Words of Wisdom from Great Women Writers

In honor of International Women’s Day, we rounded up nine of our favorite quotes from women writers about reading. Share your favorite quotes about reading and writing in the comments section!

5 Best Writers’ Retreats of All Time

Some like it hot. Others like it cold, or cluttered, or colorful. As you can imagine, authors, poets, and playwrights find inspiration in a variety of writing environments. With Log Cabin Day coming up on June 28, the Grammarly team began thinking about the best — and most interesting — places to write.

Are you curious about where your favorite author penned his or her bestseller?

Henry David Thoreau: Walden Pond

Seeking an escape from modern life, Henry David Thoreau found the perfect spot adjacent to picturesque Walden Pond. There, he built a minimal shack for under $30 and kept it simple with just chairs, a desk, a bed, and a table. Happily, this shack served as more than a refuge — it became an inspiration to Thoreau. He lived here for two years while he pondered and wrote his best-known book, Walden. An experiment in self-sufficiency, simple living, and independence, Thoreau’s Walden continues to inspire readers today.

George Bernard Shaw: “London”

George Bernard Shaw built a unique writing structure on his own property, hidden in the garden. He gave it the code name “London” so that when callers inquired after his whereabouts they could be honestly informed that the playwright had gone to London. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the hut is its ability to rotate to catch the best possible sunlight. Since Shaw preferred to write under constant sunlight, London was the ideal location.

Virginia Woolf: Garden Shed

Anyone who has read Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own knows exactly how the author felt about having a private retreat to put her words to paper. In the garden of the house she shared with her husband, Woolf had a small shed of her own where she wrote some of her best-known novels. While she didn’t pen A Room of One’s Own here, it is where she wrote Mrs. Dalloway and The Waves, among others. Even better, her home was a magnet for other writers in the Bloomsbury Group, including T.S. Eliot and E.M. Forster.

Roald Dahl: Gypsy Hut

Like Woolf, Roald Dahl also worked from a garden shed to write some of his best novels. His was custom built and known as the “gypsy hut.” He worked hard to keep the space to himself, going so far as to ban his own children from entering. Those who caught a peek inside reported that the hut looked more like a laboratory than a library, which is perhaps fitting for such an inventive writer. Dahl worked religiously in the hut, penning much-loved novels like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, and James and the Giant Peach.

Dylan Thomas: Boathouse

While some writers keep their spaces impeccably tidy, Dylan Thomas plastered his writing area with words, lists, rhymes, and pieces by fellow writers like Walt Whitman and W.H. Auden. Before Thomas used this area as a writing space, it had spent a previous life as a cliffside boathouse. Thomas saw this space as his workshop and treated it as such, pinning inspiration, photographs, and works in progress to the walls. Today, there’s no doubt this was an inspiring space — the writer penned his famous Under Milk Wood here before departing Wales for New York, never to return.

In lieu of a private office or library, the writers above decided to try something different to help inspire their work. From custom-built huts to garden shacks to repurposed boathouses, each author took the initiative to create a unique space meant to stop writer’s block in its tracks. As a result, these writer’s retreats inspired some of the most-loved works of literature.

Where (or what) is your ideal writer’s retreat?

This Is How to Effectively Plan for Second Interview Questions

You’ve been invited to a second interview—well done! But don’t get too comfortable just yet. If you’ve been asked to interview a second time, you’re likely up against the company’s top few candidates. That means the stakes are higher than ever, and you need to prepare to give the interview all you’ve got.

Why Second Interviews Are So Important

Think of the first interview as the getting-to-know-you phase. The interviewer assessed whether your skillset checked off all the right boxes and you seemed like a good cultural fit. In the second interview, the hiring manager who chose you gets to show you off. “Look! Here’s one of my top picks for this position.” You’ve got to make him look good by proving him right.

It’s also essential to realize that you’re almost certainly not the only person interviewing a second time. You’re going to be up against another candidate or two with qualifications that closely match your own. You may even be a little bit behind the curve for one reason or another. Perhaps you’re an amazing cultural fit, but you fall a bit short on experience compared to another candidate.

For these reasons, it’s essential to pull out all the stops in preparing for your second interview. You need to go in ready to make an impression that will earn you a job offer.

In the second interview, the hiring manager who chose you gets to show you off. “Look! Here’s one of my top picks for this position.” You’ve got to make him look good by proving him right.

What Happens in a Second Interview

Chances are, your second interview will be with the person who interviewed you, plus another stakeholder or two, such as a manager or department head. Although you’ll be introduced to new people, and you may be asked some of the same things you were asked during the first interview, you should be prepared for some more in-depth questions.

Second interviews typically include more detailed questions about your qualifications and your ability to handle the job. Prepare to be asked how you’d handle various on-the-job situations. Where first interview questions are often more general, expect second interview questions to become more specific and targeted toward the job you’re applying for.

Examples of Common Second Interview Questions and Answers

What challenges are you looking for in a position?

This is a good time to talk about skills you’d like to advance. If you’ve recently received education or a certification, you might discuss how eager you are to apply what you’ve learned.

Why are you interested in working for this company?

Hopefully, by now you understand the requirements of the job very well. Use this question to reiterate how having skills that match those requirements makes you excited to take on a new challenge.

What do you know about this company and what we do?

Research! Take notes as you’re exploring the company website, social media profiles, and the LinkedIn accounts of key players and people you’ll likely be talking to. Being able to talk about what you’ve learned shows enthusiasm and passion.

Why are you the best person for the job?

Again, this is a great opportunity to reiterate your skills and accomplishments and how well they match the requirements for the position. If you’ve already addressed these things, talk about soft skills like your work ethic, adaptability, or willingness to take on new challenges.

Why do you want to work here?

This question will make your research pay off yet again. Talk about how your goals align with the company’s objectives.

What are your salary requirements?

It’s important to know what you should be earning, so advance research will help you negotiate. Begin by saying that you’re open, based on the requirements of the position and the overall compensation package. Wait to see what’s offered and negotiate from there. If you’re forced to give a number, be prepared to show research that supports your salary request.

Preparing for a Second Interview

In some respects, second interviews are easier—you already have a good idea about the things you said in your first interview that sold the hiring manager. Now, your job is to expand on them and show the company why hiring you would be a sound business decision.

Build on your first interview.

Pay attention to the hiring manager during your first interview. She’s likely to give subtle (or not-so-subtle) tells when something piques her interest. She may nod her head, lean forward, smile, ask clarifying questions, or show other signs of enthusiasm.

What responses did the interviewer react positively to? These are some of the same things you should drive home in your second interview.

Do your homework . . . again.

You probably researched the company for your first interview. That knowledge helped you become a leading candidate. Now it’s time to dig in again and find out all you can about the company, the requirements of the position, and the people you’ll be talking to.

Scour the company website and social media accounts. Do a Google search to see if they’ve been featured recently in the press. You’ve probably already noticed major themes, like whether the company values innovation or has a more traditional structure. Now is a good time to home in on details. Knowing more about the company will enable you to relate your skills to the company’s needs.

Expect the unexpected.

When you’re offered the second interview, it’s perfectly acceptable to ask what you should expect and who you’ll be talking to. Knowing the names and titles of the people you’ll be interviewing with, as well as other details about the process, will help you prepare.

If your job is such that you can build a portfolio of samples, prepare one and bring it. Even if you showed them at your first meeting, the new person or people that you meet with will also benefit from seeing them.

You’ll likely meet several people, so consider scripting a brief elevator pitch to introduce yourself, your skills, and your experience. Rehearse your spiel so you can recite it easily when the time comes.

The stakes may well be high with a second interview—although you’ve garnered attention, that job offer’s not in the bag yet. But taking the time to prepare will enable you to walk in with a level of professionalism and confidence that’s sure to impress.

What’s the Difference Between Was and Were?

The key to understanding when to use was or were in a sentence is determining whether you need to use the subjunctive mood or not. A verb is in the subjunctive mood if it expresses an action or state that is not reality. For example, it might be hypothetical, wished for, or conditional.

“Was” and “Were” as Past and Subjunctive Verb Tenses

To better see what we are up against when deciding when to use was or were, let’s compare the past and subjunctive conjugations of to be side by side.

Past tense of “to be”	I was	you were	he was	she was	it was	we were	you were	they were
Subjunctive of “to be”	I were	you were	he were	she were	it were	we were	you were	they were

Our chart reveals something delightful. You can’t go wrong choosing were with the second person (you), the first person plural (we), the second person plural (you), or the third person plural (they). We only need to make a choice about when to use was or were with the first person singular (I) and the third person singular (he, she, or it). Isn’t that great news?

Is It “If I Was” or “If I Were”?

Use were if the state of being you are describing is in no way the current reality. This is true whenever a hypothetical situation is expressed, for example.

If Harry were to find all the Horcruxes in time, we would not be forced to submit to Voldemort’s evil will.

Would you invite me over if I were more polite at the dinner table?

The first sentence can be described as an unreal conditional clause. These hypotheticals are easy to spot because they are often introduced by an if and are related to another clause containing a would or could.

Another type of unreal conditional sentence that uses the same construction demanding the subjunctive were is the impossible or improbable type.

If it were possible to solve the puzzle, I would have done it.

Here the speaker implies that the puzzle is unsolvable. Therefore, solving the puzzle is not a likely reality, and the subjunctive were is used instead of the past tense was.

That does not mean that every clause beginning with if I requires the use of if I was rather than if I were.

If I was wrong about Felicity’s love of puppies, I can take this one back to the shelter.

In this sentence, the speaker acknowledges that it is possible he or she may have incorrectly thought that Felicity loves puppies and has given her a puppy in error. The fact that it is possible the speaker is describing reality makes this an indicative sentence, not a subjunctive one. Therefore, we use was instead of were.

Use “Were,” Not “Was,” for Wishful Thinking

A sure sign that you should use the subjunctive is when the word wish is used. A wish is the desire or hope for something that cannot or probably will not happen.

I wish I were the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature.

He wishes his grammar were better.

I wish the stories about me were true, but I am not really the master of the universe.

She wishes she were at least five inches taller.

Here’s a tip: These phrases are never correct: I wish I was, I wish it was, he wishes he was, she wishes she was.

Always remember this rule about the usage of was and were: use were with expressions that are hypothetical, wishful, imagined, desired, doubtful, and otherwise contrary to fact—that is to say, not real.

Bear vs. Bare—What’s the Difference?

Homophones sound the same but are spelled differently. People often confuse homophone pairs, and bare and bear are no exception. Which phrase is correct—bear with me or bare with me?

The Difference between Bear and Bare

Besides being the name of a big furry animal, bear functions as a verb. It means to tolerate, to carry something, or to endure.

The grizzly bear seemed friendly, but we wisely kept our distance.

She could hardly bear the thought of selling her beloved vintage car.

It is too cold to go outside with bear arms.

Bare functions as an adjective or a verb. As an adjective, it can mean minimal, naked, uncovered, or without supplies. The verb bare means to reveal or open something to view.

The cupboard was bare.

Darlene had no idea why she began to bare her heart to the stranger.

The backpack weighed thirty pounds, a heavy burden to bare.

How to Remember the Difference

To forbear means to be patient despite annoyance or provocation. Encapsulated in the word forbear is the verb bear. If you associate bear with the meaning and spelling of forbear, you will never confuse it with bare.

Commonly Confused Phrases With Bear or Bare

Here are some phrases that contain bear or bare. These phrases might have confused you before, but you should easily understand them now. For instance, is it bear with me or bare with me?

Bear with me means “be patient with me.” My husband bears with me even when I am grumpy.

Bear in mind means “keep in mind.” Bear in mind that the forecast calls for rain today.

Bear the cost (or expense) means “to pay for something.” The company considered hiring additional staff, but it couldn’t bear the cost.

Bare minimum means “the least possible.” Keep costs to a bare minimum.

Bear weight means “support.” The builders designed the structure to bear weight.

Bear the pain means “endure the pain.” Ask for an aspirin if you can’t bear the pain.

To bear fruit means “to have positive results.” Studying really bears fruit on exam day.

Examples

Words dazzle and deceive because they are mimed by the face. But black words on a white page are the soul laid bare.

Guy de Maupassant

Do you think I am an automaton?—a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup?

Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

I have decided to stick to love . . . Hate is too great a burden to bear.

Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches

MLB Fans and Grammar: A Whole New Ball Game

As Major League Baseball gears up for the All-Star Game, Grammarly teamed up with The Wall Street Journal once again to see which team has the most grammatically correct fans. We looked at all 30 official MLB team sites and analyzed the top 150 comments for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. Each team had an average of over 10,000 words.

The Cleveland Indians hit a home run making the fewest mistakes (just 3.6 mistakes per 100 words) while the New York Mets strike out making 13.9 mistakes per 100 words. Take a look at the scorecard below to see how your favorite team stacked up.

To share this infographic with your readers, embed this in your blog post by pasting the following HTML snippet into your web editor:

Please attribute this infographic to https://www.grammarly.com/grammar-check.

How to Stay Focused on All Your Tasks

We’ve all found ourselves distracted from things we should be doing. A 2014 study found that a whopping 87 percent of high school and college students are self-professed procrastinators. Odds are good that you’ve found yourself distracted when you know you should be focused on a task. Is there a cure? Let’s take a look at how to avoid the pitfalls of common distractions.

When the Internet Interferes with Your Productivity

Distractions are everywhere, and the Internet doesn’t help. My article deadline is approaching and I still have a long way to go. I’m a perfectionist—I wouldn’t dare slap something together just to have it done—so that means either finishing soon or facing the indignity of asking for an extension. Ugh.

I stare at the cursor. Blink. Blink. Blink.

Maybe I’ll scroll through my Facebook feed. (Hush, conscience! There may be inspiration there. You never know.) Is that an ad for a meal delivery service? Sounds interesting. I like cooking. Cooking requires electricity. I wonder if I paid the electric bill. Maybe I’ll check my personal email account for the receipt. Hmm, Amazon emailed to see if I’d be interested in a panini maker. Would I use that? I’d like a panini for lunch. Ugh! This article won’t write itself. I need to get my ducks in a row.

I don’t have ducks. There is no row. I think what I have is more like over-caffeinated squirrels run amok.

via GIPHY

3 Internet-Blocking Productivity Apps

Fortunately, there are apps for that. If you have the self-discipline to use them, they can help you keep your eyes off social media and other time-wasting sites that lure you away when you’re trying to work. Here are a few:

• Self Control is an open-source Mac app that blocks time-waster sites that you specify. Simply add your most frequent offenders to the blacklist, set a timer, and run the app to keep distractions at bay, even if you restart your computer.
• Freedom helps over 100,000 users block out Internet distractions (and even the entire Internet for those who want to get some reading or other non-digital work done). Although it costs $29 for a one-year plan, the program is robust and works across Mac, Windows, and iOS platforms. The downside? They don’t have an Android app and currently have browser plugins for Chrome only.
• Forest helps you keep your hands off your Android or iOS device by gamifying the process. Start the app to plant a virtual tree. As long as you keep your paws off, the tree grows. When the tree matures (which takes a half hour) you can add it to a grove that eventually becomes a forest. Bonus: users can spend virtual coins they earn in Forest to plant real world trees.

When the Real World Gets You Off-Task

The Internet is a significant distraction, but it’s not the whole picture. The Internet has been with us for only a short span of human history, but distractibility has probably been a thing since that one guy, we’ll call him Trogg, first wandered away from his tribe of hunter/gatherers in search of something shiny he spotted on a distant hillside.

Sometimes, a little structured procrastination can actually help you regain your focus. But more often, it represents the things you do when you really should be doing something else. The more focused I’m supposed to be on an article, the more inclined I am to get up and make a cup of tea or decide that the dog needs walking. Office environments pose a different problem, because workplace distractions abound. What to do?

4 Ways to Increase Your Focus

• Focus on habits over goals. Think of goals as the overarching theme. (I want to stay focused and finish my articles before their deadline.) Goals are fine, but failing to reach them is a recipe for feeling bad about yourself. That’s where habits come in. By creating habits, you break your goals down into manageable steps. (I’ll research and outline in the morning, write in the afternoon, and finalize and edit in the evening.) Plus, those good habits become ingrained and, hopefully, stay with you for life. Win!
• Allocate time to plan your day. As you can see above, I have a strategy for researching and writing articles that works with my own schedule. If you spend a few moments in the morning allocating your time, you’ll be less likely to let the day slip away before you’ve finished your tasks. My schedule might look like this: 9-11 a.m. research and outlining; 1-2 p.m. answer email; 2-4 p.m. write 800 words; 9-11 p.m. finish writing and editing.
• Take a stand against pesky coworkers. When I work in an office setting, I tend to become the office “social worker.” Everyone comes to me with their problems, or their desire to share their life story. (It’s a gift, albeit a questionable one.) I once had a boss who was the worst offender. She’d sit in my office for hours talking about her personal life, and then complain when I wasn’t finished with my tasks at the end of the day. If you find yourself constantly subjected to office chatter, disengaging can be as simple as standing up when an eager-to-talk coworker enters your workspace. Your unwelcome guest will find the idea of sitting down while you’re standing awkward and will be less likely to overstay their welcome. Voila!
• Make to-do lists. Start your morning (or end your day) by creating a to-do list. We tend to stay more focused on tasks when they’re laid out for us and we can prioritize. Posting a written list can provide a useful bit of visual incentive as you gleefully cross off the tasks you’ve accomplished. It really is that simple!

We’re distractible people, and the world is a distracting place. To make matters worse, technology is all up in our business 24/7. But with a little planning, and maybe even some help from technology itself via productivity apps, we can shut out the noisy world and get things done.

Do you have trouble staying focused? Share a story and your favorite way to stay on task in the comments.