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Writing

A collection of 128 issues

Writing tips

In preparation for the start of National Novel Writing Month on November 1st, here are my writing tips: * Keep a notebook and pen with you at all times. * Write longhand. Not all the time, but if you don't, your hands will drop off, and your handwriting will deteriorate.

Borrowed words

Tingo, nakkele and other wonders. English is a rich and innovative language. But you can't help feeling we're missing out. While English speakers have to describe the action of laughing so much that one side of your abdomen hurts (hardly an economical phrase), the Japanese have

Rare books online

Original Alice work in 3D online. The original handwritten manuscript of what became Alice in Wonderland has been put online using software to virtually turn the pages. Alice's Adventures Under Ground, by Lewis Carroll, is the latest 3D addition to the British Library's Turning the Pages

Good sci-fi

Dr Who praised at TUC conference. Writers have praised BBC One hit sci-fi series Doctor Who at the TUC annual conference in Brighton, in a call for more funding for UK TV productions. It showed there was "still an audience for quality family entertainment", the Writers' Guild

Celebrating Agatha

The mystery of Agatha Christie. A campaign is under way to champion the work of British crime writer Agatha Christie. But with two billion books sold worldwide, why bother? The best-selling fiction author of all time, named as such in the Guinness Book of Records, should need no publicity push.

Maintenance lessons

My first car was a silver Rover Metro 1.3S made in 1981 with a four speed manual transmission and Pirelli P4 low profile racing tires, the license plate was something like SPV 918 W. Dad bought it in 1992 and we cleaned it up, repaired it, and I drove

Censorship

Interesting thread on the WordPress support forums about censorship and ethics. After reading it, I added this to my About the blog page: You are free to comment on my blog, but once you do, all comments belong to me and I will censor, edit, or delete at will. Play

Canterbury Rap

Chaucer's tales become rap songs . A rap artist has translated some of the best known works of poet Geoffrey Chaucer into hip-hop to make them appeal to schoolchildren. Canadian Baba Brinkman wants modern teenagers to warm to the 14th-century Canterbury Tales. He is to tour English schools with

Skydiving

No-one ever told me before today it is possible to lose a shoe while skydiving. I was with two other first timers, and all three of us immediately tightened our shoes. "If you lose one, just kick the other one off so you don't look like an

Random facts

Nectarine stones can be digested by a hefty waste disposal, but please don't try this yourself. It's really noisy, it was an accident, and I'm not planning to do it again. There really is a creperie in St Louis. They have nutella and strawberry

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