I sometimes (often?) have arguments with the ghost of my husband. Perhaps argument is too strong a word, and quite likely it isn’t really him or his ghost, but simply my own delusional mind still trying to make sense of everything.

These disagreements are rarely about anything important, but isn’t that the way most marriages go? You gripe about the clothes that didn’t quite make the hamper. You bicker about who left the front door unlocked. You “discuss” the fact that the gas tank of the car is nearly empty. Or maybe it’s your wallet that’s empty. Yeah, that happens more than the gas tank…

I can almost hear him complaining about the shows I choose to watch on Netflix. Or reprimanding me for leaving my not-quite-empty coffee cup on the counter instead of rinsing it and putting it in the dishwasher, or gently disapproving of the bowl of ice…

I want to share a contest that I recently stumbled across. Brightly, a division of Penguin Random House that focuses on books for kids and young adults, is giving away a collection of 50 books. The sweepstakes is open to parents, librarians, and teachers who live in the United States and runs from now until March 25, 2017.

This is a great opportunity to spread some bookish love, so if you or someone you know would benefit from the books, head over to fill out the entry form at www.readbrightly.com.

Best of luck to anyone who enters! I’m sure some kids will enjoy the grand prize.

by Phoebe Quinn

7 rookie writing mistakes:

Originally posted as the Dun Writin’—Now Whut? series on this blog, EDITING 101 is a weekly refresher series for some of you and brand new for others.

Courtesy of Adirondack Editing

Using Registered Trademarks and Brand Names

When you’re writing and your character uses a Kleenex, you’ve just used a registered trademark. Normally in non-fiction or business writing, you’d see it this way: Kleenex® or Kleenex™. To avoid using a brand name, you could say your character used a “tissue.”

You do not have to use ® or ™ in fiction writing.

The words aspirin, escalator, phillips-head screw, zipper, yo-yo, and vaseline were once trademarked but have lost that protection. They acquired such market dominance that the brand names became genericized. Companies want their products to become popular—but not too popular!—since there’s a price to pay for that popularity.

Kleenex®, Xerox®, Band-Aid®, and Plexiglas® were once in danger of losing their trademark…

Two days ago I wrote a blog post that proved to be the most popular, in terms of reach and reaction, of any I’ve ever written! Thanks to everyone who read, liked, shared, reblogged, followed my blog, and commented on it. I guess I hit a nerve with the topic of authors behaving badly and how to avoid becoming one. It seems this kind of behaviour is definitely prevalent and a problem on social media, because so many of you agreed with me and my guests who also offered quotes on experiences they’d had dealing with these self-centred authors.

I took a negative tack on that last post, because it’s a fun angle to come from with this kind of list, and I’ve had success with that approach in the past. It also allows me to write in a humorous and sarcastic voice – which I hope was the voice…