When I started out as a writing tutor six years ago, I had a master’s degree in writing, a love of language and an enthusiastic, almost evangelical, energy about the subject. Instinctively, I knew how important writing is to a child’s future. After all, even the most brilliant scientist needs to be able to communicate his/her ideas. In addition, … Read More
Cal State Northridge Writing Project
When I started out as a writing tutor six years ago, I had a master’s degree in writing, a love of language and an enthusiastic, almost evangelical, energy about the subject. Instinctively, I knew how important writing is to a child’s future. After all, even the most brilliant scientist needs to be able to communicate his/her ideas. In … Read More
Have Some Sense
It’s pretty hard to write a decent description without using your senses. Sometimes the right smell will jolt you back in time. The other day, I was walking along the coast in La Jolla, CA (I know, rough life!) when I was hit with a scent that rocketed me right back to childhood. The area was beautiful, but it … Read More
On today’s Instagram, I posted a writing prompt to write a sentence that contained a simile for one single rose. Then, I remembered the Dorothy Parker poem, “One Perfect Rose.” It’s full of poetic imagery, metaphor, personification and that famous Dorothy Parker snark. By the end, it’s clear that she is less than thrilled with her one perfect rose. After … Read More
BREAK A LEG
It’s a theatrical superstition that wishing someone good luck is actually bad luck. Following that logic, the polite thing to say is, “Break a leg!” There are all sorts of bad things that can happen to an actor on stage, so I’m not sure why we settled on breaking a leg. Imagine if we said, “Forget your lines!” or “Get … Read More
ARE YOU THE BIG CHEESE
Are you the big cheese? “Big Cheese” is an idiom that means a very important person, usually the boss. For some reason, cheese is very popular when it comes to idioms and jokes. In addition to the “big cheese,” there’s “cheesy” and “cut the cheese.” We’ll save those for future Idioms of the Week, or maybe not. 1: What kind … Read More
I’M GOING WITH MY GUT
YOUR SECOND BRAIN I’m going to go with my gut for this week’s Idiom of the Week. Does that mean: A: I’m going to take my belly to the movies. B: I’m going to do a lot of sit ups. C: I’m going to trust that feeling I have in the pit of my stomach. D: I’m going to string … Read More
Heart of Gold
Hearts are very popular for idioms. There’s “heart to heart,” “wearing your heart on your sleeve,” “broken heart,” “bleeding heart,” and this week’s winner, “heart of gold.” To have a heart of gold means to be a kind, caring and giving person. While English is a living, breathing language and new idioms are constantly popping up, this one has … Read More
Piece of Cake
And the award for best idiom in a motion picture goes to……PIECE OF CAKE. Here in Los Angeles, traffic alerts are already being issued and roads are starting to close in preparation for Sunday’s Academy Awards show. It started me thinking that there should be an award for best use of idiom in a motion picture, or maybe, best use … Read More
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