A full day of copyediting today reminded me of another pet peeve: Goofy words at the beginning of sentences.

They're the lazy guy's way of communicating, the equivalent of n in an algebraic equation. In these sentences as in algebra, the objective is to get rid of the n and replace it with something meaningful. And when we're successful, the whole equation—the sentence—adds up more sensibly.

Two n words stand out: Continue reading →