What did Dartmouth mean to say?
July 21st, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comI’m doing some research on time management today for a project I have due this week. Some of the reference material I’ve chosen to document comes from Dartmouth College. They’ve conveniently included a sample Master Schedule on their website. Their schedule shows college students how to block out sections of time over the course of a day and devote those time blocks to specific activities, thus helping them to organize their days better.
So far, so good, Dartmouth. But I do have one question.
Anyone have any idea what the below sentence is supposed to say?
-Don’t let the extra study that you may find necessary interfere with your recreation hours take time from unscheduled hours.
Or is that two sentences?
Yes, even impressive American learning institutions need proofreaders.
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Posted in Grammar Issues, Proofreader, Punctuation Peeves | 1 Comment »The Have-To Rant
April 29th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.com
I’m going to permit myself the “have-to” rant today. This has been in the back of my mind for a long time, but I’m finally going to let it come bubbling up to the surface. This is going to feel GREAT.
The phrase that I just stumbled across was this one:
“For clients with limited budgets who ‘have’ to have guaranteed results…”
Aggghhh! I despise it when people say “have to” in place of “must.” It’s such a weak and mealy-mouthed substitute for a small but mighty word. And a double whammy offense when you say “have to have.” Eeeyew. (spitting)
(And yet I’d be lying if I said I didn’t occasionally say “have to” in my clients’ copy if the phrase fits their manner of speaking. BUT STILL…)
You can say this so many other ways.
“For clients with limited budgets who ‘must’ have guaranteed results…”
“For clients with limited budgets who ‘insist’ on guaranteed results…”
Do people cock their heads to the side, slacken their jaws and roll their eyes about before telling someone that they “have to” do something?
Why not just spell it “hafta?”
And while we’re being total dorks here, we may as well just add an “OMG.”
“OMG… you HAFTA take a look at what this amazing search engine optimization program offers. It’s like, soooo good.”
Ahh, I feel much better now that I got that one of my chest. Thanks for listening. You didn’t… hafta.
Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing
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Posted in Copy Wrong, Grammar Issues, Proofreader, Punctuation Peeves, Writing Voice | No Comments »A Quick Hyphenation Tip
March 31st, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comI’ve noticed that quite a few people hyphenate when quantifying units of time. I’m not sure why they do it. But it’s wrong.
Here are some examples of what NOT to do when describing a unit or units of time in your writing:
INCORRECT: How difficult is it to roll out of bed 15-minutes earlier than usual?
CORRECT: How difficult is it to roll out of bed 15 minutes earlier than usual?
INCORRECT: I’ve been managing a copywriting business for more than 12-years.
CORRECT: I’ve been managing a copywriting business for more than 12 years.
Let’s put it into perspective. Suppose the sentence read:
I’ve been managing a copywriting business with more than 12 people.
You’ll notice there’s no hyphen there. “More than 12 years” and “more than 12 people” function in the same exact way here. How many years? Twelve. How many people? Twelve. No need for a hyphen.
I’ve been managing a copywriting business for more than 12 years.
I think the confusion may come in because people are used to hyphenating ages. For example:
What do you expect from a 12-year-old boy?
This gets hyphenated because “twelve,” “year” and “old” are three words that work together as an adjective that describes “boy.”
(There’s an official term for this. If some word nerd wants to come by and clarifying it for me, be my guest! All I know is that the right side of my brain loves to break down the logistics of hyphenation and I don’t need the exact name of the rule to know why things work as they do.)
Now, when IS it appropriate to use a hyphen in the above examples? If the number and the unit of time function as an adjective describing a noun.
CORRECT: She runs a 12-year copywriting business. (This is a lame sentence but it serves the purpose well here.)
CORRECT: I’m going to get a 15-minute head start on my morning today. (”Fifteen” and “minute” modify start.)
Many people just ignore hyphens because hey, this is the web, and you know, “creative license.”
But if one wants to appear professional, it never hurts to brush up on one’s hyphenation skills.
- Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing
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Posted in Grammar Issues, Proofreader, Punctuation Peeves | 2 Comments »