Just don't be snarkily critical of The Fic where the poor author gets to see you being cruel.

Oh gods, no!! I would never ever ever. When I write a review at Checkmated, which isn't often, I make sure I point out the one or two things I really liked about it. Or, I just don't say anything.

I meant, can I be critical of it here. Like, b.org the backchannel for bad fic.

And Ailleann answers!!

Well, it's years since I read Bill Bryson's books on language, but I'm pretty sure I remember him saying that that was the US spelling, and that it had taken on a slightly different meaning over the years.

I can't recall ever seeing "bollix" in US English.

There was one fic I read that had the opposite problem -- it was following Remus in the years between the Potters' deaths and PoA, and for a few of those years it had him teaching at a wizard school in Alabama. This was quite clearly meant to be a very American school, complete with lots of American cliches (including a school song mentioning kicking the Yankee wizards asses), but the classes were refered to as first year, second year, etc., rather than sixth grade, seventh grade, and so on, and the teachers were called professors. (I really enjoyed the story in that one, but kept getting thrown out of it by stuff like that.)

I can't recall ever seeing "bollix" in US English.

I've only seen it in this discussion, and ita used it somewhere on the board once.

Like, b.org the backchannel for bad fic.

Come to FanFic. We're gentle, and provide links!

Come to FanFic. We're gentle, and provide links!

Well, duh. Hi, I'm Aimee. I'll be your moron today.

Ok, I'm new to the Land O' Fic. Is it okay for me to be so critical of The Fic? Cause some of it - it is so bad.)

God, yes.

I can't recall ever seeing "bollix" in US English.

Huh. Well, that's the last time I believe that Mr Bryson.

eta

Ah, no, I'm not on crack. Perhaps it was in more common usage when Mr Bryson was younger than it is now? At any rate, I've certainly stumbled across it in HP fic on a number of occasions, and winced.

Hmm. I've heard "He bolloxed it up" to mean "He messed it up," but pretty rarely, and I think I always assumed it was a British thing.

Oh! A few days ago, I noticed a kid wearing a S.P.E.W. t-shirt. I desperately want one.

Okay, question: do we know what happened to James' family?

Since we find out in DH that Harry is the last descendant of Ignotus Peverell, I'm guessing that the Potters were down to their last few members by the time that James was born. IIRC, JKR said that Petunia's parents died of natural causes in an interview (there were rumors on the internets that maybe they had been wiped out by Voldemort during his first Reign of Terror), but she's never said anything about the Potters.

When I write a review at Checkmated

Did I get you hooked on that site, Aimee, or were you hanging out there before I recommended Midnight Confessions?

Did I get you hooked on that site, Aimee, or were you hanging out there before I recommended Midnight Confessions?

ALL YOUR FAULT.

And I finally got my own password into The Bedchamber.

Some of that stuff makes me blush right to the roots of my hair.

Kathy and Theodosia - insent.

Hee!!

Oh, and did you insent to my profile addy, or to the addy I e-mailed you from before?