For Writers
Artfully Said–In or Out?
Winslow Homer, Northeaster, 1901, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (Public Domain) Homer was not only a painter. He was also an editor of his paintings. According to the Met’s description, this version of Northeaster is different from when it first appeared in 1896. Its seems that the original painting included two human
Artfully Said–Best Foot Forward?
Franz von Lenbach, Marion Lenbach, The Artist’s Daughter, 1900, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (Public Domain) Imagine that you are a painter and the parent of Marion Lenbach. Is this the painting you would create of her for all the world to see? If so, what do you like about it? If
Artfully Said–Cold Enough For You?
Emanuel Leutze, Washington Crossing the Delaware, 1851, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (Public Domain) This is a wildly famous painting, one that I’ve see a lot in photographs over the years but, I must admit, have never looked very closely at before. The best way to see a painting like this (or
Artfully Said–Keep It Real
William Michael Harnett, Still Life with Violin, 1888, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (Public Domain) This painting is a fine example of trompe l’oeil, a style of painting where meticulous detail creates a work that that fools the eye into thinking it’s the real thing. Its hyper-realism creates a three-dimensional scene in
Artfully Said–Let’s Chat
Johannes Vermeer, Study of a Young Woman, 1665-1667, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (Public Domain) This painting, so typical of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer, is titled a Study. So do that. Study this young woman’s image, her expression, her attitude. Make some judgments about the person you see. Then imagine her getting
Passed / Past–“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Mark Twain
Check this category every week for a new set of ceaselessly confused, misused or misspelled words to master. Break the cycle of language abuse! The simple solution to this problem pair is a little bit of grammar. I saw that eye roll, but, I promise—this is easy. Passed is a verb. It’s the past tense
Horde / Hoard –“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Mark Twain
Check this category every week for a new set of ceaselessly confused, misused or misspelled words to master. Break the cycle of language abuse! Beware the thundering hordes who hoard like hoarders and have hordes of children who have been horded into summer camps so that hordes of parents are free to manage the hoarding
Dissemble / Disassemble–“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Mark Twain
Check this category every week for a new set of ceaselessly confused, misused or misspelled words to master. Break the cycle of language abuse! When you put something together, you assemble it—like a jigsaw puzzle or a Lego kit or a roomful of IKEA furniture. But when it’s time to take it apart and move
Bazaar / Bizarre –“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Mark Twain
Check this category every week for a new set of ceaselessly confused, misused or misspelled words to master. Break the cycle of language abuse! Another favorite! I discovered long ago that many people have no idea that these are two separate words. It seems that they just latch on to one spelling or the other
Anecdote / Antidote–“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Mark Twain
Check this category every week for a new set of ceaselessly confused, misused or misspelled words to master. Break the cycle of language abuse! This is one of my favorites because it sounds so silly when people get it wrong! These two words have nothing to do with each other—except that they share a first