Spelling
Traps, American vs Australian
89 articles tagged spelling, drawn from across the archive.
Alliance union join
Alliance union join If you have joined the Alliance, you would be in the AJA section, the Australian Journalists' Association. It...
Australia Quiz
Your Australia Quiz SELF-SCORING QUIZ compiled by Simon Townsend Student's name ????????????????????? At The End, Please Score...
Brevity: Every Word Must Earn Its Place
Brevity Sometimes you use unnecessary words. BREVITY is one of the basic elements of good writing. You need to go over your work...
Career Advice for Journalists
Career advice Can I advise you on what direction to take in your journalism career? Well, I can't advise anyone how to make up...
Chequebook Journalism
Chequebook journalism is a phrase that refers to news organisations paying for interviews. Network Nine and 60 Minutes are...
Clippings: The Only Proof You Are a Journalist
ARTICLE WRITTEN FOR 'MEDIA' (Thursday liftout) IN 'THE AUSTRALIAN' Clippings the only proof Do journalism graduates have job...
Commonly Confused Words
Some word pairs in English are so close in look and sound that a lot of journalists, even good ones, mix them up. This is the...
Compliment-complement
You've mixed up compliment and complement. Compliment is something you communicate to someone, such as 'You have gorgeous hair'...
Copy-Typing
COPY-TYPING Here's a suggestion that most of my students ignore. Will you? Think carefully before you ignore this. As you know, I...
Creating Your Own Questionnaire
You have devised a questionnaire to send out. You want to take an opinion poll. Why? This does not happen in the real world of...
Curiosity is Essential
Lack of curiosity is some students' downfall I love tutoring. But it has ups and downs. And the worst down is realising that...
Data Journalism: A Working Introduction
Simon wrote more than one factsheet warning young reporters against 'the big number.' A sentence like 'more than a million...
Do Editors Hire Journalism Graduates?
Editors: do they hire graduates of your journalism journey? Students often ask if your journalism journey is respected in the...
Editors, how to avoid their discouragement
Editors: how to avoid their discouragement You point out that your target publication has rules that preclude you sending-in an...
Email - contacting editors
Re contacting editors by email. Be careful. Editors receive so much junk email and spam, and so many viruses, they often delete...
Email - photos
Submitting photographs by email. This is the modern, fast, efficient and cheap method, and is preferred by most publications. It...
Email Etiquette for Journalists
Email etiquette By SIMON TOWNSEND It's impossible to be a fast and effective journalist unless you make full use of the internet...
Email-your address
Your current email address should be improved. Here's why your full name should be your email address and here's why your NAME...
Exclamation Marks: Stop Overusing Them!!!
!!!!! I caution you against the use of the exclamation mark, or 'exclaimer'. Children and teenagers use a lot of exclaimers...
Excuses
Writers make excuses. All the time. Nobody is interested. I find them boring and I hate reading them. Just as you are not...
Factual errors-accuracy
Factual errors and accuracy Plagiarism may be the worst sin in journalism, but a close second is creating a factual error (or any...
First drafts unacceptable
A 'draft' is a first or preliminary form of any writing, subject to revision and copying. If a student sends me a 'first draft'...
FOI: How to Use Freedom of Information
Freedom of Information in Australia gives journalists and citizens a legal right to ask federal and state government agencies for...
Honorifics, be careful
Be careful about using honorifics As your WordGenius disk will tell you, an honorific is a title or term of respect, as Doctor...
How accurate are you quiz
SELF-SCORING QUIZ How accurate are you? You MUST send to Simon How much do you care about accuracy? Are you extremely determined...
How to Become a Columnist
How to be a columnist A columnist is a person who has a regular spot in a publication and usually writes on the same topic each...
How to forward emails professionally
Good tips on forwarding emails This is great email with good advice to follow and send to our friends Important!! How To Forward...
How to Store Your Photos
The BEST way to store photos is to use a digital camera, and store your photos on computer disks. This is the 21st century and...
How to Write Ages
Ages of people Editors of most publications want to know how old people are. If a person is rowing single-handed around...
Humor - Spell chequer
Humour: SPELL CHEQUER Eye halve a spelling chequer It came with my pea sea It plainly marques four my revue Miss steaks eye kin...
Hyphen-dash
You are mixing up the hyphen and the dash. A hyphen is this: - It's usually used to join words together such as 'joint-owners' or...
Interviews: How to Do Them Right
Interviews: how to do them right (5 pages) Obtaining an interview Phone the person and ask. Or go through another person, such as...
Its-it's
You've mixed up its and it's as many people do. its is the possessive form. This is one of the few possessive forms of a word in...
Journal writing
Regarding writing a journal. I NEVER encourage my students to spend time on journal writing. This writing time would be better...
Journalism Across Australia
Simon started his career on the NSW Central Coast. He worked in Sydney, moved through Melbourne for television, spent time...
Libel, defamation, slander
Defamation: slander and libel If you as a journalist defame someone, you do them the wrong of injuring their reputation without...
Maps and charts
You ask if it's acceptable for you to provide graphics such as maps and charts. Sure. But first you must carry out two checks...
Names - not real
I notice you have noted that the names you use are not real names. To an editor this means you, the writer, have failed to...
Names - of people
NAMES . . . the first time you mention a person's name, use their first (given) name AND then their surname (or family name)...
Names and Credentials
A journalist can get most of a story wrong and recover with a correction. Spell a person's name wrong in print and you have told...
Opinions, columns
You seem keen to write expressing your own opinion. I do not agree with your journalism journey which expresses a lot of...
Oxymoron, what is it
Oxymoron: what is it? A dictionary definition: 'A rhetorical figure in which an epigrammatic effect is created by the conjunction...
People in Stories: The Most Important Lesson
People The secret of creating your SALEABLE articles By SIMON TOWNSEND, Senior Tutor THIS IS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT FACTSHEET...
Photo Libraries
Photo libraries. The way they work is fairly simple. They accept good photographs from photographers. They sell 'usage rights' to...
Plaigarism ruins careers
Plagiarism . . . how it ruins careers Although I am writing very firmly in this article, I'm really trying to help students who...
Plastic
Please send only sheets of paper, not any plastic stuff. Plastic! Cardboard! Some new freelancers make the mistake of using...
PR- its importance
Public Relations (PR) is an important part of being a freelance journalist. Many journalists believe that journalists and PRs are...
Public Relations - what is it
You ask where do you start. Well, you always start by ASKING. Use the Yellow Pages and find an organisation, university or...
Queries What purpose
Regarding stupid, stupid query letters. Yes, I still remain resolutely opposed to them. I find them to be often my student's...
Quotes without adverbs
When you quote someone, let their words convey the emotion. Do not describe the speaker's delivery yourself. For instance: 'You...
Quotes, difficult getting
First of all, you need phone numbers. So you must be quick and skilled at going to www.whitepages.com.au and finding numbers...
Quotes, how to write quotes
How to write quotes (6 pages) Punctuation Of Quotes You must use quotations 100% correctly. You will find different rules about...
Recording Interviews Successfully
Interviews: recording successfully For all interviews, you should use a recorder. I do not use the term 'tape recorder' as today...
Register and Protect Your Name
You referred to registering and protecting a name. FIRST you must carry out preliminary phone directory searches to see if it's...
Relatives-friends advice
Do NOT show their writings to loved ones. Your friends and relatives love and respect you and want for you what you want for...
Reviewer, how to get a gig
Your great life as a reviewer, and how to win a gig By SIMON TOWNSEND A journalist who wins a gig as a permanent reviewer can...
Simon Townsend's 10 Rules for Freelance Journalists
Simon Townsend 's 10 Rules for being a productive freelance journalist and staying successful Rule 1: Manage your fear of...
Solutions, Not Problems
I've run my own publications and my own television programs. That is, I've been the boss. I always lay down a golden rule: my...
Spelling American
You spelt a word the American way instead of the Australian way. To avoid this in future, set your Microsoft Word program on...
Spelling Traps for Australian Journalists
Australian English sits between British and American conventions, closer to the British but with its own character. A working...
Student Journalism Awards
The National Press Club of Australia in partnership with the National Australia Bank are proud to launch the NAB Excellence in...
Style Guides
Style guides, sometimes called editorial guidelines. The truth is today, few publications give out style guides. I believe they...
Sub-Editing: What It Is
You ask about sub-editing. A sub-editor is NOT the editor's assistant, or SUBstitute editor. A sub-editor is a journalist who...
Sue you
Sue you: anyone can You are wondering about someone suing you over your article. Could someone sue you? Of course they could. In...
Sweet talk
Sweet talking : Let me tell you the hard truth - you MUST train yourself 'SWEET TALK' people. You must train yourself NOT to take...
Syndication: Selling Your Work Twice
Syndication in Australia I'm sorry, I have only disappointing information. Say you sell an article to The Daily Telegraph in...
The Ampersand (&)
This symbol & is called an ampersand. Please don't use an ampersand instead of the word 'and'. If you are writing about a firm...
The Average Australian
You have written about the 'average Australian'. This is silly. Even though people (and journalists to their disgrace) speak of...
The Hardest Article to Write
Student: You have eight fingers and two thumbs with which to TYPE your work. You might be smart enough to have become a touch...
The Pen Picture
I think you should give your readers a pen picture of *. Here's my standard advice on this important part of good writing. For a...
The Pulitzer Prize
WARNING! this article is 10 pages long and contains 8,000 words. It is a painful, emotional story that is depressing to read...
The Two-Person Feature
How to write (and make money from) your 'two people' feature By SIMON TOWNSEND Think of two people you know who have a long-term...
The Weight of Words
Pinned down by the weight of words Reprinted with kind permission of the author and The Sydney Morning Herald The new public...
The World of Celebrity Magazines
Reprinted with the kind permission of The Sydney Morning Herald In therapy with Paris and Posh A little light relief ... Paris...
They, Their, His, Her
Regarding the use of 'they' meaning 'him/her' or 'their' meaning 'his/her'. Most publications guard against sexist language. This...
Third world
A thought about your term 'third world'. By the way, Third World and third world are both correct spellings. I think it's a vague...
Time mangement skills
Republished and adapted with permission of the University of Perth (c) 2006 Time management in journalism studies Are you an...
Trademarks & brandnames
Trade marks / brand names You have used a trade mark (or brand name) incorrectly. The companies that own Kodak, Barbie Dolls...
Travel Writing Tips
Travel Writing Tips I want to say something specifically about travel writing. I also tutor a travel writing course at Thomson...
Trusting the internet
Trusting the internet Can you trust information found on the internet? You CANNOT trust any information put out by questionable...
War
The way mainstream publications refer to the two big 20th century wars is in this way: World War I and World War II, using one...
What Editors Really Want From You
Editors: what they really want from you Editors are a hard-nosed, hard-hearted lot. The only aspects they remember about us...
When You Don't Want to Take Photos
I suspect - from what you're saying - that you'd rather concentrate on writing and not worry too much about photography. That's...
Will a Diploma Get You a Job?
Your qualification guaranteeing you a media job Many of my students ask me if winning their diploma guarantees a media job. You...
Wise advice
Wise Advice Pin This Up Somewhere You'Ll See It !! When you've finished writing, check your article for logic, facts, syntax...
Work Experience
Work Experience I do not like so-called 'work experience'. Firstly, it isn't 'work'. Almost no one will let you 'work' since the...
Writer's Digest: 100 Best Websites
Reprinted with permission from 'Writer's Digest' The Best Websites for Writers Category: General reference AwardWeb URL...
Your and you're
You have confused your and you're. You must, as I do, regard this as a serious spelling error. Your . . . you know what your...
Your phone mannner quiz
Do not return this questionnaire separately: Your phone manner All journalists - fulltime, casual or freelancers - obtain most of...