Good Morning from way down here in Florida, everyone! Marcia here, and I hope today finds you in good health, happy spirits, and ready to take a look at some words frequently spelled or used incorrectly. Today, I have several easy homophones to share. These words sound exactly alike, but are each spelled differently and have very different meanings.

Most of you will be familiar with all six definitions, but will want to be extra careful with your spellings, lest you confuse the heck outta your readers. 🙂

Let’s start with the easiest pair, though I see these used incorrectly more than you’d expect. There are actually 3 of these homophones, but since I’m pretty sure most if not all of you know how to use “rain” correctly, I’m going straight to the two that are often used erroneously.  Rein and reign.  They do not mean the same thing at…

Avoid stacking the word “little” with another adjective or noun that’s already obvious about size. Examples:

I babysat Nathan when he was a little baby.(Hello! All babies are little.)

The chihuahua wore a little, tiny sweater in the winter. (You only need one adjective. “Little” or “tiny”; not both. “Teeny tiny” or “itty bitty” is fine. Once again, chihuahuas are notorious for being small, so those adjectives are really irrelevant.)

My toddler niece twirls a little, mini baton. (Same thing as above: you only need one adjective. “Mini” or “miniature” doesn’t need help to give you an idea about size.)

I’m fine to drive because I only had a little bit of wine.(This is actually passable. But it’s writing tighter to say “a bit” or “a little wine.”)

I’m pleased to announce the release of my 8th book,Skoll’s Diary.

Africans and African Americans left Earth in…

I promised myself I wouldn’t write any more about the pandemic, figuring many of us are already on overload. And for people who’ve lost loved ones, the topic is particularly painful.

But it seemed the pandemic hadn’t finished with me. For years people have urged me to write my life story. The truth is, I didn’t know where to start. Attending a writers’ conference in Sydney gave me a surprising answer.

Walking around the city led me to the former head office of hardware chain, Nock & Kirby. As a copywriter in the company’s advertising department, this was where my writing life truly began. Instantly I knew the way into my story.

I also decided I would indie-publish the book. This was a far steeper learning curve than expected but also hugely satisfying. I went from manuscript to paperback and ebook in under three months, admittedly…