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803 - Pandemic, COVID, anderhalvemetersamenleving: 2020 Words of the Year
Episode 803
It's the Oscars of the language world: word-of-the-year data analysis and voting! A spirited conversation with Merriam-Webster's Emily Brewster about…
5 years, 6 months ago
802 - Brandon Sanderson on Writing, Character and Place Names, and the Future
Episode 802
Brandon shares funny stories about character and place names gone wrong, his writing struggles, and what the future holds for his work.
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5 years, 6 months ago
801 - How to Get Your 'Just Deserts.' Comma After 'But'? Why?
Episode 801
More people get the phrase "just deserts" wrong than get it right, but we're here to help! Also, why do some people put a comma after "but"? They sho…
5 years, 6 months ago
800 - What Did You Step On? And Is That a Desert or a Dessert?
Episode 800
Here's why you can ignore zombie rules and why it's actually better to write "What did you step on?" than "On what did you step?" (But also when you …
5 years, 6 months ago
799 - What 'Whence' Has to Do with 'Where Are You At?' 'Regime' or 'Regimen'?
Episode 799
Why the decline of 'whence' and 'whither' led to 'Where are you at?' And weird memory tricks to help you remember the difference between 'regime,' 'r…
5 years, 7 months ago
798 - Why 'Hilarious' Is Funnier than 'Hysterical.' How to Start a Novel.
Episode 798
The root of "hysterical" may surprise you (and make you want to use "hilarious" instead). Also, things to remember when starting a novel.
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5 years, 7 months ago
797 - Why Dickens' Character Names Are So Revealing. 'Continual' or 'Continuous'?
Episode 797
What Dickens can teach you about choosing your characters' names. Plus, how to remember the frustratingly different meanings of "continuous" and "con…
5 years, 7 months ago
796 - What Is a 'Crony'? Why Doesn’t 'Veterans Day' Have an Apostrophe?
Episode 249
What Is a 'Crony'? Why Doesn’t 'Veterans Day' Have an Apostrophe?
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5 years, 7 months ago
795 - Why People Use Scare Quotes. 'Dialog' or 'Dialogue'?
Episode 795
We have some theories on why people write things such as "'fresh' meat." Plus, we dig in to the two spellings of "dialog" (or is that "dialogue"?).
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5 years, 8 months ago
794 - Create Characters as Great as Hamlet. How to Format Internal Dialogue
Episode 794
6 steps to help you create gripping characters. Plus, we talk about how to format internal dialogue: italics, quotation marks, or nothing?
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5 years, 8 months ago