Notebook
For writers, notebooks are where ideas come to life. This blog is a space for sharing our news and ideas with you.
-
Why learning French can make you a better copywriter
Words words words
One way to get a better understanding of English is to learn a different language. And it doesn’t matter which one.
-
‘Blimps made of thousand-dollar bills’
Footnote
In his expletive-filled condemnation of America’s tax system, author Stephen King uses a lovely turn of phrase. He describes the mega-rich as those ‘who float serenely over the lives of the struggling middle class like blimps made of thousand-dollar bills’. Read the Guardian story >
-
The neuroscience of your brain on fiction
Footnote
“Brain scans are revealing what happens in our heads when we read a detailed description, an evocative metaphor or an emotional exchange between characters. Stories, this research is showing, stimulate the brain and even change how we act in life.” Read more about this in the New York Times >
-
Word of the year 2011
Footnote
The lexicographers at the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) have come up with their Word of the Year. Actually, they haven’t. They’ve come up with an expression - squeezed middle. via bbc.co.uk
-
The cool twists of language
Footnote
Rien, the French word for “nothing”, is derived from the Latin rem, which means “something” (in the accusative case). By what path can a word get from meaning “something” to meaning “nothing”? It’s like asking how anything can be “hot” and “cool” at the same time. Obviously, they can be - especially if you don’t even know whether the jazz throbbing through the speakers is hot, cool, or just loud. via guardian.co.uk
-
When was the last time you wrote something by hand? @TheEconomist celebrates a dying art: http://bit.ly/snHzM4 (via @heavenly_london)
-
50 redundant phrases to avoid in #writing (and that’s an actual fact) http://www.ragan.com/Main/Articles/43826.aspx (via @MarkRaganCEO)
-
“Clichés and jargon are like spelling mistakes or grammatical errors: they are markers of poor quality.” Good article: http://ind.pn/nc8DsP
-
Words in pictures: we’re enjoying these snaps of the Blackpool Comedy Carpet http://bbc.in/pWru1K
-
How naval slang has become part of the English language http://bbc.in/qKHuBE >> Reading this has made us want hammy cheesy eggy topsides…