Send it Allyson. I'm always eager to take a look.
And you know, I may not have anything to offer except, "It reads fine, to me." But I'll be glad to take a look.
Don't worry, I'm not gonna start any sword fights. I'm over that phase.
Mal ,'War Stories'
The Great Write Way, Act Three: Where's the gun?
A place for Buffistas to discuss, beta and otherwise deal and dish on their non-fan fiction projects.
Beverly - Aug 10, 2008 5:27:31 pm PDT #546 of 6681
Days shrink and grow cold, sunlight through leaves is my song. Winter is long.
Barb - Aug 10, 2008 5:37:06 pm PDT #547 of 6681
“Not dead yet!”
If you want, Allyson, I'll take a look. Profile email is fine.
Toddson - Aug 11, 2008 4:46:12 am PDT #548 of 6681
Friends don't let friends read "Atlas Shrugged"
Also, after some reading I've been doing, may I suggest getting a Buffista copyeditor? I am SO fed up with reading books that misuse words, use words to mean the exact opposite of what they mean, can't keep track of their characters' names. damn. (I mean, really - the book I began reading this weekend had a character change his name about three chapters in. And one I read when I was sick was referring to the "penile system" ... sigh.)
Ginger - Aug 11, 2008 5:14:35 am PDT #549 of 6681
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
Allyson, I'd love to help beta whenever you need it. I already love Sam.
Todd, have you seen that Honda TV spot where the Mr. Opportunity cartoon character says "At savings that could be very *wink, wink* opportunistic." Opportunistic definition: "taking immediate advantage, often unethically, of any circumstance of possible benefit." That is the way I think of car dealers, but I didn't think they'd admit it in advertising.
There's also a Chevron ad in which they boast of drilling in "unchartered waters." Sigh.
Barb - Aug 11, 2008 5:22:24 am PDT #550 of 6681
“Not dead yet!”
It's not just in books, Toddson-- I read an AP article on Tom Daley yesterday and had to spit three times in response to not only the poor writing, but at the fact that the writer of the piece said something to the effect of "Daley, a Britain," as opposed to "Briton."
::headdesk::
Toddson - Aug 11, 2008 6:15:41 am PDT #551 of 6681
Friends don't let friends read "Atlas Shrugged"
The one misuse that makes me see red - using "descendent" to mean their grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. ... known to those of us who actually know English as "ancestors". snarl.
sumi - Aug 11, 2008 6:51:24 am PDT #552 of 6681
Art Crawl!!!
Yes! I hear that all the time. I don't understand the confusion.
DebetEsse - Aug 11, 2008 9:37:56 am PDT #553 of 6681
Woe to the fucking wicked.
Well, we are clearly on an upward trajectory, so the downward direction would be the past!
Amy - Aug 11, 2008 10:35:55 am PDT #554 of 6681
Because books.
Burrell, you have e, way late.
Beverly - Aug 11, 2008 12:37:11 pm PDT #555 of 6681
Days shrink and grow cold, sunlight through leaves is my song. Winter is long.
known to those of us who actually know English as "ancestors". snarl.
Or at least antecedents, which is closer to descendents, if they really gotta be.
I honestly think a lot of it is newer generations losing touch with the phrases and what parts of daily life they came out of. Allowing someone "free rein" refers to horses, of course, as does "reining in" your expectations. To "reign over" is a different thing altogether, but younger people don't have that knowledge, and honestly, I think it's natural language creep.
Words really don't mean the same as they did 50 years ago. The meanings change as relevance changes. And of course, I can't think of any good examples right now.
I will throw my body over the line for "eyes rolling in the back of her head," instead of "eyes rolled back (or up) in her head," though. Competely different thing, really.