The Dutty

The verb to bear is sometimes confused with to bare. Here is a quick tip on the difference.

The verb bear has a variety of meanings: to hold, to support, to exhibit, to carry oneself in a specific way, to endure, to give birth to, bear down, bear out, and bear up,bear in mind, bring to bear and bear fruit. Its past tense is bore (e.g., it bore fruit).

Bear is also the correct verb in the common phrases grin and bear it and bear the brunt of. 

The verb bare always means to uncover or expose.

EXAMPLE: Blowing and drifting snow and cold temperatures continued to make it difficult for any of the snow removers to reach bare pavement [Champaign/Urbana News-Gazette]

Test Your Knowledge: Choose the Right Word

The chair in the kitchen broke when Jon sat on it; his weight was too much to ____.

Mary looked for her ring everywhere, she even dug through the snow on the driveway until she hit ____   pavement.

Word of the Month

Nescience (n.): Lack of knowledge. Ignorance.

She was surprised at his nescience about baking, although he was a great chef.

Contact me at dmariemarks@gmail.com, for help putting your best word forward. See my website at editsbymarks.com.

Stop it. Your computer is not a typewriter! I recently received a rash of queries about whether it is best practice to put two spaces after a period in a letter or other document. Your word processing software is equipped with fonts that type designers created to make words and sentences followed by one space only. The font has dimension and each letter is a different size from the other, unlike type on a Corona typewriter (which has fonts that are all the same size).

However, the current edition of theManual of Style of the American Psychological Association  dictates the use of two spaces after a period (a change from previous issues). This manual is one of my go-to references for editing; but, there is no conclusive evidence to support that practice.

What is true is that two spaces were helpful in separating sentences when created on a typewriter. Letters were mono font, which means that each letter had the same spacing, whether it was the letter i or m. Today, type designers now use technology to create proportional fonts for word processing software, so there is no longer a need to use two spaces to separate sentences.

To each his own, but as a type lover, I respect the beauty and integrity of the type designer’s work. Also, if you submit your document for publishing, one of your spaces will be deleted before the work is published anyway (even if you used the nostalgic typewriter courier font); so, why waste your time with two spaces. And, two spaces may indicate you have a “typewriter mentality,” and you haven’t “gotten the memo” on the new order of publishing. I will leave you with the thought that we live in a democracy, so, as editors, we embrace the use of varying styles in our work.

The key is—BE CONSISTENT in whatever you choose to use. As for me (and my house), we will use one space at all times.

Let me help you put your best word forward!
Reach out to me at dmariemarks@gmail.com. Visit my website at editsbymarks.com.

1
Transpose names of individuals when filing: last name, first name/initial, middle name/initial.
So, Donna Mae Marks should be filed under Marks, Donna Mae
Mary J. Blige should be filed under Blige, Mary J.Michael B. Jordan should be filed under Jordan, Michael B.

2
Last names that include a prefix such as D’. De, De la, Den, Des, Du, El, Fitz, L’, La, Las, Le, Lo, Los M’, Mac’ Mc, O’, Saint, St., Ste., Te, Ten, Van, Van der, Von, etc. are filed as one word in alpha order.
So, D’ Genoa should be filed under Dgenoa
Da Silva under Dasilva
Van der Poll under Vanderpoll
McKnight under Macknight
Marie under Stmarie

3
If you can’t tell whether you have a first or a last name, file it as written, then file create a cross-reference to the transposed name.
So, Lee Atlas should be filed under Lee Atlas and again under Atlas Lee
Louie Paul under Louie Paul and again under Paul Louie

4
Hyphenated and compound names should be treated as one unit.
So, Camille Rogers-Hinds should be filed under RogersHinds, Camille
Luke Sainte Marie under Saintmarie, Luke

5
When someone’s title is added to the end of the name.
So, Father Geoffrey Thomas gets filed under Thomas, Geoffrey Father
Mayor Jane Mercer under Mercer, Jane Mayor
John Delany, II under Delaney, John II
Lori M. Janeway under Janeway, Lori M
John H. Kendrick, CPA under Kendrick John H. CPA

6
A business name is filed as written.
So, Home Depot gets filed under Home Depot
University of Baltimore under University of Baltimore
Giant Foods under Giant Foods
Apple, Inc. under Apple, Inc.
Coca-Cola Co. under Coca-Cola Co.
Pre-Med Program under Pre-Med Program

7
File names that start with number led under the spelling of the number.
So, 700 Club should be filed under Seven Hundred Club
1000 Apartments of Southside under one Thousand Apartments of Southside

8
With names with an article in front of them, ignore the article.
So, The Big Ice Company should be filed under Big Ice Company, The
The Daniels Group under Daniels Group, The
The LED Studio under LED Studio, The

Let me help you put your best word forward. I am an editor, specializing in academic books, memoirs, and theses. See my work at editsbymarks or send me email at dmariemarks@gmail.com.

“I hate commas; it seems so random the way they are used.”
“It is so hard to know when to use the comma.”
These are common complaints that I’ve heard about this most ubiquitous of punctuation marks.

The comma simply indicates a pause in speech, so if you take a breath in your mind as you read something, put a comma there. In fact, it all started with the oral tradition, when information was passed down by word of mouth. Later, a way was found to immortalize the spoken word. Scribes used symbols to create written words, but with no spaces or definition between each word. Punctuation evolved on the heels of the written word, as a way to sort out the confusion of trying to read something aloud in a way that is easy for the listener to understand and the reader to interpret.

Here are the Basic Ways to Use the Comma

1. Use it to bring two thoughts or sentences together.
   I love ice cream, there is always some in my fridge.
2. Use it to break up a sentence that runs on and on. It is best to break up that sentence into separate clauses and use a comma after each clause.
   So, instead of this:
   The results of the investigation were inconclusive more time was needed to analyze the evidence and the victim died before he could be questioned.
   Write this:
   The results of the investigation were inconclusive, more time was needed to analyze the evidence, and the victim died before he could be questioned.
3. Use it to define a list.
   Either this:
   The colors of the flag are red, blue, and white. (serial comma, with comma before and—my personal favorite, since it prevents ambiguity)
   or this:
   The colors of the flag are red, blue and white. (Associated Press style, with no comma before and)

Once you get into this rhythm of using the comma, you can hardly go wrong.

Let me help you put your best word forward on your documents, books, and theses. Go to my website or send me e-mail at dmariemarks.com. Then, let’s talk!

Use shortcuts and spend less time composing in Microsoft Word and Excel. Some of them you already know. Start using the ones you do not know. Substitute command for ctrl on the Mac.

Shortcuts without using your mouse:

Style Options:

Do you have any favorite shortcuts you love to use? Tell me about them. I will share them in the near future.

Let me help you put your best word forward. Give me a shout at dmariemarks@gmail.com; and take a look at my website.

The possessive: Joe’s heart belongs to me.
One of the main functions of the apostrophe is to indicate the possessive.

Mastering the possessive is often a slippery proposition for many writers. Rules for using the apostrophe tend to get murky and your final choices require review before you send your writing on its way to your readers. Be mindful of these basic rules as you review your work.

Basics—singular and plural

• If the word is singular, add ’s to make the word possessive
  So: Mina’s jewelry (the jewelry that belongs to Mina) was stolen from her purse.
• Add ’s, even when the word ends in ‘s
  So: Amos’s book is in the kitchen.
  –UPS’s trucks are brown.

• If the word is plural and ends in s, just add the apostrophe after the
  So: The suspects’ car was parked on the lawn.

• If the word is plural and does not end in s, add ’s.
  So: The children’s bus arrives at 8 every morning.
  –The United States’ representative at the games.

Special Use—Two or more nouns and the possessive

Ask yourself, “If the item belongs to two or more people, is shared among them or is it separate?”

• Shared: Only the final noun takes the possessive.
  So: My mother and father’s business is doing well.
  –WMATA operates Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia’s commuter rail system.
  –Peter, Ty, and Jamal’s room is upstairs.
• Separate: Each noun takes the possessive.
  So: My mother’s and father’s cars are in the garage.
  Zoya’s and Jason’s parents attended the school concert.
  The hamster’s and the mouse’s food is in the corner of the cage

Let me help you put your best word forward. Contact dmariemarks@gmail.com or visit editsbymarks.com.

Automatic hyphenation is a feature of all word processing programs used today. When this feature is on, the program consults its own dictionary to select word breaks. However, follow these tips to present a well-written, credible document.

Proofreading

After completing your draft of a report or business correspondence, your review should include proofreading with the following in mind:

• A hyphen may appear at the end of no more than two consecutive lines.
• The last word in a paragraph should not be broken. If the break is unavoidable, then carry the entire word to the next line.

Rules for breaking words

• Keep proper names together on the same line; and do not separate a person’s initials or an abbreviated title or part of a name (such as , Dr., III, or Jr).
  The whole name should be on the same line.
• Short words (those of five letters or fewer) should not be broken.
• When possible, divide words after prefixes and at the natural breaking point for solid words (pre-cursor, lumber-yard, hand-kerchief).
• Hyphenated words should be broken only at the hyphen.
• Always check the dictionary to verify if a compound word should be hyphenated.
• Words ending in “ing” are divided on the base word (sing-ing, writ-ing), except when the final consonant is doubled to form a participle
  (refer-ring, admit-ting).

Let me help you put your best word forward.
Link me at dmariemarks@gmail.com and check out my website editsbymarks.com