Editorial Inspirations

A gerund is a word that ends in -ing and is acting as a noun. All gerunds end in -ing, but not all -ing words are gerunds; only the ones that are acting as nouns.

This is important to distinguish because of how gerunds are treated within sentences. Since gerunds are nouns, if pronouns are placed before them, the pronouns must be in the possessive form.

Correct: My going to the mall left Stacie home alone.

Incorrect: Me going to the mall left Stacie home alone.

Try It!

Find the gerunds in the sentences below and make sure the sentences with gerunds have pronouns, not nouns, before the gerunds.

1. My parents are going shopping because them shopping always lowers their stress levels from work.

2. Us going to the party will be a surprise for Chris.

3. I am writing a paper for school because me writing it will get me a better grade.

4. She was surprised at them going to the library.

5. Him falling off the swings led to him getting stiches on his leg.

You’re in a public bathroom when two other people, whom you don’t know, come in. They obviously don’t know you’re there, as they start discussing an elaborate plot to murder a famous musician. Recount the conversation to the police, explaining the plot, the place, and the motive. Oh, and don’t forget to name the musician.

Be sure to share your responses!

Though it was early in the morning, the driver who sat in her car beside me must have already been having a bad day. We sat at a red light of a four-lane highway intersection. Behind me, I noticed a cop car. I’d better pay attention to my speed while he is behind me, I thought.

When the light turned green, I began to accelerate. As the car beside me did so also, her car veered closer to my car. I honked once, but she continued to close in on me. I honked again to no avail. I stopped, afraid of the alternative. This is when we need cops, like the one behind me.

To my surprise, the cop behind me turned on his lights. I pulled to the side, in the midst of the intersection. The cop zoomed past me and pulled my neighboring car over.

Had I chosen to fight for my lane on the highway, I could have lost opportunities at achieving my goals due to money and time spent on repairing my car and anything else that might have been damaged, spending time with my husband, and other potential losses from having an accident in the intersection of a major highway.

Why did this woman have nothing to lose so early in the morning?

James Frey, the author who took down the reputation of the memoir, has a new book out, Bright Shiny Morning. With Frey’s controversial reputation, Harper has had to make some tough decisions on how to market this new book.

In an interview with Vanity Fair’s Evgenia Peretz, Frey said that he “fears and loathes” the press and would not be doing any other interviews. However, Frey did appear on the Today show and also did an interview for USA Today. But that, according to Tina Andreadis at Harper, is all the national media currently lined up for Frey.

When asked about whether Frey is avoiding the press, Andreadis said the author is not afraid of the press. She noted that Frey is prohibited from discussing the details of what happened with Random House and A Million Little Pieces for legal reasons.

In addition to the three interviews, Frey went on a book tour for the latest book. He’ll be stopping all over the country, sometimes with author/friend Josh Kilmer-Purcell, and also doing some local radio. In addition to traditional signings at stores like Book Passage in Corte Madera, Calif., and Book Court in Brooklyn, Frey appeared with some bands at a May 13 at New York’s Blender Theater and May 15 at West Hollywood’s Whisky A Go Go.

Abbreviations seem to be more popular as language progresses and hybrid products are created. They have also have become quite common in our everyday writing and speech, probably due to the fast-paced world we live in. Text messages and email make abbreviations even more prevalent. It sometimes seems that abbreviations have taken over our language!

Abbreviations are used to shorten both phrases and words. There are two types of abbreviations used to shorten phrases: acronyms and initialisms.

Acronyms are abbreviations that are pronounced as words. Some examples are

NATO
AIDS
OPEC
SQL

Initialisms are abbreviations that are pronounced one letter at a time. Some examples are

FBI
HTML
XML
IBM
HP
DVD
VHS

Keep an eye out for redundancy when using abbreviations. Redundant abbreviations are so common that New Scientist coined the term RAS Syndrome, which stands for Redundant Acronym Syndrome Syndrome. Another example of a redundant acronym is PIN number. You wouldn’t say Personal Identification Number number, would you?
 
Some other popular redundant abbreviations are

ATM machine
UPC code
HIV virus
LCD display
ABS system
VIN number

Try It!

1. Make a list of 5 popular acronyms.

2. Make a list of 5 popular initialisms.

3. Make a list of 5 popular redundant abbreviations.