Grammar For Grownups: A Guide to Grammar and Usage for Everyone Who Has to Put Words on Paper Effectively (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780979746673)

Val Dumond is a life-long language buff and author of books about grammar and inclusive language. Grammar For Grownups was her response to a HarperCollins editor asking for a grammar book anyone could understand. The book was a best seller for more than a decade when rights were returned to the author. This new version is a re-issue of the original book, still easily understood -- and used by people who write as part of their work and people who write because it's fun. Now, after editing more than 60 books, and fed up with language confusion, she offers her feisty views on the state of language today. She still considers grammar "too much fun to be taught to children; you have to be a grownup to appreciate it." Val has grown with the book industry, editing more than 60 books, publishing both with mainstream and independents, and using the Internet (Facebook, her website, blogs, LinkedIn, Twitter, Amazon, and Kindle) to market her books. She says, "I love the feel of a book in my hands, but I'm recognizing the trend towards communicating stories electronically... a fascinating concept." All of her books are available on Kindle. Val encourages writers to polish their manuscripts and research publishing opportunities. As leader of a writing group, she developed Muddy Puddle Press as an exercise to teach writers how to publish independently. Many of her students have since published their own books. Val has turned to writing novels, completing a few that have languished in her computer files, and fashioning new ones - mostly published as eBooks. Published by Muddy Puddle Press, her novels to date include: Ahlam's Stories, How We Fought World War II at William T. Sherman Elementary School, and her latest, Sugar, Spice, and Stone (about Klondike Kate). Other new publications include The Anarchist's Guide to Grammar, an in-your-face approach to grammar, and Are You Singing Your Song? -- a compilation of words from folks who are living life their way. A member of EuraLex, Modern Language Association, the North American Dictionary Society, and the Pacific Northwest Writers Association, Val participates in as many U.S. and international conferences as possible. This author lives in the Pacific Northwest where she volunteers with her favorite nonprofits, raises herbs and raspberries, watches her yard critters, and plans her next travels.