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We blog from Toothy’s Wordshop – mainly about writing, science, remote working, business, culture, parenting, tech and gaming. Sometimes superheroes too. Stick around for tips, tricks, hacks and perspectives.

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Freedom and fireflies

Re-discovering childhood wonder (and stuffing it into your writing) The other day, I was on a ref pack job. So, I pencilled in a long lunchtime walk instead (only joking: it was a Veeva job). WHAM! Out of the blue, it took me by surprise, like a U-boat at a kids’ swimming pool. I had […]

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The great mechanical takeover

Who’d a thunk it? The end of the world (for writers) won’t look like your run-of-the-mill apocalypse; there’ll be no catastrophic environmental disaster, nor will there be issues with food shortages, pandemics, the threat of war… oh. Hold up. Let’s start again, in a manner suitable for a 2022 audience. Who’d a thunk it? Although […]

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Why medical writing is more Sith than Jedi

Do we need to brush up on the Sith and Jedi codes before we continue? If so, and I can’t believe I’m doing this, I will refer you to this source1 (yes, I’m citing Star Wars lore. What kind of writer am I, again?). Before you ask: no, this post won’t mention the ABPI’s code, […]

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Why Med Comms is like country music

Country music is about the plight of the everyday individual, laying out heartbreak, relationships, friendships, work and other aspects of life as a story – an adventure – for the listener to experience. It’s simply ‘Three Chords and the Truth’, as the late songwriting legend, Harlan Howard, once described.1 Ultimately, this philosophy is at the […]

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Zombies are real

Forget vampires; they’re just a result of a poor understanding of death and decay – and fertile minds. Forget werewolves, too – we’ve got a suite of explanations for stories of these hairy hairbrush-needing beasts, ranging from genetic disorders, psychiatric syndromes and rabies, to serial killers (OK, I guess werewolves sound quite interesting after all). […]

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Pond monsters, telomeres and immortality

You might see ageing described as a universal, inescapable process to which all living things are inevitably bound. Indeed, king of evolutionary biology, William Hamilton – best known for kin selection – argued that all organisms must age (even theoretical organisms, like aliens). This was based on the idea that selection pressures are weaker for […]

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Inspirational Black scientists you should know about

The Sky at Night presenter, Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock Margaret Ebunoluwa Aderin-Pocock MBE is a physicist, space scientist, telescope engineer, and presenter of the BBC’s ‘The Sky at Night’ (note – I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing Dr Aderin-Pocock, which you can check out here). Alongside her work in science communication, Dr Aderin-Pocock helped design the […]

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Newsletters predate Cleopatra

Well, sort of – the oldest known pieces of written marketing are thought to be 5000-year-old ‘WANTED’ flyers from Thebes.1,2 Ancient Babylonians, too, were apparently into their ads, selling their products with the aid of fancy clay tablets that presumably smelled a bit funny.1 But leave it to the Romans to take it to the […]

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Sciencing song lyrics

You’ve got a higher power. Or have you? Behold: key scientific questions you’ve always wanted to ask about popular song lyrics. Sorry pal, we’re about to science the heck out of your fave tunes. We’ll kick off with a few – but let us know in the comments if you’d like to see YOUR favourite […]

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Are you a micromanager?

Why dropping the reins might boost company growth. Micromanagement is like the Miley Cyrus of the business world. Sure, it can be a force for good – but, if care is not taken, you might find it crashing through your office wall atop a wrecking ball. Indeed, micromanagement can be beneficial in certain short-term situations, […]

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Your Med Comms Prescription

Breaking News! In Slim Toothy’s first on-tour interview, he was asked about the inspiration behind his new single. “The vibe just felt right in that moment, you know. We’d been cracking out slides all day, we’d hit go on a giant PromoMats upload and we’d won two new clients. Our mood was banging and the […]