Mignon Fogarty Podcaster & Author
Grammar Girl Creator Discusses Language Trends & Word Usage Errors
The founder and managing director of the Quick and Dirty Tips Networks talks to suite101.com about her work and her philosophy on learning.
Suite101: Your first book, Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing (Holt Paperbacks, ISBN: 978-0-8050-8831-1, ISBN-10: 0-8050-8831-8, 240 pages) is coming out on July 8th. The book is witty, engaging and easy to read. I understand you already have a follow-up in the works...
Mignon: My next project is a book for teens – the 12-13 year-old age group. My formal grammar instruction ended in Grade 6. Students are expected to use grammar properly, but they are not really taught about it in the classroom.
Suite101: Who do you write for? Do you consider your audience to be mainly students?
Mignon: Not at all. I hear from everyone from 6th Graders to CEOs. The majority seem to be adults between the ages of 25 and 45, who want to improve their writing skills at work. Their questions are typically, “I’m trying to type write something for work and I don’t know what word I should use.” People from other countries also use Quick and Dirty Tips to learn English.
Suite101: You founded and continue to manage the very successful The Quick and Dirty Tips Website. Where did the idea of a grammar-based Website come from?
Mignon: Podcasting came first. I started out as a technical writer for a bio-tech company. I’ve always been fascinated with new technologies, so when I heard about podcasting, I decided to start my own science podcast. It turned out to be incredibly time consuming – 10 -20 hours per week on average. I loved doing this, so I started looking around for a simpler topic. That’s when I noticed, that when editing tech documents at the biotech company, the same errors popped up over and over again.
Suite101: Can you provide an example of the types of errors you encountered?
Mignon: Basic stuff: That for which, who versus whom. I thought, wow – that would make a great five-minute tip for a podcast. It could be a lot of fun and an easy way to brush up on things we have to use everyday when writing and speaking. Plus, I could use the skills I had developed as a technical writer.
Suite101: Why do you think grammar is so important to your readers?
Mignon: People are quick to judge others when they use grammar incorrectly and may even go so far as to point out errors, which can be embarrassing.
Suite101: How do you divide your time between your site and your books?
Mignon: I do one show per week. There are 8 other shows on the network, including a green living show. We have 100,000 listeners in almost every country in the world. I work all the time! I spend 20% of my time on the podcasts and rest on my books and responding to listener questions. I see the network as a mall and Grammar Girl is the anchor store. Our team of experts just keeps on growing.
Suite101: What is your favorite word?
Mignon: Recently? It changes all the time, you know! Right now it’s kerfuffle. Kerfuffle is a fun word and it sounds like what it is. I think of a chicken getting its feathers ruffled.
Suite101: What is your least favorite word?
Mignon: I hate the word parsimonious. It doesn’t come up often, I know. I don’t like it because it combines the idea of parsing your words with being sanctimonious. It makes me cringe when I hear it!
Suite101: If you weren't doing what you're doing now, what would you be doing?
Mignon: Technical writing. I love to write.
Mignon Fogarty lives, writes and podcasts in Reno Nevada. Curious about Mignon? Check out an excerpt from her upcoming book Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing or read about her thoughts on The Challenges of Writing About Grammar.
