Grammar Girl Live!

It's day three of my first book tour and it's been an amazing experience. Writing and podcasting are such solitary experiences that it's easy to imagine nobody is on the other end of the metaphorical line. But of course they are, and they've been coming out in force!

Not knowing what to expect the first day, I was floored when we walked in to Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, Arizona—30 minutes early—and found over 40 people already waiting and heard the store had run out of books hours earlier. Over 100 people eventually showed up [1], and I signed book plates (i.e. [2] stickers) for people to put in their books when they finally get them. (I did say “amazing,” didn't I? [3])

Because I knew that so many people who showed up are fans of my podcast, which has an interactive element, I took questions instead of doing a long reading. (In keeping with my philosophy that grammar should be fun, everyone who asked a question got a packet of Smarties, the candy my Twitter friends voted as the candy they would most associate with good grammar.)

Answering live grammar questions from an audience of grammar enthusiasts is about as nerve wracking as taking an oral exam in graduate school, with the added stress of a public speaking engagement. But it seemed to go well even though I couldn't answer every question, and as I look back on it, my explanation of why it's acceptable to say “I'm good” was rambling. (Fortunately [4], there's a great section about that topic in the book!)

This is for the man whose question I couldn't answer on the spot:

“Healthful” versus “Healthy”

“Healthful” is used exclusively to refer to things that encourage and contribute to health (e.g. [5], apples and exercise). “Healthy” means “possessing good health,” but can also be used to mean “healthful.”

It is a common myth that “healthy” cannot be used to describe healthful things such as apples and exercise.

All I could remember at the book event was that there is controversy about “healthful” versus “healthy”--not the kind of topic you want to address when you aren't certain of the answer!

I'm just finishing up in Austin and heading out for Atlanta. Check out Upcoming to see if I'll be in your area.

Notes:

1. “Showed up” is an example of a phrasal verb—a verb made up of multiple words.
2. “I.e.” is an abbreviation of the Latin id est and roughly means “in other words.”
3. Short questions such as “Didn't I?”and “Aren't you?” that are tacked on to the end of sentences are called tag questions, and they turn the whole sentence into a question.
4. “Fortunately” is an example of a sentence adverb.
5. “E.g.” is an abbreviation for the Latin exempli gratia and means “for example.”