It’s my Internet Crush! On my blog! As a “co-blogger”! (I really like the sound of that…like coauthor, collaborator, cohabitation…) And he’s the bad boy of Buy Me A Beer fame. I hope you enjoy Ankesh Kothari being here as much as I do. 
I�m not making it up. These are actual newspaper classified ad excerpts:
- Illiterate? Write today for free help.
- Used Cars: Why go elsewhere to be cheated? Come here first.
- Dog for sale: Eats anything and is fond of children.
- Wanted. Man to take care of cow that does not smoke or drink.
- Auto Repair Service. Free pick-up and delivery. Try us once; you’ll never go anywhere again.
- We do not tear your clothing with machinery. We do it carefully by hand.
:D:D
Spell checks are just not enough to prevent making writing mistakes. How can you prevent such snafus from happening? Here are two tactics you can use:
1. Read Out Loud
Reading your writing out loud makes sure that you pick up on poor juxtaposition of words. It makes sure that people can read your blog posts smoothly. And it also helps you break those insanely long sentences into shorter ones.
By reading your text out loud, you�ll stumble over awkward phrases and ridiculous words. Where you stumble, so will your readers. So it�s a good idea to go back and rewrite the phrases over which you stumbled.
2. Ask 2-3 People to Review What You Write
I always ask some one else to read through my pillar blog posts and special reports before they are published. Because others read with fresh eyes, they can tell you if your writing makes sense and if it flows smoothly. They can pick up blatantly stupid sentences that you may have missed.
One trick I learned over the years is: Don�t just ask, �Let me know if you like this�. Instead, ask, �Let me know how to improve this.� This way, people won�t shy away from telling you what they didn�t like – just so they wouldn�t hurt your feelings.
Action Summary:
- Read everything you write out loud
- Ask one or two of your friends to read through your important work before you publish it
This post is guest written by Ankesh Kothari of How To Grow Your Blog Traffic. Go visit his blog and comment on one of his posts, letting him know that you are coming via BlogGrrl.com, and he’ll send a secret goodie to you.
Haha, this sure reminds me of the weekly segment “Headlines” on Jay Leno where they just show a bunch of headlines and ads from actual (often local) papers. =)
Wow! A laundry service that will tear my clothes by hand! I’d like to see them tear denim or other thick materials
ehh…. I like writing the stuppid… it makes me so hippy
I try to get The Cat to read everything before I post, for this very reason. O Great One, please enlighten this lowly human slave how best to improve the communication set before thy furry feet. Amen.
This works best when accompanied by great quantities of sacrificial tuna and a squeaky bear toy.
Oh my god, my cat proof reads my post too! LOL! That cracks me up!
And also remember to read your post backwards, it seriously will help you catch any typos.
This has to be one of the coolest contests I’ve come across on a blog great idea. Of course I had to blog about it, I could use some pretty panties.