Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

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Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing
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Five-time winner of Best Education Podcast in the Podcast Awards. Grammar Girl provides short, friendly tips to improve your writing and feed your love of the English language. Whether English is your first language or your second language, these grammar, punctuation, style, and business tips will make you a better and more successful writer. Grammar Girl is a Quick and Dirty Tips podcast.

  1. Pop, soda, or coke? When Q stands alone. Pizza bones.

    1D AGO

    Pop, soda, or coke? When Q stands alone. Pizza bones.

    1099. Do you call it "pop," "soda," or "coke"? We look at the interesting history behind these regional names for carbonated beverages. Then, we look at words where you can use a Q without a U, which might help your Scrabble game. The pop, soda or coke segment was written by Valerie Fridland, a professor of linguistics at the University of Nevada in Reno and the author of "Like Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English." It originally appeared in The Conversation and appears here through a Creative Commons license. You can find Valerie at valeriefridland.com. The Q segment was written by Karen Lunde, a career writer and editor. In the late '90s, as a young mom with two kids and a dog, she founded one of the internet's first writing workshop communities. These days, she facilitates expressive writing workshops, both online and off. Find her at chanterellestorystudio.com.  🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat. 🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses. 🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter. 🔗 Take our advertising survey.  🔗 Get the edited transcript. 🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.  🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.  | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475). | Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network. Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes| Theme music by Catherine Rannus. | Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.

    16 min
  2. Metaphors and your brain. How figurative language works, with Dr. Vicky Lai

    6D AGO

    Metaphors and your brain. How figurative language works, with Dr. Vicky Lai

    1098. We talk with cognitive scientist Dr. Vicky Lai about how frequently we use metaphors and what happens in our brains when we hear them. We also look at her research on irony and its effect on emotion, and how people recovering from cancer use metaphors differently depending on how they're doing. Dr. Vicky Lai - https://psychology.arizona.edu/person/vicky-lai 🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat. 🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses. 🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter. 🔗 Take our advertising survey.  🔗 Get the edited transcript. 🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.  🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.  | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475). | Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network. Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes| Theme music by Catherine Rannus. | Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.

    19 min
  3. Can you have a million bacons? Martha's Vineyard's unique sound.

    JUL 8

    Can you have a million bacons? Martha's Vineyard's unique sound.

    1097. Do you wonder whether "bacon" can be plural? We look at the difference between countable and uncountable nouns. Then, we look at how the Martha's Vineyard accent developed and what it tells us about language and society. The "countable" segment was written by Karen Lunde, a career writer and editor. In the late '90s, as a young mom with two kids and a dog, she founded one of the internet's first writing workshop communities. These days, she facilitates expressive writing workshops, both online and off. Find her at chanterellestorystudio.com.  The "Martha's segment was written by Valerie Fridland, a professor of linguistics at the University of Nevada in Reno and the author of "Like Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English." You can find her at valeriefridland.com. 🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat. 🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses. 🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter. 🔗 Take our advertising survey.  🔗 Get the edited transcript. 🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.  🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.  | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475). | Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network. Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes| Theme music by Catherine Rannus. | Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.

    17 min
  4. The surprising history (and politics) of emoji, with Keith Houston

    JUL 3

    The surprising history (and politics) of emoji, with Keith Houston

    1096. This week, we look at the world of emoji with Keith Houston, author of "Face with Tears of Joy." He discusses the long history of emoji, from ancient origins to early computer character sets, and the formal process of proposing new emoji to the Unicode Consortium. We also look at how emoji can be blends of multiple characters and tell us more about cultural, generational, and political attitudes. Keith Houston - Shadycharacters.co.uk Keith's book - "Face with Tears of Joy" 🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat. 🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses. 🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter. 🔗 Take our advertising survey.  🔗 Get the edited transcript. 🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.  🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.  | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475). | Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network. Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes| Theme music by Catherine Rannus. | Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.

    29 min
  5. Is ‘sick’...good? What we think of posh language and class. Misunderseed

    JUL 1

    Is ‘sick’...good? What we think of posh language and class. Misunderseed

    1095. Is “sick” really “good”? This week, we explore how words flip their meanings and why language changes over time. Then, we look at the 1950s idea of "U and Non-U English" and what it tells us about social climbing. The "sick" segment was written by Natalie Schilling, a professor emerita of linguistics at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and who runs a forensic linguistics consulting firm. You can find her on LinkedIn. The "posh" segment was by Karen Lunde, a former Quick & Dirty Tips editor and digital pioneer who's been spinning words into gold since before cat videos ruled the internet. She created one of the first online writing workshops, and she's published thousands of articles on the art of writing. These days, she leads personal narrative writing retreats and helps writers find their voice. Visit her at ChanterelleStoryStudio.com. 🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat. 🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses. 🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter. 🔗 Take our advertising survey.  🔗 Get the edited transcript. 🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.  🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.  | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475). | Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network. Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes| Theme music by Catherine Rannus. | Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.

    17 min

  6. JUN 27 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    BONUS: Rob Drummond on languaging and our fluid speaking identities

    In this expanded conversation with Rob Drummond, author of "You’re All Talk," Rob and I get into the fascinating concept of "languaging" — the idea that speaking is an active process through which we constantly shape and project our identities. Rob explains how our "speaking identities" are incredibly fluid, changing based on context, audience, and even the language we're using. Learn why multilingual individuals often feel like different versions of themselves in different languages, and how even conditions like stammering and Foreign Accent Syndrome illustrate the connection between our voice and our sense of self.

    18 min
  7. The language of children’s storytelling, with Doug Fraser

    JUN 26

    The language of children’s storytelling, with Doug Fraser

    1094. Have you ever wondered about the linguistic techniques behind popular children's podcasts? This week, we talk with Doug Fraser, also known as Dougie Pickles from the "Cozy Critters" podcast, who explains his strategic use of language to soothe and captivate kids. We also hear his insights on what makes successful children's content, including the importance of varied sentence length, the power of word choice and musicality in language. Doug Fraser - https://www.facebook.com/doug.fraser.733 Doug's podcast - "Cozy Critters" 🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat. 🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses. 🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter. 🔗 Take our advertising survey.  🔗 Get the edited transcript. 🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.  🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.  | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475). | Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network. Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes| Theme music by Catherine Rannus. | Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.

    20 min

  8. JUN 26 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    BONUS: Zen, spunk, and editing: a reading list for writers

    In this bonus episode with Doug Fraser of the Cozy Critters podcast, we get Doug’s essential book recommendations for writers. Doug shares a collection of essays designed to inspire creativity, a guide to developing a bold and contemporary writing style, and one of his go-to resources on effective self-editing. We even get a "wild card" book that reveals the unexpected history of a familiar bird.

    7 min
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Hosts & Guests

4.5
out of 5
2,809 Ratings

About

Five-time winner of Best Education Podcast in the Podcast Awards. Grammar Girl provides short, friendly tips to improve your writing and feed your love of the English language. Whether English is your first language or your second language, these grammar, punctuation, style, and business tips will make you a better and more successful writer. Grammar Girl is a Quick and Dirty Tips podcast.

Information

  • Creator
    QuickAndDirtyTips.com
  • Years Active
    2006 - 2025
  • Episodes
    990
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Mignon Fogarty, Inc.
  • Provider
    Macmillan Publishing

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