Five! Is too many!
Please tell my client that five exclamation points (or exclamation marks, if you prefer) in six sentences is too many. Last week I edited an annual report written by a non-profit group. Knowing the group wanted “donor-centric” copy, I deliberately left...
No respect for words
“Words are not much valued on the Internet, perhaps because it features so many of them.” So reads a line in a recent article by David Streitfeld in The New York Times, called “Funny or Die: Groupon’s Fate Hinges on Words.” The article...
Sue’s online life tanks
When I launched the Red Jacket Diaries, I worried that my track record of (not) keeping up a journal would be an indicator of my abilities to keep up a blog. For a while, though, I had a rhythm going, where I paid attention to the world and made a mental or written...Why The Red Jacket Diaries?
The Red Jacket Diaries track my experiences as an independent communicator, where a red “power jacket” is my secret weapon for changing from shy freelance writer to outgoing networker.
Tips for keeping up with social media
The good news: Everyone wants me these days. The bad news: Everyone wants me these days. Ah, the life of a freelance writer! Between back-to-back deadlines for clients and multiple readings and writings for school, it’s been a struggle to keep up my...Job interviews: Does age matter?
Over lunch, a colleague mentioned that she had been on a job interview where the recruiter pointedly told her, “We have a YOUNG team here.” Do I need to mention that my colleague would not be considered “young” but what you might call “more seasoned”? I suggested she...
‘Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride of movies’ and more expressive writing
Don’t you love reading the expressive ways people find to make a point? Some of them make you laugh; some conjure up an appealing image or make an unusual connection. Here are a few of my latest finds, with the part I particularly liked in bold: “If you...