Stephen King, Hemingway, Vonnegut, and Orwell detest it. Herman Melville, Henry James, and Rebecca Solnit love it. But why? When is it effective? Have we been misusing it? Should we even care?In Semicolon, Cecelia Watson charts the rise and fall of this infamous punctuation mark, which for years was the trendiest one in the world of letters. But in the nineteenth century, as grammar books became all the rage, the rules of how we use language became both stricter and more confusing, with the semicolon a prime victim. Taking us on a breezy journey through a range of examples—from Milton’s manuscripts to Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letters from Birmingham Jail” to Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep—Watson reveals how traditional grammar rules make us less successful at communicating with each other than we’d think. Even the most die-hard grammar fanatics would be better served by tossing the rule books and learning a better way to engage with language.Through her rollicking biography of the semicolon, Watson writes a guide to grammar that explains why we don’t need guides at all, and refocuses our attention on the deepest, most primary value of language: true communication.

    American English Idioms, a whimsical collection of colloquialisms, is sure to delight you - and provide real insight into American idioms, customs, and humor.Harry Collis has arranged common everyday idioms into nine lighthearted sections - including: The Body Has Many Uses People Do the Strangest Things When Things Go Wrong When Things Go Well and more And he has turned them over to the expert hands of Mario Risso, whose wonderfully humorous cartoons illustrate what Americans say and what they really mean.Each idiom has a standard English "translation" and is placed in a real-life context, either in a natural dialogue or narrative. These facilitate understanding and make the idioms come alive!

    Haiku are clearly shown to be a means of discovering and recording the miracles of the world, from the humorous to the tragic. This is one of the major themes underlying Writing and Enjoying Haiku-that haiku can provide a way to a better life.After looking at why the reading and writing of haiku is important from a spiritual point of view, the book shows, as has never been done before, the techniques of writing-the when and the where, punctuation and capitalization, choice of words, figures of speech, sharing haiku, and much, much more.Having come this far, having learned to read and write haiku with a discerning mind, the reader will never again look upon the world in quite the same way.

    Since the age of Shakespeare, arguments over correct usage have been bitter, and have always really been about contesting values—morality, politics, and class. The Language Wars examines the present state of the conflict, its history, and its future. Above all, it uses the past as a way of illuminating the present. Moving chronologically, the book explores the most persis­tent issues to do with English and unpacks the history of “proper†us­age. Where did these ideas spring from? Who has been on the front lines in the language wars?The Language Wars examines grammar rules, regional accents, swearing, spelling, dictionaries, political correctness, and the role of electronic media in reshaping language. It also takes a look at such de­tails as the split infinitive, elocution, and text messaging. Peopled with intriguing characters such as Jonathan Swift, Lewis Carroll, and Lenny Bruce, The Language Wars is an essential volume for anyone interested in the state of the English language today or its future.

    Standards of morality and social conventions changed dramatically during the 19th century – and most of the people engaged in recording and commenting upon Highland life and tradition were puritanical ministers and priests who left out the racy bits. So, while there are many useful books that provide a wide range of Scottish Gaelic vocabulary to express many aspects of daily life – for the most part, they leave out the naughty bits.

    It's an occasionally ribald, frequently witty and unerringly erudite guided tour of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language, taking in monks and monkeys, film buffs and buffaloes, and explaining precisely what the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.

    Professor Lynne Murphy is on the linguistic front line. In The Prodigal Tongue she explores the fiction and reality of the special relationship between British and American English. By examining the causes and symptoms of American Verbal Inferiority Complex and its flipside, British Verbal Superiority Complex, Murphy unravels the prejudices, stereotypes and insecurities that shape our attitudes to our own language.With great humo(u)r and new insights, Lynne Murphy looks at the social, political and linguistic forces that have driven American and British English in different directions: how Americans got from centre to center, why British accents are growing away from American ones, and what different things we mean when we say estate, frown, or middle class. Is anyone winning this war of the words? Will Yanks and Brits ever really understand each other?

    The grammar book for the 21st century has arrived, from the language experts at Farlex International and TheFreeDictionary.com, the trusted reference destination with 1 billion+ annual visits. Farlex brings you the most comprehensive grammar guide yet: all the rules of English grammar, explained in simple, easy-to-understand terms. Over 500 pages of proper grammar instruction—2X more than the leading grammar book! Whether you're an expert or a beginner, there's always something new to learn when it comes to the always-evolving English language. Don't rely on multiple incomplete textbooks that contradict each other—fill in all the gaps in your grammar knowledge with one go-to guide. Only Complete English Grammar Rules gives you key exceptions, common grammar mistakes, thousands of real-world examples, and hundreds of grammar quizzes designed to help you retain what you've learned. With Complete English Grammar Rules, you'll be able to: • Quickly master basic English grammar and tackle more advanced topics. • Properly use every type of noun, verb, and even the most obscure grammar elements. • Master verb tenses, including irregular verbs and exceptions. • Avoid embarrassing grammar errors. • Immediately put your skills into action! Become a more effective writer and communicator in school, at work, and in everyday conversation.

    Most people dream of writing a book, but those manuscripts end up shoved away in dusty drawers, half-finished and abandoned to be eaten by moths.Many of them are great writers, many of them have great ideas. Yet so many people come to the conclusion that they'll never finish their books. Why? Because they aren't following a proven system. Maybe this is you right now.Maybe you believe that you're not good enough, that you'll never have enough time, or that it's a terrible book idea.You wonder how on earth other people manage to find time to write alongside their jobs, family and other commitments. But the assumption that writing is a slow process and books take six months or years to write is outdated. You can easily increase your efficiency three to four times MORE by using this system. As much value as there is in quality, quantity also plays a significant factor.The days where you need to have access to expensive or special equipment are gone.And one of the fastest ways to become profitable as an author nowadays is to write faster. Let me show you how you can hit the finish line at record speed. Every. Single. Time. This is the same system that allows me to spend more time with my family, earn more money and accomplish four times the amount of work in the same eight hours a day.It’s allowed me to release books on an exponential scale, to set goals of writing fifty books per year.This book was written using the same strategy.  It can be done. And now you can do the same. This ISN’T a book you read for inspiration and walk away feeling good. This is a book about taking ACTION. I want you to be generating MORE CONTENT THAN YOU EVEN NEED. What you will walk away with... Learn The Conveyor Belt Method: The step-by-step process which will give you an unshakeable FOUNDATION for your writing career Become One With Your Creative Mind: How to become so efficient with your methodology that you can AVOID writer's block entirely Master Your Location Independence: The secret writing anytime and ANYWHERE you want! Harness Your Long Term Sales: Get the exact ingredients you need to capture your readers for good and turn them into lifelong fans! Imagine if... Writing books was no longer a struggle and you could churn out bestsellers on a whim You could write a book in your spare time and don't need to fight against your other commitments You could come up with an idea in the morning, plan out your content and have your first draft FINISHED by the afternoon! Don't let your book rot in a drawer like all the rest. Your time is NOW. You could have the book you've always dreamed of writing in your hands TODAY. Begin your journey by clicking the button above.

    Tens of millions of Americans solve crossword puzzles regularly, but few know a thing about their genesis. Who writes crosswords, how--and for God's sake, why? Matt Gaffney is one of two dozen people who earns a living as a cruciverbalist. In Gridlock he provides an insider's look at the people who put that puzzle in your paper every day. With verve and gusto, Gaffney traces his own starving-artist struggle to find paying puzzle gigs, including marketing hip crosswords to the Gen-X market. He then moves on to topics like the effect of computers on crossword writing, including a man versus machine battle he stages to see who writes better crosswords; the ever-evolving crossword puzzle book market, where a top-selling series now has books shaped like a toilet seat; and a trip to the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, where the "Cru" (collective slang noun meaning "the crossword puzzle writing community") hangs out in person once a year. Gridlock also features an interview with crossword rock star Will Shortz.

    Romance author Serenity Woods and best selling author Mark Dawson provide ten short tips to help the eager beginner interested in turning their hobby of writing romance stories into a way to earn a living.

     More people write for the Associated Press than for any other news service, and more writers take their style and word-usage cues from this world-famous institution than from any other journalism source. From the when and how of the ampersand to the rules for dashes, slashes, and brackets; from the correct moment for the overused exclamation point to the rules of engagement for the semicolon, The AP Guide to Punctuation is an invaluable and easy-to-use guide to the most important aspect of clear and persuasive writing.

    A revised and updated edition of a humorous primer on the English language, expanded for an American audience, contains entries on correct and questionable usage, a glossary, and a pronunciation guide.

     The research (conducted by the Center for the Study of Intent) uncovered a new dimension of human development and has revolutionized the way personal growth, meaning, happiness, and ultimately advanced spiritual topics such as ‘enlightenment’ are understood. The results, if you let them, will transform the quality of your life in ways you currently cannot even imagine as possible. During the research a formula was uncovered that is so effective at producing what seems like miracles in people’s lives it began to be referred to as the “God Formula” among participants and researchers. This book outlines that formula, and is the final version of the highly successful training material that was used with research participants. These researchers became the first scientists to successfully experiment with this new developmental continuum. The result has been the discovery of a series of techniques that lead from everyday consciousness to increased daily happiness and satisfaction, and finally to enlightenment and beyond (yes, there is a beyond!). This book covers the first stages of this process. You can view a summary of the results from the research phase that related to it, and later ones at: CenterForIntent.org/freedom. This book covers three primary components that combine to form a complete system of person growth, and an assortment of techniques for each component. While it provides the components, how they need to come together for maximum effectiveness will be unique to you. You’ll need to experiment with various combinations of these techniques until you find the one that works best for you. This may sound unusual. You’re probably used to reading books where the authors assert they have the one answer for everyone. The researchers at the Center tested an enormous number of techniques but didn’t find a single one that was helpful to more than a handful of individuals…when it was beneficial for anyone at all. However, they learned that there are a relatively small number of techniques that can be combined in ways that are incredibly effective. You just have to find the unique combination of these techniques that works for you right now. This book provides the distilled down wisdom from all of that testing. They were able to successfully identify core components from the methods that proved themselves. However, no one can tell you how to combine those components to get them to work best for you. People are simply too different for that to be possible. So, you’ll have to join the team, be your own scientist, and experiment! The good news is that the researchers spent an enormous amount of time and money narrowing down the possibilities for you. Most of the research participants were able to use this book to find the combination that worked for them quite quickly. It is likely the same will be true for you.It’s important that you not take the information this book contains lightly. Unlike other personal growth and self help books, this one is driven by a vast amount of actual research into what works. It was revised continually based on research participant feedback, so it’s very simple and easy to understand and use. But don’t let this simplicity fool you. Every line is there for a reason. This material has changed a lot of lives, if you’ll let it…yours can be next.

    Language is humanity's most spectacular open-source project, and the internet is making our language change faster and in more interesting ways than ever before. Internet conversations are structured by the shape of our apps and platforms, from the grammar of status updates to the protocols of comments and @replies. Linguistically inventive online communities spread new slang and jargon with dizzying speed. What's more, social media is a vast laboratory of unedited, unfiltered words where we can watch language evolve in real time.Even the most absurd-looking slang has genuine patterns behind it. Internet linguist Gretchen McCulloch explores the deep forces that shape human language and influence the way we communicate with one another. She explains how your first social internet experience influences whether you prefer "LOL" or "lol," why ~sparkly tildes~ succeeded where centuries of proposals for irony punctuation had failed, what emoji have in common with physical gestures, and how the artfully disarrayed language of animal memes like lolcats and doggo made them more likely to spread.Because Internet is essential reading for anyone who's ever puzzled over how to punctuate a text message or wondered where memes come from. It's the perfect book for understanding how the internet is changing the English language, why that's a good thing, and what our online interactions reveal about who we are.