About: colin.mcdonald

Is finding the right spot in your copy for colons driving you dotty? Or are you one of those people who ignores them and hopes they’ll go away so you’ll never have to deal with them? Well using colons in your copy doesn’t have to be a gut-wrenching process; it doesn’t really even require any intestinal fortitude. Well maybe a little! Believe it or not, colons can be very useful to add emphasis or to signify degrees of connectedness in everyday copy. Without going into some of the more obscure and specialized uses they have, here’s a few easy tips on using colons in everyday copy for you to digest: Use them to introduce a word or phrase that amplifies,...

I remember reading a novel by a world-famous,award-winning novelist and having to reach for the dictionary every third sentence to understand what he was talking about. After 60 or 70 pages, I put the book down and never returned to it because I thought this guy isn’t telling a story, he’s showing off! Whether you are an author, copywriter or you are just writing for your business everyday, simple copy is a must. The Style Manual for authors, editors and printers, Sixth Edition published by the Australian government makes several points on plain English that are still relevant today. ‘Some plain English guidelines for language choice • Use familiar, everyday words that readers will understand. • Be precise, using enough...