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daily link  Wednesday, June 26, 2002

lyn dupre
BUGS in writing


117 Solidus
The solidus is the forward slash (/). Used in English terms, it means and or. Most publishers in the United States forbid any (even correct) use of the solidus with English words, perhaps because people so often use the solidus incorrectly.

You should generally avoid using and/or, for several reasons. First, the term is redundant: It means and and or or. Second, most publishers don't allow its use, presumably because of that redundancy. Third, you can usually write simply and without loosing any meaning; if it is important to indicate that only one option may be operative, you can assume an inclusive or and simply write or. Fourth, there are other (less problematic) ways to express the same thought. You may find it difficult to break the and/or habit, but why use a confusing, erdundant term when you can avoid doing so?

146 Mouth
Ear is one of the characteristics that good writers are develop; ear allows writers to hear what is correct. Another such characteristic is nose, which allows writers to identify their audiences accurately. Eye allows writers to lay out their work pleasingly, to combine graphics and text intelligently, and to use the design elements most suited to the exposition. Mouth is the means by which an author speaks; the amount of mouth that an author has is the degree to which she permits herself to be visible to her audience.
permalink Posted to books @ 9:41:43 PM ( comments)


Copyright (C) 2002 Paul Kulchenko Click here to send an email to the editor of this weblog. Updated 8/22/2002; 5:26:59 PM