My tiny little Southern Oregon town brims with at least a dozen New York Times best-selling authors. I happen to know several of them personally. Since we live in a small town, it’s very easy to meet people, contribute to the community, and support the locals. But it’s not the best sellers who need my […]

English is rife with tricky word doubles, including some that I have to look up whenever I use them. Here are some examples of word choices that often throw people: Farther/Further: Farther refers to physical distance. “Sally could throw the ball farther than her older brother.” Further is abstract: “Her brother couldn’t discuss Sally’s ability any […]

I just finished a huge project; 280,000 words of a textbook/manual. It was a 6th edition, so that made the work less daunting, but I had exactly three weeks to finish it. That’s kind of like reading War and Peace in a few days. That’s right; no break. Here’s the cool thing: I loved it! […]

I’m on a stress-free diet… and it has nothing to do with food. Well, very little, anyway. I’ll get to that. Mostly, I’m actively working on eliminating all stress from my life. Yeah, I know it’s impossible, but it’s a goal to strive for, right? The older I get, the more I notice my values […]

I really love copy editing. Recently I was reviewing different career stages of my life, before I was a copy editor. I’ve been a master hairstylist, an analytical chemist, a grad student, a luxury spa owner, and unemployed. (I know, I know. That IS one crazy list!) Do you know what I discovered? That every […]