Lynn Gaertner-Johnston, Author at BusinessWritingBlog

Featured image for "Enclosed Please Find" Means You Lost It.

Etiquette

Should You Use “Enclosed, Please Find”?

Have you ever received an email that stated “enclosed, please find,” and found this to be confusing? Technically, saying something is enclosed and telling someone to find it seems rather redundant. Most people agree with this sentiment, however, “enclosed, please find” is still commonly used… continue reading

Grammar and Usage

Test Yourself: Subject-Verb Agreement

Subject-verb disagreement is one of the commonest errors I see these days in business writing. People who have mastered punctuation, pronouns, and challenging word pairs still miss the occasional agreement problem. Sometimes a plural verb is incorrectly paired with a singular subject, for example: Each… continue reading

Etiquette

Avoiding Gender-Based Language Traps

A few highlights from a recent newsletter regarding avoiding gender-based language traps: 1. Avoid “man” words unless you are specifically referring to an adult male. Avoid expressions such as manpower, man hours, and chairman. 2. Avoid words that communicate a “women-only” category. Use housekeeper rather than chambermaid, ballet dancer rather than ballerina. 3. Avoid “Dear… continue reading

Punctuation

How to Render Long Quotations

If you have ever wondered how to set off a long quotation in a blog post, a report, an email, or another document, this blog post is for you and Laura. Laura, who manages her company’s intranet, emailed me to ask how to render long… continue reading

Punctuation

What a Difference a Hyphen Makes!

Before I arrived at Pasco Airport, I receive an email from National Car Rental, the company I always use for my car rentals. The message said, “No counter bypass: Proceed to the rental counter to pick up your vehicle keys.” Because I so often read… continue reading

Punctuation

Rules for Single Quotation Marks

In a recent business writing course, a participant insisted that single quotation marks be used around quoted content and titles of works. He was certain that I was wrong when I told him that double quotation marks are the standard. Was I wrong? It depends where… continue reading

Which It’s Is Correct?

I was looking for a bottle of red wine at my favorite supermarket when I saw the sign below. Which “it’s” is correct? The one in the first line, the third line, both, or neither? If you are not sure which pronoun is correct, read… continue reading

Etiquette

Remember to Say “Thank You”

Happy holidays! I hope this season of peace is bringing you joy and contentment. If you have received gifts for Chanukah, Christmas, or another celebration, remember to express your appreciation. Even if the giver is someone who is trying to win your business, a gift… continue reading

Grammar and Usage

A Lesson on “Fewer” and “Less”

This past week, when I led the online class Business Writing Tune-Up, I was surprised at the number of people who used the word less where they should have used fewer. Test yourself on the items below to find out how much you know before… continue reading

Grammar and Usage

Tricky Pronouns: Whoever and Whomever

In a comment on last week's pronoun tips and test, a reader named Jasmine asked for more examples of whomever. Whoever and whomever can be very tricky because they do not always play the role they seem to be playing in a sentence. Here are more examples of… continue reading

Author Archives: Lynn Gaertner-Johnston