The Week in Writing: Marge Simpson’s letter to First Lady Barbara Bush
See whose pearls of motherly wisdom transcribed better to paper. Plus, the dangler zone, Hinglish, a poetic inspiration to texting, and a profile of Jim Harrison.
Take your pick, or read ’em all.
The dangler zone: Just in case you turned in some copy this week that included dangling modifiers, misplaced hyphens, or just plain typos, you’ll be glad to know some writers at The New York Times did so, too. In their blog on grammar and usage, they explore several instances of these mistakes, all printed in one of the world’s most respected newspapers.
Make room for Hinglish: Some of India’s most popular books are coming from first-time authors who write in a style that this piece from The New York Times calls “grammatically forgiving.” Hinglish refers to a mix of Hindi and English, an informal speaking style that has increasingly been put on the page by authors taking advantage of easier access to low-cost publishers. And they’re doing OK, too. As the story notes, “Local authors, who seemingly don’t want to be bogged down by rules of grammar and spelling, are not only nabbing big publishing deals starting at 100,000 rupees (about $2,090) or more, but huge print runs, as well.”
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