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Merrill Perlman

Merrill Perlman is adjunct assistant professor at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and president of Merrill Perlman Consulting, offering consulting and freelance editing services and training in journalism, grammar and usage. Among her clients are The New York Times, ProPublica and the Poynter Institute. She writes the "Language Corner" column and blog for Columbia Journalism Review. Merrill retired in June 2008 after 25 years at The New York Times, most recently as director of copy desks with responsibility for managing 150 copy editors.
4 5 6 7 8 Displaying 36-42 of 62 Articles

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Writers Talk About Writing

Pluralistic: Those Pesky Possessives
Thu Oct 18 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

Two of the longest sections in most grammar and style guides concern how to form plurals and how to form possessives. Some guidelines are identical—almost no plurals are formed with apostrophes, no matter how many "All Drink's Half Price" signs you see—and some disagree: Is the possessive form of "Texas" rendered as "Texas'" or "Texas's"?  Continue reading...
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Writers Talk About Writing

Ringing the Changes on "Ring" Words
Wed Sep 26 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

"You must be a ringer," the journalism instructor told the student, who insisted that, though he had many years of experience in other jobs, he had never been a journalist. "I admit I had to look that term up," the student said later." I wasn't sure if it calling me a ringer was a compliment or an insult."  Continue reading...
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Writers Talk About Writing

Author! Author!
Thu Sep 20 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

People who write are "writers," though many call themselves "authors," especially if their products are books, or legislation. More and more, they say that they "authored" what they wrote.  Continue reading...
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Writers Talk About Writing

Sentimental Journey: Evaluating a "Journeyman"
Mon Sep 10 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

Journalists writing about performers and athletes often use the word "journeyman." But Merrill Perlman, who writes the "Language Corner" column for Columbia Journalism Review, has a word of warning: "While it's OK to call an experienced person a 'journeyman,' beware: The word can imply 'undistinguished,' or worse."  Continue reading...
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Your Choice: Alternating Between Alternatives
Tue Aug 28 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

Cities that have hard winters have no "alternative" and must repair roads in the summer. And when they do, they need to provide motorists with "alternate" routes.

That sentence illustrates the difference between "alternative" and "alternate."  Continue reading...
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Writers Talk About Writing

Par for the Course: Slicing Through the Golf Lexicon
Fri Aug 17 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

Let's say you've just arrived from another planet, with a mastery of English, but little exposure to the popular sport known as golf. So you don't understand why one golfer would hit a "banana ball" and end up with a "bogey," while another used a "chicken stick" and ended up with an "eagle."  Continue reading...
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Out of Range: Everything from 1 to Z
Tue Jul 31 00:00:00 EDT 2012
By Merrill Perlman

We love to "range." When describing a new shopping mall, for example, an article might say: "It has everything from a roller coaster for the kiddies to high-end boutiques for fashionistas." The "from" and "to" implies a "range," and a range implies that "everything" will be along that line. But the only thing the roller coaster and boutique have in common is that they are inside this new mall. It’s a "false range."  Continue reading...
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