrel’s “Lessons from a Lifetime of Writing.” Anything by Anne Lamott or my Dad, Steve Burt.

8. Q: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned as a full-time writer?

Seize every opportunity - especially when you first start writing. I remember telling someone about a really high-paying writing gig I got and he said, “Wow. You have the best luck!” I thought, “Luck has nothing to do with it! I’ve worked hard to get where I am.” Later that week I read this great quote: “Luck is when preparation meets opportunity.” It’s absolutely true. And writing queries is only about luck in this sense. If you’re prepared with a good query and/or manuscript, when the opportunity comes along you’ll be successful.

9. What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

Writing the “bad” query letters. I’ve read – and written! – so many horrible ones over the years that it was a little too easy to craft them. But misery loves company and we ALL love to read really bad query letters, right?

10. Q: What do you want readers to learn from your book?

I want them to understand that while writing a good query letter is important, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. You can break it down into parts, learn from any first-round rejections, and read other good queries to help understand what works. I also want them to remember that writing is fun. Sometimes new writers get so caught up in the procedures that they lose their original voice in a query. Don’t bury your style under formalities and to-the-letter formatting.

Example: Mother’s Day vs. Mothers’ Day vs. Mothers Day

With titles, you may think of the word in front of the noun as either singular, plural, or possessive. For example, do you think of the holiday as belonging to each mother individually (Mother’s Day) or to all mothers collectively (Mothers’ Day)? Or do you think of the word Mothers as an adjective describing Day? There is no right or wrong answer to this question.

The same holds true for other holidays.

Examples:
Secretary’s Day vs. Secretaries Day vs. Secretaries’ Day
Boss’s Day vs. Bosses Day vs. Bosses’ Day

Do you think of each secretary or boss “owning” the day individually (Secretary’s Day/Boss’s Day), as a group “owning” the day (Secretaries’ Day/Bosses’ Day), or as a plural adjective (Secretaries Day/Bosses Day)? Again, there is no right or wrong answer.

The Chicago Manual of Style lists the following holidays as singular possessives: Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day. Plural possessive is used for Presidents’ Day.

Your guess is as good as anyone’s about Secretary’s vs. Secretaries’ vs. Secretaries Day and Boss’s vs. Bosses’ vs. Bosses Day.

What would you do if we had a Children’s Day holiday? Because Children is an irregular plural (not formed by adding an s or es), you would have to use the apostrophe in the title because there is no such word as Childrens.

Example: Children’s Hospital

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Word Play

Acupuncture: a jab well done

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________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

Rule: The following examples apply when using dates:

The meeting is scheduled for June 30.
The meeting is scheduled for the 30th of June.
We have had tricks played on us on April 1.
The 1st of April puts some people on edge.

Rule: When expressing decades, you may spell them out and lowercase them.

Example: During the eighties and nineties, the United States economy grew.

Rule: Whether you express decades using incomplete or complete numerals, do not use an apostrophe between the year and the s. When using an incomplete numeral, use an apostrophe to replace the first two numbers.

Correct:
During the ’80s, the world’s economy grew.
During the 1980s, the world’s economy grew.

Incorrect:
During the ’80’s, the world’s economy grew.
During the 1980’s, the world’s economy grew.

Rule: Spell out the time of day in text even with half and quarter hours. With o’clock, the number is always spelled out.

Example: She gets up at four thirty before the baby wakes up.
Example: The baby wakes up at five o’clock in the morning.

Rule: Use numerals with the time of day when exact times are being emphasized.

Example: Her flight leaves at 6:22 a.m.
Example: Please arrive by 12:30 p.m. sharp.

Rule: Use noon and midnight rather than 12:00 a.m. or 12:00 p.m.

Note: You may use AM and PM rather than a.m. and p.m.

Quiz: Correct or Incorrect?

1. The last outbreak of smallpox occurred in the late 1970’s.
2. Can you get here by 12:00 midnight?
3. Please deliver the package by August 1st, 2009.

Answers:

1. 1970s
2. midnight (leave out 12:00)
3. August 1, 2009

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o Problems with Prepositions
o Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
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o Capitalization
o Writing Numbers
o Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes.
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Don’t need all the quizzes at once? You can now purchase the same interactive, downloadable subscription quizzes individually.
Click here.

The Blue Book of Grammar E-Book Is Now Available!

What’s the advantage? It’s downloadable so you will have it with you wherever you have your laptop. Click here to order.

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

View entire contents online
• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
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Discounts available for schools, bookstores, and multiple copies. Click to order.
________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.

Rule: Always spell out simple fractions and use hyphens with them.

Example: One-half of the pies have been eaten.

Rule: A mixed fraction can be expressed in figures unless it is the first word of a sentence.

Example: We expect a 5 1/2 percent wage increase.
Example: Five and one-half percent was the maximum allowable interest.

Rule: Hyphenate all compound numbers from twenty-one through ninety-nine.

Example: Forty-three people were injured in the train wreck.

Rule: Replace and with a decimal point when you write out amounts on a check.

Example: Fifty-two dollars and forty-six cents

Rule: Express large numbers simply. Be careful to be consistent within a sentence.

Correct: You can earn from one million to five million dollars.
Incorrect: You can earn from one million to $5,000,000.
Correct: You can earn from $500 to $5,000,000.
Incorrect: You can earn from $500 to $5 million.
Correct: You can earn from five hundred to five million dollars.
Incorrect: You can earn from $500 to five million dollars.

Rule: Write decimals in figures. Place a zero in front of a decimal unless the decimal itself begins with a zero.

Example: The plant grew 0.79 of a foot in one year.
Example: The plant grew only .07 of a foot this year because of the drought.

Quiz: Correct or incorrect?

1. Eighty one people were injured in the train accident.
2. I wrote a check for $300, not $3000.00.
3. Hair grows one fourth of an inch per month.
4. The tree grew .95 of a foot due to a wet winter.

Answers: All sentences were incorrect.

1. Eighty-one
2. $3000
3. one-fourth
4. 0.95

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Hundreds of Quizzes at Your Fingertips

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* Get scored instantly.
* Read explanations for every quiz answer. NEW!
* Reproduce the quizzes to your heart`s content.
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* Dozens of English Usage Topics including:
o Subject/Verb Agreement
o Problems with Prepositions
o Pronouns including Who/Whom/Whoever/Whomever
o Adjectives and Adverbs including Good vs. Well
o Capitalization
o Writing Numbers
o Punctuation Marks including Commas, Semicolons, Quotation Marks, Hyphens, and Dashes.
o Hundreds of Spelling,Vocabulary, and Confusing Words including Affect vs. Effect, Lay vs. Lie, It`s vs. Its

Click here to subscribe.

Hundreds of quizzes designed to help you become a better writer, student, or proofreader. Great preparation for the SAT.

A gold mine for teachers, homeschoolers, and trainers:

* self-paced
* automatic, instant scoring online
* explanations to every answer provided
* every relevant topic covered
* downloadable and reproducible
* one subscription works for an entire family, classroom, or office

Click here to subscribe.

Don’t need all the quizzes at once? You can now purchase the same interactive, downloadable subscription quizzes individually.
Click here.

The Blue Book of Grammar E-Book Is Now Available!

What’s the advantage? It’s downloadable so you will have it with you wherever you have your laptop. Click here to order.

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 10th Edition
An indispensable tool for busy professionals, teachers, students, home-school families, editors, writers, & proofreaders. Great resource for SAT preparation.

View entire contents online
• Grammar Rules
• Punctuation & Capitalization Rules
• Rules for Writing Numbers
• Hundreds of Spelling/Vocabulary/Confusing Words
• Reproducible quizzes with answers

Discounts available for schools, bookstores, and multiple copies. Click to order.
________________________________________
English In A Snap: 68 One-Minute English Usage Videos
View Jane’s 68 one-minute video lessons that are available FREE. Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and bosses), children, teachers, and friends.
Click here to view.

Valuable Link
Click here to read excerpts from Jane’s other wonderful book, Enough Is Enough! Stop Enduring and Start Living Your Extraordinary Life and listen to her podcasts. Learn more about Jane’s personal coaching work, speaking engagements, and articles that will inspire you to thrive.