Dear Cosmetic Companies That PhotoShop -Especially Those of You That Advertise Mascara, You’ve been called out so many times. Rimmel was caught making Zooey Deschanel look like she was made of plastic. Lancome was ridiculous thinking that nobody would notice their advertisement for a foundation on Julia Roberts that used PhotoShop so her skin looked […]
Book Review From the Verge: Good Bones and Simple Murders by Margaret Atwood
You know that I love Margaret Atwood and am incredibly excited to see her in the spring, so it’s only fitting to do a quick re-read of some of her books. Good Bones and Simple Murders is a collection of whimsical-caustic-witty-parodies-and otherwise wonderful short pieces. She skewers the traditional views of women in fairy tales, reveals […]
Writing Like You Mean It
I recently went to a brief writing retreat at a cabin reserved for writers near the Finger Lakes. It was, to put it mildly, remote. But the windows offered a lovely view of a lot of rain on leaves that were turning color. The rain is probably what kept me writing. No temptation to go […]
Do You Agree That These Are the Best Books on Writing?
I’m not sure I agree. Signature claims that these are the best books on writing. What do you think? What would you add or subtract? http://www.signature-reads.com/2017/10/the-27-best-books-on-writing/?ref=PRHFA92EEDA14&aid=randohouseinc36424-20&linkid=PRHFA92EEDA14
Never Stop Learning
I’ve heard a lot about MOOCs lately. For those unfamiliar with the acronym, it means massive open online course. There are several outlets for these courses and many were recommended to me before I stumbled upon Coursera. A Facebook friend mentioned that she was taking a course, so I decided to check it out. I […]
New Service: Tutoring
I have worked with my own children as well as others in English Language Arts. I write lesson plans (ghostwritten) for several websites and have also ghostwritten copy for educational apps. I created a book club for families. With all that in mind, I have started offering tutoring services. I have my first client through […]
Why Don’t Schools Teach the Basics?
I’ve discovered that the system used in our local public school to teach our children basic grammar and spelling has failed my child. Word Study is officially my enemy. Word Study is not actually a study of words. It is recognizing patterns in words. You don’t actually spell them. Oh, and you don’t define them, […]
Common Terms that Can Cause Problems
When a freelancer takes on a new job with a new client, they usually discuss the work that needs to be done and reach an agreement on what the job entails and the cost to the client. This process usually works quite well. On occasion, a client does not communicate exactly what they want, or […]