A. James Editing

An Idaho woman, Laura Silsby, is under investigation for potentially kidnapping children out of Haiti with her group of Baptist church members. She also has a laundry list of other indiscretions, all financial, that have absolutely nothing to do with the construction of this sentence by The Associated Press:

In the last year alone saw her home go into foreclosure and watched a number of legal proceedings against her and her business wend their way through Idaho’s courts.

You can get the meaning of this sentence as it is, but it could read a lot smoother. Try this instead:
“The last year alone saw her home go into foreclosure…” Or: “In the last year alone, she saw her home go into foreclosure and watched a number of legal proceedings…”

You get the idea. It seems that the author of this piece had two sentences in her head at the same time and attempted (unsuccessfully) to combine them. You can read the article here.

In a first for Latin America, Mexico City legislators voted to legalize gay marriage. Though it would seem Mexico seeks unity through inclusion, this article is missing something in an otherwise almost perfect article:

Last month, an Argentinean court narrowly blocked what would been the continent’s first gay marriage.

The word “have”. It should be between “would” and “been”. What can I say? It’s a gift. Read the pithy article here.

I was perusing the offerings on The Huffington Post today and came across two articles, “Rupert Everett: Hollywood is Like Al-Qaeda” and “Critics of Obama’s Exit Strategy Have Argument Backwards,” both with different spellings of “al Qaeda”. I have no first-hand knowledge of Arabic so I cannot say with assurance how to spell it, but after some online research I came across WikiAnswers which claims the correct spelling is “Al Qaeda”. Any Arabic speakers who can second that?

In the first article it was spelled “Al-Qaeda”. In the second article there were two different spellings, “al Qaeda” and “al-Qaeda”. I think most Americans don’t know which spelling is correct (if one of them is correct), but for the sake of consistency, THP should choose one and use it wherever the word occurs.

As a copywriter and guardian of the written word, I instinctively notice typos and grammatical errors everywhere I go. I learned a long time ago that correcting people’s speech is a good way to get on their bad side so I discontinued that practice. Channeling my grammatical gravitas into more constructive means, like copywriting, has been more rewarding and not to mention socially acceptable.

I came across this restaurant in the course of a previous job and cringed and corrected it in my head every time I passed it. Taste of what village? Did you mean “The Taste of the Village?” What about “Taste the Village?”


To all you business owners out there: I have no doubt that you know your stuff when it comes to your business, but it might be worth its weight in respect to have a copywriter look over your written materials before you go public and have your knowledge of the English language questioned.

As a freelance copywriter, being as productive and efficient as possible is only beneficial to my business. I’ve always been curious about increasing my productivity and feng shui is purported to address that. Proper integration of feng shui into your life can also help you sleep, be healthier, wealthier, and find love.

In the words of three feng shui experts, Elizabeth Moran, Master Joseph Yu, and Master Val Biktashev, feng shui is:

…a system based on keen observation of heavenly (time) and earthly (interior and exterior space) forces and how the qi of each interact. It is a practice of balancing these forces. With balance comes the likelihood of better health, wealth, and relationships. With balance, feng shui gives you the impetus, and the drive, to succeed!

I’ve been minimally applying feng shui principles to my life for the past three years and it has changed my life. I am more aware of how I walk through the world and I definitely feel an increase in my attention span and work ethic. If you have writer’s block, want to know how you can work better, or are looking for a life change, I recommend the Idiot’s Guide to Feng Shui.