Sorry, everybody, I’ve been silent a little too long these last couple of weeks. It has nothing to with you, I assure you.

I took a short holiday at the beginning of August. I had too many things to do to get ready to leave and then a bunch more to do when I got home again.But now I’m back and I have a couple of great articles that will be ready within the next day or two.

As you may (or may not) be aware, I also write and edit the Web Developer’s Blog, and I have some more articles over there to get posted over the next few days. But my web development work is what will be keeping me busy over the next few days.

I’m reviewing my social media strategy to apply it more consistently and appropriately across multiple networks. I need to keep my personal Facebook updates separate from my professional Facebook updates, but have my professional updates consistent with updates on my professional website (which I ignore all too often). As well, I’d like my regular microblogging to appear on Twitter and my personal Facebook page.

From the research I’ve done into numerous social media feed publishers (e.g., Tweetlater.com, Twitterfeed.com, Ping.fm), I think I’ll end up building my own scripts to post my updates through the mutiple channels. I hope it works out. Any suggestions?

Author: Warren Wong

When speaking or writing English, it is important to make the subjects and the verb agree. Let’s go over some rules using basic sentences. These rules will help you choose the correct verb based on the subject.

Rule #1: Subject usually left of verb

Before you know which verb to use, first you need to know what the subject is! As a general rule, the subject is usually immediately to the left of the verb.

Example: That tree grows fast.

Here, the subject is immediately to the left of the verb. The verb is “grows”, making the subject “tree”.

Example: Sometimes dogs bark for fun.

The verb here is “bark”. As you can see, the subject, “dogs”, is immediately to the left.

There are exceptions to this rule. One big signal of a sentence where the verb comes before the subject is when the sentence starts with “There”.

Example: There are apples everywhere.

“Apples” is the subject. The verb, “are”, comes before the subject.

Rule #2: “Or” use singular, “and” use plural

This is for sentences with two or more subjects. If the subjects are connected with the word “or”, you want to use a singular verb. If they are connected with the word “and”, use a plural verb.

Example: Tom or Sally is picking it up at noon.

Our two subjects, “Tom” and “Sally”, are connected by the word “or”. Because of this, our verb needs to be singular (is)

Example: Tom and Sally are picking it up at noon.

By connecting our two subjects with “and”, we now use a plural verb (are).

In these examples, the subjects were singular. What happens if one of the subjects is plural?

Rule #3: When in doubt, verb agrees with nearest subject

When a singular and a plural noun are connected by the word “or”, the verb should agree with the nearest subject. Remember, “are” is used with plural while “is” is used with singular.

Example: The players or the coach is in the gym.

Example: The coach or the players are in the gym.

Let’s look at two examples that use verbs different than “is” and “are”.

Example: Tom or the cats run for dear life.

Example: The cats or Tom runs for dear life.

Rule #4: Don’t become confused of the subject

This can be a tricky thing to remember. Some sentences have a phrase after the subject but before the verb. These phrases can make identifying the subject an adventure. In the below examples, the subject and the verb are in italics. Notice how the words in between could change the verb usage if they were falsely identified as the subject.

Example: The quarterback, not to mention the rest of his teammates, is worried about tonight’s game.

Example: My neighbor with all the birds is running for Sheriff.

Example: The dogs who watch the cat are getting tired.

Example: That girl who likes the flowers jogs twice per day.

Example: One of the trees is dying.

Rule #5: Everybody is singular

Although they sound plural, subjects such as everybody, anybody, no one, somebody, nobody, each, either, and neither are singular and use singular verbs.

Example: Everybody who came tonight is to be commended.

Example: Anybody is welcome to attend.

Example: Nobody I love came to my party.

Example: Either will do.

Example: Each of these cars is a fine choice.

As you work towards mastering English, there will be times of frustration. But don’t give up! Just remember, practice makes perfect.

About the Author

Warren Wong writes for 1-language.com, a website dedicated to helping people Learn English.

Article Source: Articles Engine

The field of content writing serves as a very important feature in a website. The main reason people visit the site is to search for information on different goods and services. Audiences will be satisfied if they get informative and satisfactory content on one’s site. Besides this, a site needs to be well designed as well with information-rich content in order to drive more traffic.

Easy and simple language is the prerequisite of any content. There are a few pointers that need to be reminded at all costs in order to excel in the field of content writing. The first and foremost point is to ensure that the language of the content is in accordance with audiences for whom the articles, reviews or blogs are meant.

For example, if a content writer intends to write a promotional article, then he needs to know the nature and services offered by that particular business and its technical terms in order to make the best promotional style content. Also, a very simple and easy to understand language needs to be used in writing content for the sites so that even the lay man can easily get to know what the content is all about. The writer needs to think from the place of the reader and offer complete information.

Essentials of content writing – authenticity, organization and numbering.

Organization of content is also very crucial and includes proper designing and formatting of the information gathered from various sources. The writer can write an entire article in a single paragraph or can even make the content easy to read by arranging the headings. The relevancy of pointers needs to be properly handled so that the audiences can analyze distinction of paragraphs.

Numbering and bulleting needs to be used in the content to highlight the most important points. This will automatically make the article effective along with breaking the visual monotony.

It is wise to use the conversational language as it helps the readers to feel more involved in content thereby motivating them to continue reading the article.

In addition, the authenticity and originality of the content needs to be considered wisely because offering wrong or prejudiced information to readers can in turn provide negative or incomplete impact.

Needless to say, to be a successful and popular content writer, it is very imperative to have that passion and flair to write. Until the writer is extremely passionate about his or her job, they can produce only mundane and dull content. so, follow these simple and beneficial tips in order to write exceptional content for the targeted audiences.

About the Author

Visit sem-infotech.com for content writing services, ppc management and professional seo services.

Article source: http://www.articler.com/

Author: William Meikle

A lot of beginners go off the rails when they’ve got a nice clean sheet of paper or a blank screen in front of them and they’ve got to fill it with words – meaningful words.

The way to avoid the cold feeling of panic is to have a plan of action. The type of plan that works best for you depends on your personality. Some of you will make structured lists, with every small detail itemized and all T’s crossed. Or you may have a vague set of instructions, sometimes little more than remembering to have a beginning, middle and end. Others of you will find that the best way to work is just to start writing and see where it takes you.

The way to find what will work for you is to plan out some example pieces of work. You might never write them, but the practice will benefit you. For example, how would you go about writing an episode of your favourite TV show, or an article on a local photography exhibition, or a review of a best-seller? By writing a plan of approach, you’ll give yourself an idea of what the final piece of work would require. When I started writing short stories I used to deconstruct famous stories and plan how I’d re-write them.

The planning step also gives you a check as to whether or not you actually want to write the piece. And remember, if you plan not to have a plan, you’ve still decided on a plan. And don’t stop here.

It’s now time to plan your opening sentence. To get readers to keep reading you need a hook, something that will lead them in and keep them there until you’ve told them what they didn’t know they needed to know. Crime writers kill people, romance novelists have people get divorced, good writers hint at a conflict to come but hide it in the middle of something else. Journalists scream at you in huge type and article writers ask you rhetorical questions, all in the first five seconds of reading.

Go away and study the structure of some writing. Look at how writers grab you and reel you in like an expert fisherman.

And ask yourself, “How would I do that?”

Source: http://www.articlecircle.com/ – Free Articles Directory

About the Author:

William Meikle is currently planning his ninth novel. Read more articles at his website at http://www.williammeikle.com