Insights archive
Red Pony is a team of writers, editors, Microsoft Office template developers and communications trainers. We have been writing about our areas of expertise for over a decade in our Red Pony Express newsletter.
This collection features the best articles from the last 10 years.
PerfectIt! editing software
PerfectIt! from Intelligent Editing claims to locate typos and grammatical errors in Microsoft Word documents – which is what the spell checker does already, I hear you say. Yes, this is true, but it also claims to detect other errors that ‘no spelling or grammar check will discover’. What they are talking about is consistency, which can be one of the biggest headache-sources for editors.
Fix your grammar and improve your business
Sometimes at Red Pony we find ourselves trying to explain to a reluctant client just where the value lies in getting their business writing edited. ‘Perfect grammar ain’t gonna help me sell more widgets!’ I hear them cry.
Using the spell-checker
How often has the spell-checker saved you from a blunder, typo or solecism? How often has it caused one?
The importance of version control
The release of a new novel by acclaimed US author Jonathan Franzen has served to highlight the importance of version control. Apparently the version of his new novel Freedom launched in the UK earlier this month was printed using the wrong file.
Large document, looming deadline: a 4-step survival guide
When faced with a daunting task such as this, it can be tempting to run for the hills, or at least bring forward your annual leave. Here’s a few survival tips to help you deliver.
Bulleted lists
A bulleted list is an asset when you are supporting your argument. It’s a liability when your discussion is so underdeveloped that you rely on dot points to make your case for you. Only use them once you have already made your central point in the text and simply wish to provide some supporting evidence, examples or instructions.
Capital letters
Determining when to use a capital letter would seem to be one of the more straightforward grammatical choices. And so it is when you are dealing with proper names or words at the beginning of sentences. It’s pretty obvious to most of us that names of countries, cities, days of the week and specific individuals take a capital letter. But did you know that a reference to the current Australian prime minister should be capitalised, but that references to previous incumbents should not?
Why you need a style guide
A style guide is a useful tool (and, for a professional organisation, an indispensable one) for establishing the acceptable writing style or tone of documents as well as their physical appearance.
Ending a sentence on a preposition
It's called a PREposition after all. And if it's 'pre' (or 'before') then it should have something after it, shouldn't it? Well, shouldn't it?