Friday, July 6, 2018

Got Style? Get Dreyer's English.

Did you know that William Strunk Jr. wrote the original version of The Elements of Style in 1918? And not one single person went online and preordered. Oy. 

Fortunately, a century later, we're better prepared to embrace the next style classic: Dreyer's English, by Benjamin Dreyer, copy chief of Random House and continual proof that social media does have redeeming value. 
According to the good folk at Penguin Random House, the book -- available for preorders now -- is witty, informative and chockful of good advice that can help us all write better. And we all write. (Yes, yes. I write for a living. But you, dear heart, write emails and reports and Tweets and love letters. If you're not writing love letters, shape up.) 

More good news! You don't need to wait until the book publishes in January to enjoy Dreyer's clarity and style. Follow him on Twitter. Then, check out his grammatical bon mots at #CopyeditingProTip, such as: 

Wondering if I was compensated for this post? I do love a cynic. Thank you for asking, and the answer is no. I preordered a book, and look forward to receiving this century's style guide!
New style guide? Absolutely welcome.
But old typewriters cannot be replaced.