Get a Grip on Your Grammar: 250 Writing and Editing Reminders for the Curious or Confused

by Kris Spisak

Overview

Just as we should think before we speak, we need to think before we write.

Most of us are not poets or novelists, but we are all writers. We email, text, and post; we craft memos and reports, menus and outdoor signage, birthday cards and sticky notes on the fridge.

Get a Grip on Your Grammar is a grammar book for those who hate grammar books, a writing resource filled with quick answers and a playful style—not endless, indecipherable grammar jargon.

Get a Grip on Your Grammar is The Elements of Style for the Twitter generation. Designed for student, business, and creative-writing audiences alike, its easily digestible, occasionally witty writing tips will finally teach you:

• The differences between "lay" and "lie."
• The proper usage of "affect" and "effect."
• Where to put punctuation around quotation marks.
• The meaning of "e.g." versus "i.e."
• The perils of overusing the word "suddenly."
• That apostrophes should not be thrown about like confetti.
• And 243 more great tips.

Writers owe it to themselves and to everyone who sees their written words to get it right. With Get a Grip on Your Grammar, they finally can (not "may").

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781632650917
Publisher:	Red Wheel/Weiser
Publication date:	04/17/2017
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

With a bachelor of arts from the College of William and Mary and a master of liberal arts from the University of Richmond, Kris Spisak began her career as a college writing instructor. After six years in the classroom, she shifted her work toward professional writing and editing, working with businesses on their communication goals and individuals pursuing their publishing dreams. As a teacher, editor, and speaker, Spisak has helped writers of every level sharpen their writing craft. She is the cofounder of Midlothian Web Solutions, on the board of directors of James River Writers, and an avid writer of fiction. She lives in Richmond, Virginia.

Table of Contents

Introduction 11

Section I Word Usage 13

Section II Punctuation 125

Section III Idioms 143

Section IV Business Writing and Etiquette 155

Section V Creative Writing and Storytelling 187

Conclusion 213

Documentation 215

Index 219

Editorial Reviews

"Is it a dash or a colon here? Should I write first person or third? Is it 'already' or 'all ready'? In this handy manual, grammar guru Kris Spisak offers us her thoughts and tips on the writing questions that dog every writer's life. You'll want to keep a copy on your desk."

Meg Medina

"If you add one book to your home library this spring, make it local author Kris Spisak's new book, Get A Grip On Your Grammar. Fabulous help for you, your kids, and those upcoming graduates!"

The Little Bookshop in Midlothian

"Get a Grip on Your Grammar is not only a useful reference, but it is also a fun read, chock-full of telling examples and pop-culture references."

Charles Euchner

"Get a Grip on Your Grammar is not only a useful reference, but it is also a fun read, chock-full of telling examples and pop-culture references."
--Charles Euchner, author of Keep It Short; former lecturer on writing, Yale University; creator and principal of The Elements of Writing

Reviews

"Get a Grip on Your Grammar is not only a useful reference, but it is also a fun read, chock-full of telling examples and pop-culture references."
--Charles Euchner, author of Keep It Short; former lecturer on writing, Yale University; creator and principal of The Elements of Writing

"Is it a dash or a colon here? Should I write first person or third? Is it 'already' or 'all ready'? In this handy manual, grammar guru Kris Spisak offers us her thoughts and tips on the writing questions that dog every writer's life. You'll want to keep a copy on your desk."
--Meg Medina, author and National Book Award and Kirkus Award Finalist, Burn Baby Burn; Pura Belpré Award winner, Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass

"If you add one book to your home library this spring, make it local author Kris Spisak's new book, Get A Grip On Your Grammar. Fabulous help for you, your kids, and those upcoming graduates!"
--The Little Bookshop in Midlothian

From the Publisher