Clauses are often called the building blocks of sentences, and like most building materials, they aren’t all created equal. Some clauses carry weight and play an integral role within a sentence, while others primarily provide embellishment. Whether you’re writing...
I’m a huge fan of abbreviations because they make communication easier and spare me from unnecessary typing. When I’m writing in Associated Press style, though, it sometimes feels like these benefits disappear, since there are so many tricky AP style rules for...
If you write factual content or realistic fiction, it’s almost impossible to avoid working with acronyms. Between “alphabet soup” government agencies and absurdly named pieces of legislation, I often find my writing overrun with these abbreviations. Given the ubiquity...
For a few years during elementary school, virtually every sentence that my friends and I uttered included the word “like.” This awful speech habit led to plenty of well-deserved ridicule, which made me determined to stop overusing unnecessary words. I thought I was...
I used to feel pretty confident in my grasp of grammar and style rules, until my first encounter with Associated Press style and its distinct guidelines. AP style is widely used in journalism and other professional writing, but it can still seem unfamiliar and...
