• Footnotes, Endnotes, Bibliography. Xulon Press

    Footnotes, Endnotes, Bibliography: What Does it all Mean?

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    If you ask me, the most painstaking part of writing anything is the documentation of sources. It’s such tedious work, but do we even know why we do it? “Ethics, copyright laws and courtesy to readers require authors to identify sources of direct quotations or paraphrases and of any facts or opinions not generally known or easily checked,” says the Chicago Manual of Style (pg. 655). Now, we know why we provide sources for the quoted material in our books, but there are still two questions left to be answered: which system should be used and what’s the difference between…

  • Write How You Write, Not How You Speak

    Write How You Write, Not How You Speak

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    Everyone enjoys telling a story, whether it’s a treasured memory from the past or the funny incident that occurred on the way to work. When it comes to writing a self-published book for the enjoyment of others, more thought will be needed to turn a memorable story into a well-written manuscript. It doesn’t matter if you are writing your autobiography or a potential Pulitzer prize-winning novel, if your content basically mirrors your “unique” manner of speaking, the novelty of the story will be lost. While writing your manuscript, be mindful that your book will not include hand gestures and facial…

  • Xulon Press Ask the Editor

    Ask the Editor: Comma Conundrums Part I…When to Use a Semicolon

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    Let me take you back to an 8th grade English class. The teacher is saying something about commas, semicolons and conjunctions. You’re pretty much lost, spacing out a bit or writing a note to your crush three seats back. Why is it so hard to remember punctuation rules? It’s probably because technical terms are not the best way to have a long-lasting impact on pre-teens. Semicolons separate things, usually two main clauses that are closely related to each other, but could stand on their own as individual sentences. Many writers use them to add variety to the text after a…