The OFFICIAL Unofficial Achewood Message Board
Trivial Pursuits => Wild Card => Topic started by: jaydub on March 06, 2007, 06:18:44 pm
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One of my favourite pastimes is reading fiction of various gravities. Finding myself short anything new to read, I borrowed a book of my wife's that she got from a book club. Merits of the story aside, I've found the number of misspellings really distracting. They're pretty egregious too - things like spelling the vodka, Ketel One, as Kettle One. I mean, if you're going to go out of your way to specify a premium brand to increase verisimilitude, don't you think you'd spell it correctly? It seems like such a Hunt's move: all serving a cheesesteak on Wonder Bread to a Philly native (or such-like).
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Of course not, how could you write about something if you don't even know the most basic thing about it? The major problem is that you'll feel like you were more qualified to write it than the author.
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Shit like that takes me right out of a story and leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I rarely re-crack the book after that.
So yeah, such a Hunt's move.
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Are you sure it's not intentional? It could have been done for humorous effect, or for trademark reasons.
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That one is an obvious editing error, because if you type Ketel into MSWord and then run the spellchecker it gives 'kettle.' And if you inattentively hit the wrong button, you replace it.
I find that proofreading of books is very sloppy nowadays - it's not uncommon to find several errors like this - computer-caused or missed because they are the kinds of the things spell check won't catch - "too" for "to" and so on.
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Are you sure it's not intentional? It could have been done for humorous effect, or for trademark reasons.
I think you can use product names inside of a book without fear, it's only the book title that's considered a product. Or at least that's why TMBG had to rename their song Nyquil Driver to A.K.A. Driver but could say Nyquil in the lyrics all they wanted. Although now that I think about it they left the lyrics for that song out of the liner notes.
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No, the author dropped other names, like Prada, Versace, etc - and proper names for politicians for that matter (used in a fictional context). No, like Wombat noted, it just struck me as editorial sloppiness. I sort of hope it was a spell-check screw-up, which strikes me as not necessarily being the author's fault.
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Moreover, I am similarly as bugged when... in a science-fiction novel... they make up new words for things, just to sort of make up new words. It pulls me right out of the experience of reading, even if the book is great.
I mean, if you're having the characters talk in a different language, that's fine, that's one thing. Less valid but acceptable in rare cases would be when you need, for the purposes of plot and characterization, show that slang has developed over time and influence. But please use that sparingly.
But when your third-person narration needs a new word for "spaceship" and "food" and "money" just to sort of remind us that we're reading a science-fiction novel... Christ, it just kills me and pulls me out of the experience.
Similarly?
When someone is going to swear and "friggin" or "flippin" is inserted? I want to strangle someone. Oh GOD, when something is dubbed OVER to cover the swear! Why? Why? I mean, okay, I get it, there are religious motherfuckers with bugs up their asses and if you wanna get your work out there, you have to compromise.
That's fine, a book or a television show or a movie is at least as much commerical craft as it is art, I am fine with that.
But do we have to be goddamned children about it?
Do we have to "make up a new word" for it?
If your work would be so crippled commercially by swearing, can't you... in a book, just write "----" for "fuck"? Or put in a big black rectangle? Or, less diggable but still preferable, the ol' *@!@%$?! thing? Do we have to be children and say "flurk" or whatever the hell they say on Battlestar?
In a song, do we really really have to backwards-mask or drop in a new word to sanitize for Clear Channel? Can't you just make a mix where the swear word is dropped and the music continues undernear?
On a teevee show, can't you fuckin' just blank out the word? Or EVEN just beep it?
Who in the chain of censorship command decided that we have to say "doody" and "weewee" instead? Aren't you protecting children MORE by blanking out the word entirely while impugning the message of the work less?
Arrrrgh. This is a pet peeve of mine.
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The best way to protect children is to change all instances of swearing to slurs against other religions. Like "holy cow" or "sweet blood shitting Budda"
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No, the author dropped other names, like Prada, Versace, etc - and proper names for politicians for that matter (used in a fictional context). No, like Wombat noted, it just struck me as editorial sloppiness. I sort of hope it was a spell-check screw-up, which strikes me as not necessarily being the author's fault.
It probably is a spell-check screw-up, which means that the publishing house apparantly couldn't give a shit about editing. That's pretty fucked up, right there.
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My dad's a writer of large, practically encyclopedic books about baseball, and I remember his mentioning their messing up various players' names. Flipping through his books, I always notice typos.
He's a fairly well-known author publishing with big houses, so you'd think they would be pretty careful about that kind of thing, but apparently not.
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My dad's a writer of large, practically encyclopedic books about baseball
Good Christ, your dad has an awesome job. After my perennial top two best jobs ever, running an animated sitcom and being a rock star, I definitely think that the third coolest job in the world would be writing books about baseball.
Tell your dad that a total stranger thinks his job is the third-most-awesome job ever.
He will probably be flattered and also a little weirded out.
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I think the best job ever is internet cartoonist. Dad's job is the fourth-best.
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Yeah I think it comes down to the proofers not really caring as much as the author so stuff gets screwed up.
LFM is totally correct on made up words, this is what killed the star wars movies for me (although I do sometimes enjoy the made up swear words, they can be fun).
The best way to protect children is to change all instances of swearing to slurs against other religions. Like "holy cow" or "sweet blood shitting Budda"
If you've ever seen the Bullshit episode on 'humbug' you'll know there are people who think this is an acceptable alternative.
'Instead of saying "I swear to God", I like to say "I swear to Buddha".'
Because that'll never offend anyone.
People make me cry.
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I think the best job ever is internet cartoonist. Dad's job is the fourth-best.
Well, in a perfect world, being an internet cartoonist can lead to my number one dream job, running an animated sitcom, so... our opinions are not so far apart.
Obi-Wan Kenobi voice: From a... certain point of view.
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My dad's a writer of large, practically encyclopedic books about baseball, and I remember his mentioning their messing up various players' names. Flipping through his books, I always notice typos.
He's a fairly well-known author publishing with big houses, so you'd think they would be pretty careful about that kind of thing, but apparently not.
Is your dad Bill James?
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Is your dad Bill James?
Ding ding ding! I was wondering if someone would get it right right off the bat. Are you a sabermetrician?
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Ding ding ding! I was wondering if someone would get it right right off the bat. Are you a sabermetrician?
Dude, excuse me, but that's fuck*ng crazy! He's like world-famous and shit.
I'm sorry, but I hate baseball SO MUCH.
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Dude, excuse me, but that's fuck*ng crazy! He's like world-famous and shit.
I'm sorry, but I hate baseball SO MUCH.
Hahahah. How in do you know who he is? I mean, he's famous, but only in very certain circles. God of SABR, pedestrian elsewhere.
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It is my secret shame that I know so much useless shit that I have no reason to know. My brain is stuffed with total crap. It's kind of like how yesterday I went into the music store looking for Ohio Players CDs, and I ended up skimming through the vinyl section, and I came across Ratt's "Reach for the Sky" album - a band I never listened to deliberately, and one that my friends and I actively, viciously derided - and I looked at it and thought 'hmm, this is the album with Way Cool Jr. on it. That's what I live with every day.
Also, don't get me wrong. I hate baseball, but I love sports and I love stats, so your dad is basically my hero, and has sort of my dream job, it's just that I would have done it for football or hockey. Hey, have a comma or four million.
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Well... that's ONE way for you to not be judged by people on the merits of the relative rudeness of your lady-body.
Being the progeny of one of the greatest baseball minds of the Baby-Boomer Generation.
You may underestimate your pop's fame amoungst sports dorks, Rumjay.
While he is probably only a full-on deity to complete baseball-stat nerds, any sports dork of any stripe knows of his work because...
Symbolically, in the sports-dork world, the entire saber-theory is the main argument for small-ball against the steroid-bloated long-ball culture that both saved and is killing again the mainstream popularity of the major league game.
Any sports dork of any type who is aware of baseball is somewhat versed in the saber/OBP/runs-created vs. hittin'-the-ball-eight-hundred-feet argument, if only to be able to hold their own in an argument about said debate...
And in that context, they know of his work.
Sports fandom is a good deal like comic book fandom... half the fun of knowing the minutae is not so much in knowing the minutae as it is knowing that if you got in an arguement over the minutae, you would be able to hold your own and probably win.
I say this as a man who owns both the DC and Marvel hardcover encyclopedias, to the point where I possess from rote, both of the holy grails of comic book minutae... being able to explain Cable's origin AND Power Girl's origin.
They gotta know your dad's work at least passingly... or they're at risk of not looking smart in a minutae-swinging contest.
In other words, I understand that you probably do not care for being judged as even more awesome because of association to your father's work.
I understand and appreciate it in the same way that some people only judge my shambling attempts at getting into the entertainment business by which famous people I have brought coffee to at which occasion.
However, that is pretty fuck*ng awesome, nonetheless.
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Not only are you a good writer, you must be a hell of a typist too.
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Haha! No, I think Dad's job is pretty much awesome. I think it's funny when people geek out over it. It's an awesome job. Basically, my parents have the best jobs ever, because my mom is an artist/student. Which has put me in the position of growing up thinking that WHATEVER I WANT TO DO, I CAN DO. So I'm not looking forward to getting out of college and being faced with the reality of "No....you can't actually make money off your webcomic. Only like three people are able to do that. Get a real job."
Sigh.
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Haha! No, I think Dad's job is pretty much awesome. I think it's funny when people geek out over it. It's an awesome job. Basically, my parents have the best jobs ever, because my mom is an artist/student. Which has put me in the position of growing up thinking that WHATEVER I WANT TO DO, I CAN DO. So I'm not looking forward to getting out of college and being faced with the reality of "No....you can't actually make money off your webcomic. Only like three people are able to do that. Get a real job."
Sigh.
If I may cross threads you could always pose for sexy photos instead of getting a real job.
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To be somewhat crass but also realistic, generally being a Good-Looking Lady doing something on the internet that is usually done by Weird-Looking Dudes is usually a definite plus in your favour.
Male fans will often show up faster and stick around longer if they develop a child-like unspoken unrequited crush on the strip and the artist at the same time because, hey, there is a Good-Looking Lady saying and thinking things that are usually only said or thought by Weird-Looking Dudes.
That... that is pretty much what got me into Narbonic, back in the day. haha.
ALSO: Yeah, I type like 70 wpm and.... yeah, I've been posting a lot today. A work-from-home day plus a kind-of-depressed-and-anxious day equals an on-the-computer-a-lot day. Mea mea mea culpa.
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saying and thinking things that are usually only said or thought by Weird-Looking Dudes.
As a true daughter of The King Of Nerds, this may be the most descriptive sentence of me ever written.
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Oh man, that is true, too.
People would more quickly accept you as being a Genuine Hot-Nerd Girl doing a comic strip online and not simply a Hot Girl Pretending to Be A Nerd (i.e. every girl on G4) because you have pedigree.
You come from the line of the Stan Lee of baseball nerds.
That is instant geek-cred to draw in people who might eventually make your comic strip profitable.
Here. Here is the thing.
You just need to prove your particular ability to make a profitable comic strip through statistics. Throw your parental weaponry back at them!
You just gotta statistically quantify your abilities and attributes and how they apply to Making Money in Comics. You gotta come up with your OWN statistical proof of this.
I ain't no math major, I graduated magna cum laude in the made-up-sounding-major of writing-for-television-radio-and-film and a minor in the made-up-sounding-minor of comparative religion. Math is pretty much not my thing.
But there must be some equation you can come up with, making numbers out of the fact that your geek-cred lineage and being-a-pretty-lady-status totally make your ability to make an online comic profitable much stronger.
(Geek-Cred(Rude Titties)/Findin' A Web Designer * Generally Drawin' A Lot)How Long They'll Let You Live at Home And Basically Just Draw and Maybe A Part-Time Job/How Good You Actually Are At Drawing And Being Funny.
This is just a rough draft. I'm just sayin'... throw it back.
EDIT:
Here's the best part. When they call you on the fact that this is clearly the insane ramblings of someone on the internet, generating an equation to explain success in internet comics? Then. Then you fuckin' go meta on their ass.
You full on go meta and say "well, Jesus, that's the POINT, Dad... you're a famous writer because you broke down how often Chris Sabo would get a hit with or without the goggles... internet comics sound normal compared to that."
And that's when you've totally logicked yourself into full parental support.
...or into getting kicked out of the house.
But, like, definitely one or the other.
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LFM, sometimes it's just like cataracts of words and information. Not a bad deal, you understand, jus t a bit overwhelming. I'ma go get a burrito.
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(Geek-Cred(Rude Titties)/Findin' A Web Designer * Generally Drawin' A Lot)How Long They'll Let You Live at Home And Basically Just Draw and Maybe A Part-Time Job/How Good You Actually Are At Drawing And Being Funny.
Minus the Rude Titties part, I think this might actually fly for a while with my parents. It would at least fly with my dad, he is (predictably) all about Doing What You Love. Mom is more about Getting Good Grades and Prospects.
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LFM, sometimes it's just like cataracts of words and information. Not a bad deal, you understand, jus t a bit overwhelming. I'ma go get a burrito.
You took the words right outten my mouth.
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Ding ding ding! I was wondering if someone would get it right right off the bat. Are you a sabermetrician?
I am! I'm a big stats-lovin' baseball fan dork (with the unfortunate lot in life to be a fan of the Washington Nationals). Tell your dad he's awesome.
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I am! I'm a big stats-lovin' baseball fan dork (with the unfortunate lot in life to be a fan of the Washington Nationals). Tell your dad he's awesome.
Ha ha, I got it first. So . . . I'll just go, then, shall I?
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I'm a big stats-lovin' baseball fan dork (with the unfortunate lot in life to be a fan of the Washington Nationals).
You know, it's funny, I've lived in Virginia for 3 years but I've still only seen the Nats once. I'm trying to con my boyfriend (who's not a fan) into going to see a game with me when we're up in DC for a concert next month, but so far, no dice.
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You know, it's funny, I've lived in Virginia for 3 years but I've still only seen the Nats once. I'm trying to con my boyfriend (who's not a fan) into going to see a game with me when we're up in DC for a concert next month, but so far, no dice.
There are like 5 of us in the DC area. Why did you not mention your proximity before?
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There are like 5 of us in the DC area. Why did you not mention your proximity before?
Well, I have only been posting for about a week. Where do you all live? I'm not in the DC area exactly, I'm in Southwestern VA, about 3 hours away.
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There are like 5 of us in the DC area. Why did you not mention your proximity before?
Because we're too scary?
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Well, I have only been posting for about a week. Where do you all live? I'm not in the DC area exactly, I'm in Southwestern VA, about 3 hours away.
I'm in Arlington, Carlos is in Centerville, Wombat's in Silver Spring, and Bobby is around somewhere in Fairfax county.
Not that she's around any more but Hobot lives in Richmond but goes to school elsewhere.
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OK, am I nuts for having this bother me?
Why do people pluralize with apostrophe + S? Can I execute those people with impunity?
Also, as an adjunct, is it OK for me to arbitrarily decide that even acronyms cannot be pluralized in such a fashion? I'm a descriptivist, and I have decided that I am just going to do my best to institue this method of pluralizing, and hope that it catches on. It will help that I belittle people when they do this.
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OK, am I nuts for having this bother me?
Why do people pluralize with apostrophe + S? Can I execute those people with impunity?
One of my daughter's preschool teachers has a bumper sticker on her car reading "Real American's Buy American". Every single-dingle-day I see that atrocity and have to marshal my politeness resources before dropping her off. Fortunately, I have no expectations of grammar education at the school. If they can get her to share, take turns, and poop in the potty I'll consider the venture a success. So far it's 2/3, with 5 months to go.
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Why do people pluralize with apostrophe + S? Can I execute those people with impunity?
Why do people spell pluralise with a z?
But no, seriously, I think it comes down to the fact that so many damn people can't write properly. Who decided for instance, that it was alright to say that something 'made me wow'? What the fuck is that?
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Also, as an adjunct, is it OK for me to arbitrarily decide that even acronyms cannot be pluralized in such a fashion? I'm a descriptivist, and I have decided that I am just going to do my best to institue this method of pluralizing, and hope that it catches on. It will help that I belittle people when they do this.
I got into this habit because of Word. At work if I write RFs then Word will change it to Rfs. Granted, I could hit Ctrl+z to undo the autocorrection each time but I'm a lazy man so I go with RF's
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I have a question for Rumjay. Where is the link to this webcomic you speak of. And we're gonna need to see those rude titties because as Lil Falls explained, we ain't gonna like it unless you are hot.
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Why do people spell pluralise with a z?
But no, seriously, I think it comes down to the fact that so many damn people can't write properly. Who decided for instance, that it was alright to say that something 'made me wow'? What the fuck is that?
Oh, you crazy Brits and your s instead of z, and your extra u thrown in randomly for color...
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Oh, you crazy Brits and your s instead of z, and your extra u thrown in randomly for color...
Exactly, it's all just to make it more interesting.
I actually spent a few years writing everything in Americanised spelling, then had to revert when I started typesetting and proofreading for publications. There was an... uncomfortable transition, shall we say.
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. . . Americanised . . .
Well c'mon, you can't think it's ok to use an 's' in that word!
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my grammar usage is getting worse. In everyday speech, at least. I am lately big on saying things are "real bad" or "real tasty" or such.
also, my official Thing that Pisses me Off is that my Writing 1 teacher corrects all these things that aren't incorrect. Such as "I do not know where they were going to." that isn't a literal example, but she gets all pissy about the dangling preposition. As certain of us are fond of saying, English is Not Latin.
Also, the whole issue of singular/plural verbs with Group nouns. Specifically "none of us are" vs "none of us is."
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Also, the whole issue of singular/plural verbs with Group nouns. Specifically "none of us are" vs "none of us is."
Sorry to say it, but that's another thing y'all Yanks get routinely wrong. Goddamnit!
Oh, it was someone here pointed it out I'm sure, complaining about the Mythbusters narrator (who irritates the hell out of me, but at least he uses English properly... FNAR)!
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Sorry to say it, but that's another thing y'all Yanks get routinely wrong. Goddamnit!
Oh, it was someone here pointed it out I'm sure, complaining about the Mythbusters narrator (who irritates the hell out of me, but at least he uses English properly... FNAR)!
That was me. He speaks british, but when the show is aired in England they dub over him with somebody else and I don't get why. Maybe it's the accent.
Every time he says, "the team are" I want to reach into the TV and slap him. The entire point of collective nouns is to refer to a group as a singular unit! Singular!
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my grammar usage is getting worse. In everyday speech, at least. I am lately big on saying things are "real bad" or "real tasty" or such.
also, my official Thing that Pisses me Off is that my Writing 1 teacher corrects all these things that aren't incorrect. Such as "I do not know where they were going to." that isn't a literal example, but she gets all pissy about the dangling preposition. As certain of us are fond of saying, English is Not Latin
Why is that a problem in everyday speech?
I'm assured by the professor who takes my linguistics classes that the terminal preposition "rule", along with a great many others, rose to popular use because some shockingly cynical bloke realised that he could make a mint by exploiting the insecurities of the emerging middle class, who desperately wanted to speak "properly" and hence would swallow whatever bollocks he concocted for his usage guides. I can't decide whether to hate that man with a passion or admire his cunning.
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Every time he says, "the team are" I want to reach into the TV and slap him. The entire point of collective nouns is to refer to a group as a singular unit! Singular!
The opposite, by and large, makes me want to do the same. I think one of their producers, or quite possibly writers, is British. They've had some things crop up online narrated by a British guy who isn't the awful turd who redubs it over here.
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I have a question for Rumjay. Where is the link to this webcomic you speak of. And we're gonna need to see those rude titties because as Lil Falls explained, we ain't gonna like it unless you are hot.
Heh. I have to make it actually good and funny before I can start promoting it. But soon, hopefully.
I've started dropping my g's since I moved to the South (I know SW VA isn't the South Proper, or The Dirty South, but it's plenty Southern to me). I guess my grammar's gotten a little worse, but I prefer to think of phrases such as "real bad" etc. as "colloquialisms".
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I've started dropping my g's since I moved to the South (I know SW VA isn't the South Proper, or The Dirty South, but it's plenty Southern to me). I guess my grammar's gotten a little worse, but I prefer to think of phrases such as "real bad" etc. as "colloquialisms".
RMJ, my wife is from Lynchburg. You are plenty in the South.
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I have a dear friend from law school who is from that area. It's an interesting area. SW VA, if I understand correctly, is comparable to Eastern Ky. Southern Appalachia.
Mountain folk are different from you and me.
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Heh. I have to make it actually good and funny before I can start promoting it. But soon, hopefully.
I've started dropping my g's since I moved to the South (I know SW VA isn't the South Proper, or The Dirty South, but it's plenty Southern to me). I guess my grammar's gotten a little worse, but I prefer to think of phrases such as "real bad" etc. as "colloquialisms".
They have a place called "Troutville" and pronounce Buchanan as buh-can-an so I'd say that qualifies as the south. It also qualifies as "part of the state that keeps screwing things up in the legislature for NoVa"
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Heh. I have to make it actually good and funny before I can start promoting it. But soon, hopefully.
There is an extent to which putting your work out there somewhat flawed and just... rolling forward with it, getting better as you go along, getting feedback, getting a reputation and proving you can keep it up week in and week out... is sometimes more important than getting it perfect.
I tell you this because this is pretty much why I am going nowhere as a writer, I don't have the guts to release things that aren't perfect in my eyes and then... you know... I don't have anything to try and get myself out there.
This is pretty much why I am not rich yet. Learn from my mistakes. Earn this, Private Ryan, earn this.