So, will this be 12th fandom, false 11th, or will more dogs be kneeing groins?
Tina @ 15 - I think back to a friend who had not one, but two "agents" over the past few years that were fee-based, and used a vanity press to finally get his book in print (with the commensurate growing pains, increasing fees, inadequate cover art, etc.). He, too, had been trying for years to achieve his dream of publication, and in his case I think he finally ran out of patience - just a single case, but I guess there are a few that simply lose a bit of faith in themselves. I suspect most are as you suggest, and either think writing a book would be "cool," or wake up to a new "Great Idea to Become Wealthy and Famous" (tm) at least a few times a year. I blame the sense of entitlement obvious even in a simple act like trying to drive five blocks to the store, and the overly goal-oriented focus of our education system and the media. I think we still need goals, but whatever happened to pride in doing one's best, like the Heinlein Joel quotes above touches on so perfectly?
On another note, regarding my relishment of this thread.... My students, especially the science and business majors, often ask me why it's important to study English (besides the fact that it's a requirement). I always start with the delight reading can and should bring, but being goal-oriented this often doesn't seem to satisfy; I usually then resort to the "thinking critically" and "effective research skills" that I believe they can develop through the discipline. What I should really do is point them here: posts like this one remind me how much delectable fun can be had with a little perception & research tied together. And delight. I detect delight being had.
I thought that was the Dodge Neon?
A.J.@225 - Yep, vivid pictures indeed. I used to collect the best typos throughout the year and send an email out to all the staff with them pasted inside (erm, the typos, not the staff). Generally my most popular email of the year.
Stephan@234 & Carrie@235: Could the overweight reference have been to the new first name "Saig?"
ajay@248 - No slinking! A&O references are always welcome.
Waves hand mystically..."These are not the druids you are looking for..."
Anne@257 - Maquoketa? I'd guess Ma-kaw'-keh-tah, with the emphasis on the second syllable and the 'e' being a schwah. First two syllables almost like Macaw. But it's probably pronounced "Smith."
Tehanu@209 Spell check - I agree. Had a fellow writing for me once who had atrocious spelling and grammar, to the point that I actually told him to at least use the spell check, or I wouldn't accept any more of his articles. I learned my lesson. His next review was on a Star Wars game and, apparently, he hit the "Yes to All" button while running the check. The best "corrections"? Every iteration of "droids" came out as "druids," and Bobba Fett became "Bob Feet." I kept him on, and told him never to use spell check again.
Tina@37
Re: Prophesy, you're absolutely right, verb vs. noun. When you tell a prophecy, you prophesy. Not elegant, but there you go.
Regarding "supersede" in Teresa's list, I used to use the variant "supercede" due to the similarity in meaning between it and cede, and had to train myself out of that.
Anecdote warning: I used to edit an online magazine years ago, and the owner was setting up a calendar page for the staff regarding due dates and the like. It began as the "Calandar" page, and after I corrected him, he changed it to the "Calander" page. I decided that it wasn't going to work, so as a joke I sent him another memo reminding him that it was spelled "Colander," which he promptly got right, as it were. To my knowledge, the staff at that magazine continued to sift through their assignments to the day it closed.
#195 Ajay &
#197 Howard
I suspect that the setting of the story in the past originates somewhat from the nature of the contest held at Diodori - after all, they were to write ghost stories, and placing them in the past (beyond the audience's immediate ken) adds a certain degree of verisimilitude.
Interesting side note: while it is widely assumed that the majority of the story came to Shelley during her waking dream in 1816, the 1818 (First) edition makes no mention of this scenario whatsoever; in fact, the prologue to that edition was written by PBS (and only published after several rejections - he wasn't being pushy in writing the prologue; it was the only way the publisher would accept the book). In the 1831 (Third) edition, we get Shelley's wonderful preface that recounts her waking dream and the night at Diodori, but nowhere - in letters, journals, occasional pieces - is there any mention of this dream/nightmare prior to 1831. Combined with the substantial changes to the text (which serve, in my opinion, to align Shelley more closely with the Romantic ideals as she understood them, with several years of hindsight available to her), it appears that the story behind the story might itself be nothing more than another layer of mystique. But it's beautiful mystique. (Yes, I wrote an essay on Frankenstein once upon a time, and am a font of useless trivia thereupon.)
That said, I think that the monster would have benefitted from fresh, live brains, his being all criminal and rancid-like.
| Year | Number of comments posted |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 2 |
| 2007 | 8 |
Total: 10 comments. View all these comments on a single page.
The most recent 20 comments posted to Making Light by Steve Zillwood:
Show all comments by Steve Zillwood.