That vs. which: Which is right?
Writers often use “which” when they should use “that.” The reverse is also true. It took me a while to learn this myself. This post offers some guidance on your choices. The “That” rule “That” is for essential clauses. The sentence doesn’t make sense without the clause. Take a sentence like the following: Inflation that […]
Should your investment commentary be different?
“Should your investment commentary present a distinctive point of view?” That’s the great question posed by a participant in one of my presentations on “How To Write Investment Commentary People Will Read.” My answer? It depends. What is the distinctive point of view? If a distinctive point of view means ideas that hold their own […]
What Napoleon’s first battle can teach writers
Imagination is a powerful source of story ideas. This is what a picture of Napoleon Bonaparte’s first battle made me think when I visited the Bonaparte home on the French island of Corsica. And it can help you when you write. Do you know what is portrayed in “Napoleon’s First Battle”? A snowball fight. It’s […]
How I’ve benefited from Twitter—and you can, too
Twitter didn’t appeal to me at all in the beginning. I asked, “How can I benefit from reading an overwhelming volume of one-liners?” But @BillWinterberg and my writer friends convinced me to try it. I’m glad I did. Here are four ways I’ve benefited from Twitter. 1. New clients Twitter has brought me new clients, […]
Is your free report “complimentary” or “complementary”?
Offering a free report to folks who sign up for your email list is a great marketing technique. However, you risk making a mistake if you substitute a multisyllabic word for “free.” Look at the example in the image below, which shows a sticker that appeared on a local newspaper. I feel confident the advertisers […]