By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Although I live in a rural area, my immediate surroundings are not; my house is in a subdivision. Even so, wildlife abounds. During the non-snowy months, at any given time I can, look out my office window and see at least one animal and usually more. I’ve spent the last […]
A couple of years ago I went on a 24-hour prayer retreat. This was a time of relative silence, with no Internet, no computer, no cell phone, and no television; there would be no technology to distract me. I did take a couple of books to read, my Bible, my journal, and the expectation it […]
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Let’s Play
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD I was quite skeptical about “gamification,” the use of gaming concepts to motivate desirable behavior among employees or customers. Playing “games” at work, I reasoned, would lower productivity and decrease profitability. And although applying gamification to customers might result in a short-term increase in brand involvement or purchases, I doubted […]
In past posts, we talked about the importance of watching out for words that can mean opposite things, words with confusing meanings, and slang. Another consideration is clichés. A cliché is an overused phrase or idea. Initially, it may have been a colorful word combination, but with excessive use and abuse, it has become trite. […]
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Peter DeHaan to Speak at Breathe Conference
Workshop Offered for New Writers, Those Considering a Writing Career, and Writers Who Want to Breathe New Life into Their Work Mattawan, Michigan, Aug 21, 2011—Author Peter DeHaan will be speaking at the upcoming Breathe Christian Writers Conference taking place on October 12 and 13 in Dutton Michigan, just a couple miles from the Grand […]
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Be Careful With Slang
I’ve had several posts about word choices: Commonly Confused Words, Same Word – Opposite Meaning, and Confusing Words. Next up is slang. We need to use caution when interjecting slang in our writing. Slang can date our work: If our story is set in the sixties, a character might say “groovy.” However, anyone who wrote “groovy” in the sixties […]
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Three Reactions to Economic Conditions
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD As businesses ponder future economic conditions and how it will affect sales and their bottom line, there are three ways to respond: The first response is a quick path to disaster. The second option, while a viable consideration, may not be the best one. It’s the third possibility, however, that holds […]
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Confusing Words
Last week we talked about words that are confusing because they have opposite definitions. Today we will cover some words with often-misunderstood definitions. Consider: Penultimate does not mean more than ultimate but means second to last.Confusing usage: “It is the penultimate lap of the race.”Is it the most exciting lap or simply the lap before the final […]
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A Little Help From My Friends
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD “You need a hobby,” my wife once exclaimed in exasperation. I don’t recall the circumstances, but it is safe to assume that I was doing something she deemed a nuisance. Regardless of the cause of her frustration, her impromptu advice gave me pause. Yes, a pastime, a relaxing diversion, would […]
Peter DeHaan and Jerry Barrett have started a writers critique group, Kalamazoo Christian Writers (KCW), based in Kalamazoo Michigan. The first meeting was held on July 11 at The Point, a non-profit community center located on the west side of Kalamazoo. KCW materials passed out at the inaugural meeting state, “Though this is a Christian […]