End focus describes the heightened attention we give to information placed at the end of a clause or sentence. In sentences of common word order, the information at the end of a sentence is usually new information, which is why it is marked by stress or special emphasis The most common word order in an English sentence […]

There’s no shortage of good books about writing style, but a few lay above the rest for their depth and authority, and for their enduring value to writers.  Here are five books every writer should know about. 1. Style:  Lessons in Clarity and Grace Joseph M. Williams and Joseph BizupNo book teaches practical style (also called plain […]

You can make a big step toward better writing by understanding how and when to edit nominalizations. Nominalizations, or what Helen Sword calls zombie nouns, occur when a word that is not a noun (usually a verb or an adjective) is made to act like one by changing its form. Let’s see some examples: The verb decide […]