Happy Fall… Or is it autumn?!
September 28, 2020 by Alina K. Field in category Quarter Days by Alina K. Field, Writing tagged as American English, British English, historical fiction, Spelling and Punctuation, writing craftA Quarter Days’ Post
Greetings! I’m back for my quarterly post about various and sundry things related to writing historical fiction.
In my last post I talked about the delights of playing with words and creating Tom Swifties.
Today I’m talking about the difference between English and English, as in American vs. British.
Is it fall? Or is it autumn? More on that later.
What’s in your tool kit?
Words are the building blocks we writers and speakers use to create story. We start hoarding those blocks early, and the resulting vocabulary says much about our own personal settings—where we grew up, what our social milieu is, what our family is like.
A case in point—my grandkids’ first words. We waited with bated breath for each munchkin’s first spoken vocabulary word. I coached them repeatedly (and unsuccessfully) to say “mama”.
But for both of them the first word was… DOG! (Yes, we do love our dogs.)
Fledgling writers
are taught “write what you know”. I wonder why? It’s a lot more fun to step outside the known world. But it does lead to challenges.
The biggest challenge: You don’t know what you don’t know.
For a 21st century American like me trying to set a story in Georgian England, there are a million opportunities to err.
First there’s the issue of etymology. Was a word used during this story’s time period?
A couple of examples from a Regency first draft I was beta reading for a friend:
- Hooligan: a great word, right? Unfortunately it dates to the 1890s.
- Foyer: Sadly, this dates to 1859.
And a couple from my own first drafts:
- Merry Widow: as my editor pointed out, this phrase references Franz Lehar’s operetta’s English title from 1907. Just a tad later than the Regency!!!
- Shack: Not only is this a later word (1878) but it’s of American or Canadian origin.
Which brings up another potential pitfall for the fledgling Regency Romance author.
American vs. British
Americans and Brits may speak the same language, but we use different words.
I’m fortunate to work often with an editor in England, and so I’ve compiled my own list of Americanisms for my own pre-editing purging.
Some more examples:
This very funny post from a British writer complete with illustrations.
And a list of 60 American English words translated into British English.
Spelling and punctuation are different too.
Once, long ago, while reading one of Georgette Heyer’s books, I wondered why they kept writing “cosy” instead of “cozy”. Why had so many misspellings slipped past the editor?
The British spelling was different enough to make it a jarring read for this ignorant and unaware American who happens to be a good speller. Fortunately, I’m wise to them now.
There are also punctuation differences. Here’s a short post about some of those.
And a long one about spelling differences.
I don’t believe Regency readers will pillory an author over this issue, so I’ve settled on using American spelling and punctuation in my stories.
One might say, in this area at least, I’m writing what I know!
Do you suppose we’ll ever go “one-world” on the spelling and punctuation rules?
Happy fall (and autumn) to everyone, and I’ll be back in December!
Images credits: autumn leaves and dog are from Stencil (I’d happily claim that dog though!); image of words is from Wikimedia Commons.
Passing by
September 26, 2020 by Neetu Malik in category Poet's Day by Neetu Malik
Passing by
dusk casts its veil gently
as I walk along
this quiet street
under winged elms shedding
flaky white blossoms
at my feet
the hour is my own
no one here to nettle my peace
other walkers, far and few,
wave or smile occasionally
people come and people leave
I have learned to let them be
for on these intersecting trails
we’re passersby, you and I
© Neetu Malik
BOOK REVIEW: THREE TREATS TOO MANY: A Sarah Blair Mystery BY DEBRA H. GOLDSTEIN—A REVIEW BY VERONICA JORGE
September 22, 2020 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as A Sarah Blair Mystery, Debra H Goldstein, Reviewed by Veronica Jorge by, Three Treats Too Many
(A Sarah Blair Mystery) Book 3 of a series
by Debra H. Goldstein
Kensington Publishing Corp. 2020
ISBN 978-1-4967-1949-2
Sarah Blair couldn’t be happier. Her life’s on track and now her twin sister Emily’s dream of owning her own restaurant, Southwind, has finally come true. Soon Emily will be able dazzle Wheaton, Alabama with her superb culinary skills. But she can’t open until the building inspector clears her and he seems to be dragging his feet. Meanwhile, the nightmare across the street, her rival’s restaurant, Jane’s Place, has just celebrated its grand opening and threatens to eclipse Emily’s restaurant even before it welcomes its first customer.
To make matters worse, patrons are raving about Jane’s Place where Riley Miller, heart breaker and sous chef, is whipping up delicious and healthy recipes to die for.
But when Riley turns up dead it’s up to Sarah, faithful sister and amateur sleuth, to find the killer.
If you’ve read Debra Goldstein’s previous books in the series, One Taste Too Many and Two Bites Too Many, you know that things are never what they seem, and the killer is not who you guess.
Think you’re good at following clues and figuring things out? Convinced you can beat Sarah to the punch? Then you need to read, Three Treats Too Many.
Psst! Don’t forget to try the recipes. They’re a real treat!
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on October 22nd!
The Sarah Blair Cozy Mystery Series
Read Rebecca Forster September Featured Author
September 21, 2020 by Rebecca Forster in category Featured Author of the Month tagged as Book Sales, Finn O'Brien Thrillers, Rebecca Forster, September Featured Author, thrillers
Read Rebecca Forster!
On September 15th, Rebecca announced she signed with Wolfpack Publishing. (Read about it here.) Good news for Rebecca, and good news for readers. Until September 30, 2020 Rebecca is have a sale on select titles.
On Sale Until September 30th: The Finn O’Brien Thriller Series
Also on Sale are Rebecca’s Single Title Thrillers
Rebecca marketed a world-class spa when it was still called a gym, did business in China before there were western toilettes at the Great Wall and mucked around with the sheep to find out exactly how her client’s fine wool clothing was manufactured. Then she wrote her first book and found her passion.
Now, over twenty-five books later, she is a USA Today and Amazon bestselling author and writes full-time, penning thrillers that explore the emotional impact of the justice system. She earned her B.A. at Loyola, Chicago and her MBA at Loyola, Los Angeles. Rebecca has taught the Business of Creativity at University of California Long Beach Writers Certificate Program, UCLA and UC Irvine extension. Married to a Los Angeles Superior Court judge, she is the mother of two grown sons and spends her free time traveling, sewing, and playing tennis.
Remember the books are only on sale until September 30, 2020
Rules of the Road by Jenny Jensen
September 19, 2020 by Jenny Jensen in category On writing . . . by Jenny Jensen, Writing
Rules of the Road
I enjoy driving, except for those time when some numptie ignores traffic rules. Whizzing through red lights, flying through stop signs, speeding, texting, ignoring yield signs all certainly disrupt the smooth flow of traffic, often catastrophically. We good drivers know that those who chose to ignore the rules are the bad drivers—or failed ones. While I have the choice to take defensive action in traffic and avoid most collisions I find I can’t defend against, avoid or ignore writers who chose to ignore the rules of grammar and punctuation. I’d rather just close the book or delete it.
I’m not a grisly grammarian or a pedantic pedagogue (redundant?) – really! It’s that I love our beautiful language and I love to read, to immerse myself in the lyrical flow of words well written and a story well told. I admit there have been times I wished I carried a big read marker so I could correct an egregious misuse. “Hunters please use caution when hunting pedestrians using walk trails” being one example that gave me really itchy fingers. I was laughing too hard to be incensed, though I did worry a bit about getting shot.
The rules of the written word are like the rules of the road, a map to smooth sailing. Correct punctuation guides the reader, unconsciously and effortlessly, to get where she wants to be; lost in the story. Commas tell the reader to take a breath, or make instant sense of a string of adjectives or a list. Commas are what show the meaning, cadence and flow of a character’s voice. A semi colon or an em-dash tells the reader to yield just a touch then get onto a related point. Quotation marks show who is speaking and for how long. An ellipses indicates a pause or shows that a thought has trailed off. A period brings our reader eye to a full stop.
The rules of grammar set the reader free of confusing nests of conflicting definitions. Does “Their on the way to the concert” mean ‘The goose/uncle/cockatoo belonging to the characters is headed to the concert and the object of the sentence just got left out? Or is the dialog meant to suggest there is the way to the concert, or did the writer intend a sensible contraction, they’re? Sneaky homophones.
I’m disappointed when an intriguing story is riddled with errors of grammar and punctuation. I really want to hear the tale but I’m forced to puzzle out meaning and narrative flow – even if it only takes an instant to understand, that instant is too long. It just isn’t necessary. The only time the rules of grammar and punctuation are unimportant is during the process of creating. Who cares if draft #1 is a grammarian’s nightmare? Or drafts #2 – 4 for that matter. What’s important at that stage is getting the story down, then making it work, then making it sing—no matter how many drafts it takes.
Once the story pleases the author there is no excuse to launch it into the world without a proper proofing. If a writer feels a full edit isn’t needed, that’s their choice but believe me when I say every published work should first be proofed. There are hundreds of editors—including myself—who offer that professional service at a reasonable price. A thorough proofing is worthy of the energy put into creating the book and respectful of the language and the reader.
Whew! A rant. Thanks for listening.
Featured Books
THE LAST MILE
A novel of taut suspense and danger from New York Times bestselling author Kat Martin.
More info →
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RIDGE, NEW YORK, 1930
Dan Rodin has once again transcended time...
More info → 
