Around the Word: (Belated) Valentine's Edition

Bringin’ Grammar Back. It’s time for the revenge of the grammar nerds! Proofreading company Kibin did a survey of 1,700 online daters and their feelings about grammar, and the answers might surprise you. Not only did 43 percent of respondents say that poor grammar is a “major turn-off,” but 35 percent said they find good grammar sexy. That’s a win for grammar lovers everywhere! And it’s not just Kibin. Match.com’s survey of 5,000 online singles found that when sizing up a potential date, both men and women ranked grammar as very important—right after teeth. So if “C U L8ter” is like nails on a chalkboard for you, take comfort in knowing that you’re not alone. Next up? "Grammar Is Sexy" t-shirts for all!

Ghostwriting Cupids. In honor of everyone’s favorite holiday for love, let's take a look at the softer side of ghostwriting. Dating consultants are getting into the e-dating business to help singles with everything from editing and writing their profiles to crafting the perfect flirtatious email. So far only 14 percent of online daters have someone proofread their profiles, but the “Cyrano for hire” business is taking off. Want to see a ghostwriting cupid at work? New York Magazine gave an inside look at one consultant’s handiwork. And perhaps as word spreads that grammar is sexy, more singles will seek out dating ghostwriters to avoid becoming Dating Profile Disasters fodder.

Dating by the Book. Most people know of the eHarmonys and Match.coms of the online dating world, but for those with a much more specific checklist for prospective partners, there's a vast subset of niche dating sites. For political junkies who don’t want to date across the aisle, there's love along party lines on redstatedate.com and bluestatedate.com. If computer choice is a deal-breaker, Cupidtino caters to those who only want to date Mac owners. So naturally book lovers have their own niche dating site: Alikewise. Started in 2008, the site matches users based on their taste in books, using an algorithm similar to Amazon’s. Interested in joining? Flavorwire has 25 Pickup Lines to Use on Alikewise to get you started.

Some Famous Ghosted Books

Inspired by the recent New York Times scandal-ette involving cookbook ghostwriting, Flavorpill stepped up today to share "10 Famous Ghostwriting Collaborations."

Few (although surely some) will be shocked by the revelations that Francine Pascal (Sweet Valley High), R.L. Stine (Goosebumps), and Carolyn Keene (Nancy Drew) had an awful lot of help churning out their myriad books.

Ghostwriting—it's definitely not new, and it's definitely here to stay.

Best Language Moments of 2011, by Maslansky Luntz + Partners

As another year draws to a close, everyone's scrambling to put together their best "best of" list. Time has the 50 Best Websites, Publishers Weekly has the Best Books by category, Ragan has the 10 Best and Worst Communicators, Flavorpill has the Best Debut Novels, Huffington Post has the Best Commencement Speeches.

We could go on, of course, but we know you have New Year's Eve to plan. So instead we'll give you one more great best of, this one from GG friends maslansky luntz + partners, a terrific communications strategy firm. Say they:

"From entertainers Charlie Sheen and Hank Williams to President Obama and the always-entertaining GOP presidential field, here are our choices for the most memorable language moments of the year."