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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Grammar

Grammar

Proof That English Is an Amazing Language

By Steve Laubeon June 9, 2025
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For some wild reason, this sentence makes perfect sense.

“All the faith he had had had had no effect on the outcome of his life.”

and

“It is true for all that that that that that that that refers to is not the same that that that that refers to.”
(“That” one is from The English Club.)

and

“No word begins with because, because, because is a conjunction.”

and

“If you were to second-guess your decision to book time to visit a Native American community, that would be a reservation reservation reservation.”
(from comedian Brian Regan)

 

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Category: Grammar, Humor

I Like Quotation Marks

By Bob Hostetleron July 18, 2024
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I recently read a book. Don’t look so surprised. In my annual reading plan (which I discussed here), I try to discover a few new authors every year. One of this year’s authors is the late Brian Doyle, essayist and novelist. His book has been a joy. However, he, like an increasing number of novelists (seemingly), eschews quotation marks in his fictional dialogue. Like this: What does it feel like? …

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Category: Grammar

The Goofy English Language

By Steve Laubeon April 29, 2024
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I stumbled over this poem about odd plurals in the English language. There was no attribution. If you know who wrote it, please let me know so I can give proper credit. Very clever! We’ll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes, But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes. One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese, Yet the plural of moose should never be meese. You may find a lone mouse or a …

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Category: Grammar, Humor

One Agent’s Loves and Hates

By Bob Hostetleron June 29, 2023
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I recently posted on social media about my (possibly unhealthy) love for em dashes—that is, the dashes that are the width of the letter m, often used to set off examples, explanations, or descriptions, as I did in this sentence. (See how beautiful it is?) An editor friend named Linda commented, “This is so me. I love the em-dash. Nothing aggravates me more when editing than when a writer …

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Category: Craft, Grammar, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

A Few Edited Words

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 12, 2022
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Sometimes writers will ask me if, as a literary agent, I edit manuscripts before submitting them to publishers. I choose not to touch a manuscript for several reasons: (1) I love your writing, so I don’t think you need my edits. (2)  I worked for many years as a professional writer but not as a professional editor. (3)  Since I have worked as a professional writer, I understand the emotions behind …

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Category: Agents, Editing, Grammar, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Grammar Refresh

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon August 31, 2022
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By popular demand, here is another grammar refresh. Lie/Lay “Lay” means to place something, whereas “lie” means that the object of the sentence can lie on its own. I will lay my blanket on the bed before I lie down. A trick I use to distinguish between these quickly is to use the word “place” as a substitute. If you can say “place” then you can say lay. If not, then it’s lie. I will place my …

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Category: Grammar, Writing Craft

The Most Common Grammar Errors I See

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon July 20, 2022
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Dear Tamela: Thank you for sending this brilliant, life-changing manuscript! I laughed. I cried. I sent a copy to my mother.  But alas, on page 214, we found one misuse of plural possessive. Instead of parents’, the author wrote parent’s. So we decline to publish this novel. Sincerely, Laughing and Crying Editor Wrote No One Ever! I open with this fictitious letter to emphasize that minor errors …

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Category: Grammar

An Agent’s Curmudgeonly Rant

By Bob Hostetleron March 9, 2022
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Sometimes I just have to rant. You understand, don’t you? Maybe it comes with age, and you’re not yet old enough to understand. Or grumpy enough. Or OCD enough. Nevertheless, I hope you’ll allow me to vent for today’s post. And I should say that I’m not asking you to agree with me, though my regard will certainly increase if you do. It’s just that there are some things that get on my nerves as I …

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Category: Career, Get Published, Grammar

21st-Century Writing

By Bob Hostetleron October 13, 2021
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I’ve been writing and publishing for a long time. Just look at me: a lonnnnng time. During those many years of experience, I’ve learned a thing or two. Maybe three. And among the things I’ve learned about writing for publication is that writers in the twenty-first century must do things differently than writers in previous centuries. Sure, generally speaking, the rules of fiction and nonfiction …

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Category: Grammar, Language, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life, Trends, Writing Craft

A Literary Agent’s Wish List

By Bob Hostetleron May 27, 2021
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People often ask me, “What are you looking for?” It’s a natural question to ask a literary agent, even when the questioner knows that the agent has offered a detailed answer on the agency website (here, for example). After all, something could’ve changed. I may, since updating my interests, have suddenly decided to get bold, branch out, and try to sell a systematic theology in iambic pentameter. …

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Category: Agents, Book Proposals, Craft, Grammar, Pitching, Platform, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life
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