The Savvy Red Pen

12/01/2025

Check this out. The Oxford Dictionary’s word for the year …

No surprise:(. Here the link to the article. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/arts/oxford-word-of-the-year-rage-bait.html

What do you think?

And if you’re angry about it, that just proves the point.

12/01/2025

Today we honor civil rights activist Rosa Parks, who in 1955 refused to give up her seat in the “colored” section of an Alabama bus to a white man.

Her words resound today:
“You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it is right.”

She stood up for rights by sitting down.

11/28/2025

That’s a pretty tall lake!

How about this instead:
🖋️ "Lake Compounce boasts the tallest Christmas tree in Connecticut at 100 feet tall."

11/27/2025

Counting my blessings today and wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving surrounded by the people you love, whether they’re sitting next to you, across the miles, or in spirit.

11/25/2025

Liesel took the 5-Day Writing Challenge and kickstarted the book in her head onto paper with concepts and ideas taught in the challenge. She's well on her journey to becoming an author!

✍️ Join me for the next FREE 5-Day Nonfiction Writing Challenge!
🗓️ January 12 - 16, 2026
🕛 Noon to 1:15 PM EST
💻 Daily Zoom Meetings

🎁 Plus, get $50 OFF for the 45-Day Nonfiction Writing Program beginning January 21, 2026!

🔗 For more info & to register, visit: https://bit.ly/3HGDtmt

11/24/2025

Feeling grateful for all the incredible authors I’ve worked with this year. Your words make the world brighter.

❤️ I see you, I hear you, I love you. I respect you for your bravery, talent, devotion, discipline, and resilience. And I'm humbled that you trusted me with your story.

Thanks for working with me, whether you participated in the 5-day and 45-day programs, 1-and-1 coaching, or the Word Warriors writing group. Special thanks to authors who gifted me the opportunity to edit and proofread your manuscripts so I could help you create a book you could hold in your hands and be proud of.

11/21/2025

Thousands of parishioners suddenly became vegetarians...

11/20/2025

Diane learned the skills in the challenge to get closer to fulfilling her dream of becoming an author!

Accept the challenge and take your words from head to paper to gain motivation, focus, and confidence to push your book forward.
Space is limited to 8 writers!

✍️ Join me for the next FREE 5-Day Nonfiction Writing Challenge!
🗓️ January 12 - 16, 2026
🕛 Noon to 1:15 PM EST
💻 Daily Zoom Meetings

🎁 Plus, get $50 OFF for the 45-Day Nonfiction Writing Program beginning January 21, 2026!

🔗 For more info & to register, visit: https://bit.ly/3HGDtmt

11/19/2025

Midweek Motivation

You don’t have to write the right words. You just have to write the words.

So many writers get stuck waiting for the “perfect sentence” or the “right way” to say something. But here’s the truth: perfection is built through progress, not hesitation.

Every messy draft, every awkward paragraph, every “I’m not sure this makes sense” line is a step closer to clarity.

So keep going. Get the words out. The right ones will reveal themselves later.

And guess what, you'll move forward when the time is right to work with your writing coach and editor.

11/18/2025

Spring blooms, summer glows, fall whispers, winter knows.
Each season has its charm—but not its capital letter.

Grammar Tip: Don’t Let the Seasons Trip You Up
Seasons—spring, summer, fall, winter—are not capitalized because they’re common nouns, not proper ones.
✅ Correct: I love summer evenings.
❌ Incorrect: I love Summer evenings.

Exceptions:
✅ At the start of a sentence
✅ In a title or proper noun (e.g., 2025 Fall Festival)
✅ When personified (Winter wrapped the town in her quiet embrace.)

⭐️ Why the confusion?
Because months and days are capitalized, and we see seasons wrongly capitalized so often that it starts to look right.
So, unless it’s part of a name or a poetic choice, keep your seasons lowercase.

11/17/2025

I’m so grateful to work with such talented writers like Lisa. Sharing her writing journey was pure delight.

Her kind words mean so much.

Here’s an excerpt from Lisa's Acknowledgments that was particularly moving to me:

"To my writing coach and editor, Gail Kerzner, The Savvy Red Pen, who cheered me on and reminded me to keep going when I got frustrated or frozen.

Thank you for holding space for me creatively and personally. You not only helped me write a book I love but also helped me grow as an individual through my writing."

11/14/2025

Some felonies going down at Math Lab...
The moral here is: Don't do M**h and make TV graphics. You'll be left counting the errors.