Editing / Grammar / Usage / Style / Writing

Although there are some who would advocate for a world free of passive-voice constructions, an all-out ban on this wrongfully maligned verbal form would be going too far. It is true that the active voice generally provides clarity that the passive voice tends to lack, but when used effectively, the passive voice allows for an element of mystery or gravity that can be difficult to achieve in straightforward active-voice...

Publishing / Writing / Writers Support Group / Copyright And Permissions

Self-publishing opportunities allow authors to reach their audiences on their own schedules and through their own publishing initiatives. An important step in the publishing process is securing copyright information that allows the author to write/create a copyright statement to protect their published book (often referred to as “the work”). This copyright statement is usually placed on the copyright page, which is a page that often follows the internal...

Publishing / Writing / Writers Support Group

It's still the beginning of a new year, and that usually means lots of new authors are out there working on the first draft of that book they've been wanting to write! Getting that first draft completed isn't easy, so, from our archives, here's a post that will help you cross that finish line.   *****   Completing the first draft of your book can be the most daunting thing about writing a...

Writing / Writers Support Group

When I first wrote this blog, we were just three months into the worst global pandemic in over a century. It is November and we have been living in the pandemic for eight months now. As I pointed out then, the world we live in is unprepared and unequipped to run smoothly. Some of us can keep working from home; some of us can’t.   Productivity during a...

Editing / Usage / Style / Writing / Writers Support Group

Emphatic writing allows writers the opportunity to drive home the importance of letters, words, phrases, sentences, and ideas. Aside from mechanical considerations, such as italicization and CAPITALIZATION, there are six common methods that writers can use to give specific sections a bit more oomph.     More Space   The first of these is probably the most obvious method for emphasizing an idea: giving a specific topic lots of space on the page...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing / Guest Blogger

Though I can agree with the adage that anyone can write, we seldom take the time to unpack how people come to the writing process. In my world of academia, writing is not a choice but an expectation. Because of this, one has to quickly find their flow and stick to it. Everyone has their own style when it comes to writing. I’ve had the good fortune to be able...

Business / Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing

Writing in a business environment can often be tricky, but throw in the uncertain times of a global pandemic and a rapidly changing market? Things just got a lot trickier.   However, there are simple tips you can remember to ensure your writing is always clear and concise and that can make your professional life easier. When your business communications are well-explained and easy to understand, your clients and your employees...

Writing / Writers Support Group

As I write this, we’re three months into the worst global pandemic in over a century. The world we live in is unprepared and unequipped to run smoothly. Some of us can keep working from home; some of us can’t.   Productivity during a stressful time can be an especially difficult feat for those of us who spend our time writing. Trying to focus and create when the...

Editing / Usage / Style / Writing / Writers Support Group

There’s never a bad time to refresh your writing skills, and now is as good a time as ever (especially if you’re finding yourself with some extra time on your hands)! Here are some common writing habits to unlearn or avoid if you want your writing to be as clear as possible for your readers.     “Sardine sentences”   Attempting to cram too many facts into one sentence results in what we call...

Publishing / Writing / Writers Support Group

Completing the first draft of your book can be the most daunting thing about writing a book — the revising and editing can be difficult, but first getting the whole draft on the page can be even trickier. How can writers ease this process? We’ve got some tips to help you check that task off your to-do list.     Commit to It   Finishing a first draft is a great accomplishment, but...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Technology / Books And Reading

Some writers may be able to fill their manuscripts with inspired text without any outside help but, thankfully, in this age of apps and user-friendly software, we writers who need a little help organizing our thoughts have some options. Gone are the days of having to rely on sticky notes and bulletin boards to keep track of the countless structural changes you’ve made to your manuscript. Now, like...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Technology

Although in-person writing circles and book clubs will eventually reclaim their rightful places in public libraries and diners across the land, online editorial communities are rapidly becoming the new — and only — norm for writers and editors who want to keep in touch. It’s important to stay connected, especially during a crisis, because so much can change in a matter of moments. News writers, business writers, sports...

Editing / Usage / Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing

We use different tenses all the time: I am listening to music. I went to the store on Saturday. I will make broccoli tonight. I am waiting for the television that I bought to arrive, and later I will watch a movie on it.   We rarely think about our use of tenses, even in examples like the last one I listed in which I used present, past,...

Publishing / Writing / Writers Support Group

Writing can be an incredibly rewarding career, but it can also be, at times, a lonely one. If you are like most writers, you probably work from home (or from your local coffee shop/café/library) and don’t go into an office on a regular basis where you can interact with other likeminded individuals.   So, sometimes you have to get creative when it comes to building communities for yourself to participate...

Business / Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing

Chances are good that you will have to do some writing at some point in your business career. And regardless of your field, your writing will have to be clear, correct, and effective. For many of us, this can pose a big challenge. In this blog, we offer seven key tips to help you engage readers and promote your ideas clearly and effectively.     Consider Your Audience   Always write...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing

So, you’ve done your years of studying. You’ve written countless essays and papers and exams. You know enough about a specific subject that you could write dozens of pages about it, and now that your next step is to write your thesis, you’ll have to do just that.   At The Editing Company, we edit a wide range of academic writing, including academic theses. By the time we...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Usage

There are plenty of different approaches to writing. Some writers like to let the words pour out on the page and clean and shape them later; some outline and structure in detail and then fill in the framework; others might be writing up point-form ideas developed through team work or provided by someone else.   Regardless of style, in non-fiction and argumentative writing a writer needs to take a certain...

Editing / Grammar / Usage / Style / Editor/writer

November has rolled around again, which can only mean one thing (for students, anyway): midterms and papers are coming up and will be due before the winter break!   We’ve had a flurry of formatting projects at TEC in the last few weeks, and a few of them have involved formatting academic papers. Writing the paper is hard enough, but when it comes to proper formatting, depending on the assigned style...

Writing / Writers Support Group

When a writer shows her/his work to someone and asks them to read it, there is the inevitable dread that she/he might hear those infamous words, “This is your first draft, right?”   This phrase can be said in two distinct ways. If the person reading your work looks at you and grimaces as she says, “It’s your FIRST draft, RIGHT?” what she really saying is, “This is your first draft,...

Editing / Grammar / Usage / Style / Writing

As anyone who edits (or writes) non-fiction knows, few things are as frustratingly difficult to keep straight as acronyms and initialisms. Two weeks ago, TEC editor Ronnie Morris broke down the difference between, and history and uses of, acronyms and initialisms. For anyone who needs a refresher on what those are, read Ronnie’s blog post on acronyms and initialisms, and then check back in here for some tips...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Book Reviews / Language & Editing

For academics across disciplines, writing and publishing journal articles is an unavoidable part of professional life. Anyone who’s been or been close to a scholar starting out in their career, struggling to find work, or approaching tenure knows that the need to publish can be a tremendous source of stress. The huge field of journal publishing can seem arbitrary and impersonal, and the connection between quality of thought...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing / Guest Blogger

Though I can agree with the adage that anyone can write, we seldom take the time to unpack how people come to the writing process. In my world of academia, writing is not a choice but an expectation. Because of this, one has to quickly find their flow and stick to it. Everyone has their own style when it comes to writing. I’ve had the good...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Usage / Language & Editing

Our blog series on confusables (a. k. a. , easily mixed up words) has remained popular throughout the years, so we thought we’d revive it and take a look at some more tricky word pairings!     I. e. vs. E. g. These are both Latin abbreviations that we often see switched around. “E. ...

Writing / Writers Support Group / Language & Editing

When I first considered this blog post, I had a brilliant idea. I’d compare it to Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up! I’d call it “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up Your Writing”! How clever!   As I learned by turning to Google, Grammarly already has a blog post with that exact title. And The Writing Cooperative has a similar post by Teresa Ingalls, titled “De-clutter Your Writing...