My wife, the love of my life, passed away last Friday evening. The following is her obituary.

Jane Kennedy Sutton loving wife, mother, sister, grandma, and author passed away May 6, 2011 in Fort Myers, Fl.

Survived by husband Kim Sutton, daughter Heather Sutton-Lewis, sister Terry Cromie, grandson Sebastian Sutton-Lewis, son-in-law Christopher Lewis and brother-in-law William Cromie all of Fort Myers, Fl.

Jane was born in San Diego, Ca. January 15, 1949. Graduated from Central High School in Little Rock Ar. In 1966. Jane and her family were world travelers living in Taiwan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, and Saudi Arabia. It was during these sojourns she honed her skills as a writer, her first novel “The Ride” published by ArcheBooks.

Jane was an active member of the Gulf Coast Writers Association and the Florida Writers Association. She was also a prolific blogger where she shared her knowledge of the art(s) of writing.

Memorial donations may be made to the American Cancer Society.

Taking a Break

No man needs a vacation so much as the person who has just had one. - Elbert Hubbard

Due to circumstances beyond my control…OK, maybe that’s a little dramatic. I could have been and should have been in control, but I let things get away from me.

I’ve been out of town for a week and away from the internet. It was wonderfully liberating, but now I am so far behind, I don’t know where to start. Since my energy levels are down, I am going to take a two-week blogcation in order to catch-up on health issues, taxes, family matters, etc.

I do appreciate you stopping by. I hope to see you in a couple of weeks.

My apologies for not having more to offer today.

Tags: Elbert Hubbard, blogcation,

Good News About Bad Reviews

I never read a book before reviewing it – it prejudices a man so. – Sydney Smith

I’ve been pleased with the reviews I received on The Ride. Yes, I paused here to knock on wood. OK…it was the side of my head, but let’s not worry about details.

Recently I read about an interesting study, Positive Effects of Negative Publicity: Can Negative Reviews Increase Sales? Don’t get me wrong, I am not asking for someone to write a bad review. In fact, I’m hoping that doesn’t happen. I’m only saying the results of the study were intriguing.

The report scrutinized the effects of a New York Times review on the sales of 244 fiction hardcover books. A negative review for established authors led to a 15% decrease in sales. A negative review for unknown authors increased sales by 45%. That’s quite an increase.

For unknown writers, I’m wondering if the increased sales have more to do with being reviewed by the New York Times than the actual content of the review.

Honestly I think a bad review would make me think more like Steve Lehto in his article, “When an Author Meets His Critics.” After receiving positive reviews in the New York Times, Vanity Fair and The Wall Street Journal, he talks about how bad a one-star review on Amazon made him feel.

He went on to check the reviews on some classics. He says:

“To Kill a Mockingbird was called "A BORING, WORTHLESS WRECK OF A BOOK" -- yes, in ALL CAPS -- by one reader, and "one of the most overrated and hyped books of our time," by another. I don't know about you, but I'm feeling better already.”

I suggest reading the entire article, especially if you need a few chuckles after receiving a bad review.

Have you ever given a book a one-star review? How do you handle negative reviews? Would a positive or negative review in the New York Times influence your decision to purchase a book.

Tags: Sydney Smith, negative reviews, New York Times review, Steve Lehto, Amazon, To Kill a Mockingbird

Book Piracy

Piracy has taken a hit, but it’s always going to be a problem. It’s human nature to find ways around paying. – Jimmy Schaeffler

My first encounter with book piracy occurred when I lived in Taiwan in the early 80s. The large bookstores were stocked with inexpensive books—because many were pirated. I admit I didn’t think much about it at the time. I was more concerned about keeping my daughter in reading material. She’d go through books like I’d go through potato chips.

I’m also guilty of passing along favorite books to friends and family which I know deprives the author of royalty. So I guess you could say I should go around with an eye patch and say, “Arrgh, matey.”

However, I think the problem of printed book piracy pales in comparison to illegal e-book downloads. According to an article the Guardian.co.uk:

"A campaign is needed to educate the new wave of e-reader owners that downloading illegal ebooks from torrent sites is theft, amid signs that the piracy of books is increasing, authors claim.

“Crime writer David Hewson, author of the Italy-set Nic Costa novels, said a campaign along the lines of "People Who Love Books Don't Steal Books" was urgently required – because readers who consider themselves his fans are downloading pirated copies of his ebooks and audiobooks.”

The article goes on to say:

“Authors' incomes – never sizeable, except for a lucky minority – have been squeezed over the past two years, with the drop in publisher advances. Hewson said authors now face an erosion of their earnings from multiple directions, whether from the fact that library Public Lending Right doesn't cover the loans of ebooks and audiobooks, or the new practice of "Lendle-ing", joining ebook communities to take advantage of Amazon's US free loan facility on Kindle. "What we earn is being chipped away," he said. "I do know people who are thinking: 'Is it worth carrying on?'"

By the way, for those like me who didn’t know, “torrent,” according to eHow , is a type of computer file that usually ends in the extension .torrent and allows a computer to track files and download pieces of the files from other users across the Internet using a BitTorrent client. I understand you pay to join these sites and can then download books, music, videos and games without the author/creator receiving a dime.

An article in the wsj.com addressed the online clubs such as BookLending.com and Lendle.me saying:

“Previously, Kindle and Nook readers were largely limited to sharing e-books with friends because two users needed to know each other's email address to initiate a loan. The new sites give e-book readers access to a larger network of people and a larger selection of books.

“The lending sites have drawbacks. One is limited selection. Most major book publishers haven't made their e-books lendable, and the books can be lent only once and for only 14 days. That means that with every successful loan, the sites' available library shrinks unless new users with books to lend join.”

The article has a detailed chart showing how these clubs work.

Are you guilty of book piracy? Would you join an online e-book club? Do you consider piracy a problem for writers? Do you have any solutions?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: Jimmy Schaeffler, book piracy, torrent files, booklending.com, lendle.me

A Novel Use of Lampposts

Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does. - Steuart Henderson Britt

Marketing, as many of you know, is not my strength. I use some of the tried and true methods such as book signings, conferences, book fairs and so on. Therefore I’m always impressed when I read about an author who thinks outside the box.

For instance there was Tao Lin who offered a ten percent share of the royalties of his unfinished second novel for $2,000 to six investors. He thought it was an idea which would have people talking and that in itself is promotion. The six investors would also have incentives to talk up the book and promote sales. You can read more here. (By the way, Lin’s book Richard Yates was released in September 2010. It’ll be interesting to see how long it takes for his investors to make back their investment.)

Then there’s author R. N. Morris who began posting his crime novel, A Gentle Axe, on Twitter in 140 characters or less a few times a day. He hoped to keep old fans happy and pick up new readers while waiting for the release of his next book. You can read more here.

The latest innovative idea involves an anonymous author and his or her unpublished book, Holy Crap. This author is serializing his work by sticking pages on lampposts in the East Village in New York. Each page has directions to the next section of the book. According to the article in the DailyMail.co.uk, “No author has come forward to take credit for the story, but it is the talk of the area.” You can read the entire article as well as bits from the novel here.

Though this is an interesting concept, I don’t think it's something that would work in Fort Myers. Our downtown area is small and there 's probably some ordinance against posting anything on lampposts.

Would you be willing to read a novel posted in short bursts on lampposts? Would you be more likely to buy a book from one of these creative marketers simply for their originality? Have you heard about or tried other innovative marketing methods?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: Steuart Henderson Britt, Tao Lin, R. N. Morris, innovative marketing,

Marginalia

…greasy looking smears/and next to them, written in soft pencil/by a beautiful girl, I could tell,/whom I would never meet/“Pardon the egg salad stains, but I’m in love.” - from the poem Marginalia by Billy Collins

I thought marginalia was a fairly new coined word. However unless you consider the early 1800s as recent, the word has been around for quite some time.

Marginalia, according to Wikipedia, "are notes, scribbles, and comments made by readers in the margin of a book. True marginalia is not to be confused with reader's signs, marks (e.g. stars, crosses, fists) or doodles in books.

"The first recorded use of the word marginalia is in 1819 in Blackwood's Magazine. From 1845 to 1849 Edgar Allan Poe titled some of his reflections and fragmentary material "Marginalia." Five volumes of Samuel T. Coleridge's marginalia have been published.

Mark Twain was also known for writing in the margins. His comments were often not flattering to the author, but there was no mistaking his point of view.

According to "Book Lovers Fear Dim Future for Notes in the Margins" in the New York Times, the popularity of e-books has some people worried about losing this art form.

“Like many readers, Twain was engaging in marginalia, writing comments alongside passages and sometimes giving an author a piece of his mind. It is a rich literary pastime, sometimes regarded as a tool of literary archaeology, but it has an uncertain fate in a digitalized world.

“’People will always find a way to annotate electronically,’ said G. Thomas Tanselle, a former vice president of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and an adjunct professor of English at Columbia University. ‘But there is the question of how it is going to be preserved. And that is a problem now facing collections libraries.’”

“… David Spadafora, president of the Newberry, said marginalia enriched a book, as readers infer other meanings, and lends it historical context. “The digital revolution is a good thing for the physical object,” he said. As more people see historical artifacts in electronic form, “the more they’re going to want to encounter the real object.”

Though I would love to run across interesting marginalia, it’s a habit I’ve never practiced (except for textbooks). To me it’s akin to folding down a corner, tearing out a page, highlighting and other book scarring tactics. Thank goodness for sticky notes. It’s not my fault. Evidently I must have been influenced by librarians and teachers.

“’Paul F. Gehl, a curator at the Newberry, blamed generations of librarians and teachers for ‘inflicting us with the idea’ that writing in books makes them ‘spoiled or damaged.’”

Do you own books with interesting marginalia? Do you often write in margins of regular or e-books? If so, what sort of notes do you make?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: marginalia, Mark Twain, Edgar Allan Poe, writing in margins, e-reader, Billy Collins

A House Divided

Also, differences of opinion can be creatively stimulating as well as frustrating. - Jim Coleman

When two thirds of my life has been spent with one person, I can be lulled into the idea that all the surprise factors are gone. But something always comes along to knock that notion right upside the head.

My husband and I have never agreed on everything, which is fine. A different point of view provides discussion opportunities. But I did think our opinion on eReaders meshed. That stance being—why would anyone want one when paper books work perfectly fine.

Therefore when this very same husband announced out of the blue one day that he was going out to buy a Kindle, I was stunned. After I picked myself up off the floor, which is a much slower process than it used to be, I responded with a, “You’re going to do what?”

The mission was confirmed.

He has always been a techie type person, but I couldn’t understand the sudden change in attitude. He explained there was a bird book out that got excellent reviews and identified birds by sight and sound. As he does a daily blog about the birds and other wildlife in the park across the street this did make sense to me, though I still felt betrayed.

Shortly after returning home with his purchase, he downloaded his first novel. Then he proceeded to show me all the wonderful things one could do with the reader. I acted unimpressed (what else could I do).

When I curl up with a book, I simply want to read. I don’t want the capability of looking up words (I can get up and get my dictionary if I can’t figure it out by usage). I have no desire to stop and read what others have said about certain passages, to shop for more books, to play games, to have wi-fi ability, and so on. In fact, not having access to all that is what makes books so beautiful to me.

Then he finishes the first book and says, “I think this is one you’d really like.”

Great. So now the real dilemma arises. Do I highjack his Kindle and read it or do I invest in the “real book?” I tend not to check out novels from libraries because I can be a slow reader at times. OK…and because I like owning books.

Many of the books I read are passed to me by my sister and daughter. They are both close to buying a Kindle or some other eReader. I’m going to be outnumbered in my own family. However, what bothers me most is that I’m going to miss all those free books.

One side note. When my husband went to purchase the bird book that started this whole revolution, he discovered from a review that the book doesn’t work with a Kindle. It only works with the Kindle App for iphones and such. I would snicker here, but that wouldn’t be very nice.

So tell me all you Kindle, iBook, Nook and other eReader owners out there, should I quit whining and jump on the bandwagon and adjust? Or is it OK to drag my feet and wait until eBooks are the only option? Are there any other readers out there resisting the call of eReaders? If so why?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: Jim Coleman, Kindle, ereader, Nook, ireader,

Speed-Dating and Blind Dates with Library Panache

What is more important in a library than anything else - than everything else - is the fact that it exists. - Archibald MacLeish

I grew up in the era where libraries were massive buildings (of course, I was much smaller). The pitter patter of feet of all sizes echoed across marble floors. Solid wood shelves soared toward heaven. They were filled with what seemed to be an infinite number of books that gave off a musty smell. A card catalog lined the walls. Librarians were serious people with buns, dowdy dresses and no sense of humor. Simply clearing one’s throat could result in a stern look or a "shush" command.

Libraries, like everything else, have evolved through the years. The library I use now is bright and airy. It is geared toward welcoming children, not intimidating them. The nondescript flooring absorbs noise rather than resonating sounds. Metal bookshelves replaced wood. Computers replaced the card catalog. Librarians look like everyone else and usually have a smile on their faces. I haven’t heard anyone “shushed” in years.

I’m not saying all these changes are good. In fact, when my daughter was studying for the Florida Bar exam, she had to leave a library because of the high noise factor. Her home with a toddler running around provided a better study zone. But to stay relevant change must happen.

A couple of libraries have come up with creative ways to attract more visitors for Valentine’s Day. For instance, one San Francisco library offered the first literary speed-dating event.

"Twenty-five lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender participants, and 38 straight participants the night before, got a chance to find love before Valentine's Day during the library's first literary speed-dating events. The events drew so much interest that the library hopes to replicate them again soon.

"Announced at the start of the year, each free event was designed to accommodate 36 people. Enrollment for the straight night closed at the end of January with a waiting list of 50 people, said librarian Donya Drummond.

"'This is changing the image of the library, showing that it can be a social place and not just a studious place," she said.

"Sharing a book about cooking and a sci-fi novel, 41-year-old Iris Tashjian, who said she came to find "if not love, maybe a book club," walked away with the latter."

Since I've been happily married for over 40 years, speed-dating is not something I’m interested in, but I do like this blind date idea from a New Zealand library.

"Monday's event pairs borrowers with specially wrapped mystery books, chosen by library staff as being particularly deserving of a hook-up with a willing reader, Queenstown library manager Robyn Robertson said.

"'We are choosing books we personally enjoyed or feel passionate about. The books are all gift-wrapped, with only a barcode on the outside, so it really is a blind date with a book and there's no telling what you might get.

"'There's a cheeky mix of fiction and non-fiction, with a nod towards the day that inspired the whole initiative. There's bound to be some romance in there - it is Valentine's Day after all - but there's also a real mix of other genres.

"'Like any date, there's an element of risk. But who knows; it could spark a lifelong love affair with a new author," Mrs Robertson said."

You can read the entire articles here and here.

Do you visit your library as much as you used to? Does your library plan events that are beyond the usual bounds of their normal activities?

Before I go, I’d like to thank The Rainy Day Wanderer for the Stylish Blogger, Write Hard and Pass the Love 2011 Awards. I am a fairly new follower, but I have found her blog is fun to read, informative and full of interesting links. So if you haven’t stopped by yet, I’d recommend a visit. You can also find out more about each award.

I’m supposed to tell seven things about myself for the Stylish Blogger award. In March 2010, I had a hard time coming up with five. Nothing has changed since then, so I will stick to those five. If you missed it, you can read them here.

As far as passing them along, I’ll reprint something from the blog post mentioned above. "I'm supposed to pass these awards along. I‘m doing that by saying THANK YOU to all of you who take the time to visit and to those who go a step farther and leave a comment and/or become a follower. You make the work that goes into blogging worth it and keep me motivated to improve my writing. Please feel free to help yourself to one, two or all three of the awards. Don’t be shy. You deserve them, for without you, writing this blog would be a rather unrewarding exercise of futility."

Happy Valentine's Day and thanks for visiting. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: Archibald MacLeish, library, Valentine’s Day, literary speed-dating, blind dates, Rainy Day Wanderer,awards,

Late Bloomers

It is never too late to be what you might have been.- George Eliot

Though I've enjoyed writing from my early school days, I started my authoring career rather late in life. Because of my great procrastination skills, I was able to come up with excuses until…well, I simply ran out of reasons not to write.

Going through the writing and publication process with my first novel, I feel older and wiser. I learned there is no such word as fast in the publishing world. It took a long time before I held a copy of The Ride in my hands. The process is no speedier with book number two, Reigning Cats and Dogs.

There are days I chastise myself for not diving into the writing world at a much younger age. However, after reading "Grandma next door" poet a Japan bestseller at 99” on Reuters.com, I’m feeling so much younger and more inspired. According to the article:

“Shibata began her literary journey at 92 when she could no longer continue with her decades-long hobby of classical Japanese dance due to back pain. Her son Kenichi, currently in his mid-60s, recommended she try poetry writing.”

At the age of 99, Toyo Shibata’s self-published poetry book is a bestseller. The collection of 42 poems is titled, Don’t be Too Frustrated.

Here are a few other snippets, but you can read the entire article here.

“Last week, helped by a late boost of publicity from a television documentary in December, the book hit 1.5 million copies in print, said publisher Asukashinsha. Printing 10,000 copies is often seen as a success for poetry books in Japan."

“…Written in what reviewers have termed a down-to-earth style with "sprightly" words, her poems have proven encouraging to thousands of readers.”

"Although 98, I still fall in love. I do have dreams; one like riding on a cloud," Shibata confesses in one poem with the title of "Secret."

"A flower bloomed from a century-old tree, and it's all because of your support," said Shibata, who is writing poems for a new collection to be published ahead of her 100th birthday."

Of course, she is not the only successful writer who started late in life. Harriet Doerr was 73 when her first novel, Stones for Ibarra, was released. The book won a National Book award. Mary Wesley, bestselling author of The Camomile Lawn and Jumping the Queue, began her writing career at age 71. Frank McCourt was 66 when Angel’s Ashes was published.

Did you follow your dreams and passions from an early age or are you a late bloomer, too?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.


Tags: George Eliot, Toyo Shibata, late bloomers, Harriett Doerr, Mary Wesley, Frank McCourt,The Ride,Reigning Cats and Dogs,

Book Signing Tips

You’ve got to tip an awful lot. It seems like we’re tipping everybody. – Eric Reed

When I stand near a table where my books are arranged in a nice stack, I hope to entice a buyer or two to take a chance on my book. No matter how well-prepared I am, the experience is challenging, intimidating, and exciting.

I try to make my table look neat and interesting. A large poster of the cover of The Ride draws attention to the area. I give away bookmarks and flyers. Sometimes, depending on where the signing is held, I might add a bowl of candy. But I have never thought to include a tip jar on my table.

I realize when someone is a best-selling author, book signings take on a whole different flavor. People know who you are, they recognize your work, and they line up to see you. Whatever the reason—to attract attention, boredom or research for a new book, did David Sedaris go over the top with his tip jar?

According to an article in Canada’s National Post:

“A couple of books ago, I put a tip jar on my signing table and I made over $4,000 on my tour,” Sedaris told the Post. “The problem was then I started hating people who didn’t tip me. I didn’t say anything to them, but I would just sit there thinking, ‘You cheap son of a bitch. I just signed four books and you can’t even give me a dollar?’ And why should they? But I just got so involved in it. I had to stop doing it.”

“I told people it was all for me to spend on candy. They were delighted because it’s funny to give money to someone who doesn’t need it. If there had been a beggar outside the bookstore, at the end of the evening, he might have had 75 cents where as at the end of my best evening in Dallas–[ I had] $530 in tips.”

In reading the article I can see the humor. Still I think I would have been bothered by the sight of the tip jar. It might concern me enough to step out of line or even change my mind about buying his book. After all, I know how to tip hairdressers, servers, taxi drivers, valets and so on. But how much do you tip an author?

Would you consider a tip jar? Have you ever tipped an author? Would you? What is the most interesting thing you’ve seen or done at a book signing to attract attention?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.


Tags: David Sedaris, Book Signings, tip jars, Eric Reed, The Ride

Mentoring

A lot of people have gone further than they thought they could because someone else thought they could. – Unknown

January is National Mentoring Month. Though it is something I recently heard of, it’s been an event now for 10 years. Mentors play an important role in every career, but since I write about writing, I thought I’d mention some literary mentors I read about on flavorwire.com.

Sherwood Anderson encouraged William Faulkner to concentrate on novels rather than poetry and to write about the area where he was raised in Mississippi. Faulkner’s novel Soldier’s Pay was, “…eventually published primarily due to Anderson advocacy, and, as a wry thank you, Faulkner later dedicated his 1931 novel Sanctuary to his mentor for “services rendered.”

Willa Cather was mentored by Sarah Orne Jewett. She persuaded Cather to concentrate on fiction rather than journalism and urged her to not hide behind male narrators when portraying female romantic feelings. “Although Cather struggled to have the kind of transparency in her work that Jewett delighted in, she dedicated her breakthrough 1913 novel O! Pioneers to Jewett’s memory."

Henry James wrote to Edith Wharton, “I applaud, I mean I value, I egg you on in, your study of the American life that surrounds you. Use to the full your ironic and satiric gifts; they form a most valuable…beneficent engine.”

Joyce Carol Oates was Jonathan Safran Foer’s, author of Everything is Illuminated, instructor. He “…stated that Oates’ investment in his work has spurred him to want to become a writing instructor himself. ‘I went into her class with no ambition to become a writer, and I left it wanting to be a writer because of the things she showed me,’ he remarked. ‘Ever since, I always thought it would be nice to do that for someone else.’”

For more details and more literary mentors, you can read the entire article by Kirthana Ramisetti here.

My mentors over the years have been teachers, family, friends and members of the writing groups I belong to. Are you a mentor to another writer? Do you have a mentor who has encouraged you to complete a particular project or go down a certain path?

January 25 is Thank Your Mentor Day™. Mentees are encouraged to take the time to honor an important mentor in their life by posting an online tribute or sending a note. You can find out more here.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: mentor, National Mentoring Month, literary mentors, Faulkner, Cather, Henry James, Edith Wharton, Joyce Oates, Safran Foer

Banishing a Word of the Year

I like good strong words that mean something. - Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

I found it surprising that an innocuous word like epic made it to the banished and the word of the year lists.

According to Dictionary.com, epic means:
1. noting or pertaining to a long poetic composition, usually centered upon a hero, in which a series of great achievements or events is narrated in elevated style: Homer's Iliad is an epic poem.
2. resembling or suggesting such poetry: an epic novel on the founding of the country.
3. heroic; majestic; impressively great: the epic events of the war.
4. of unusually great size or extent: a crime wave of epic proportions.

Banishment seems like a tough sentence to give a poor little word, but Lake Superior State University (LSSU) has been coming up with this list since 1976. They receive over 1,000 nominations annually. Linda Lseszczuk’s has also written a blog about these banished words. Check it out to discover the other words that share this mark of distinction with epic.

So what has this four letter word done to be placed on the LSSU 2011 List of Banished Words? Tim Blaney suggests, "Over-use of the word 'epic' has reached epic proportions.”

Epic is also one of the 2010 People’s Choice Words of the Year. According to Dictionary.com,
“Was 2010 an “epic” year? Many of the people who nominated the word associated epic with the slang phrase “epic fail,” as in a major screw-up. Others nominated the word as a comment on how often they heard the word misused to describe events that clearly were not of an epic nature.”

To my way of thinking both sources are saying the same thing. It can’t be easy being a favorite and least favorite word. It must take a special word to earn these conflicting honors. I wonder if the word of the year award offsets the banishment?

The other People’s Choice Words were:
Discombobulate
Defenestration - I had to look this up - it means the act of throwing someone out a window. (Funny that I haven't had the need to use this word - ever.)

Brouhaha
Love

However, Dictionary.com selected the word “change” as their Word of the Year based on a surge of look-ups over the past year.

I don’t know what qualifies a word for this illustrious list, but the winners are words that have been around for some time. I expected a list of newer, more creative terms.

What word would you nominate for 2010 Word of the Year?

Tags: Louisa May Alcott, Banished Words, People’s Choice, epic, word of the year

Is Zebra Destined to Become Xebra?

The last letter of our Roman alphabet is Z, a consonant that can seem racy and elusive or just plain disadvantaged. – David Sacks

I evidently missed this announcement when it was first released, but it caught my attention when DailyWritingTips.com did the Best of Daily Writing Tips in 2010.

The article, “The Letter “Z” Will Be Removed from the English Alphabet,” by Daniel Scocco caused my mouth to gape in disbelief. “Tell me it isn’t so,” I whispered to my computer.

I happen to like the letters in our alphabet – all 26 of them. And who could not possibly love the Z? Part of the Phoenician alphabet, it’s been around since about 1000 B.C.

The article included a quote from the press release from English Language Central Commission (ELCC) saying,

“After carefully considering and debating the matter for over two years, the ELCC came to the conclusion that the letter “Z” should be removed from the English alphabet. The main objective of this change is to simplify the phonetic aspect of the language, and to unify the American and British spellings.”

According to David Sacks author of Letter Perfect,

“The potential indignity of being the alphabet’s caboose is compounded by one real weakness: Z is, on the average, the least-used letter in printed English. Of the 26 letters, Z finishes last in this race, too, behind Q and X, For every 1,000 appearances by E (our most-used letter), Q appears about 50 times, X 44, and Z a measly 22.

“No wonder Z has been called superfluous, mere excess baggage. In Shakespeare’s King Lear (A.D. 1605), the irascible Earl of Kent insults the fatuous courtier Oswald, calling by the British name for Z: ‘Thou whoreson zed, thou unnecessary letter!’”

Is this how the ELCC felt about the last letter in our alphabet? Is this why they came up with the ridiculous idea of deleting “Z” completely?

Before allowing my blood pressure to climb to a deadly high, I decided to look up this commission. That’s when I discovered that Daniel Scocco is a bit of a jokester.

“Whew!” I said to the empty room. "That was a close one."

I know better than to believe everything I read online. I mean, I wasn’t born yesterday (what an understatement) and I fell for it big time. After all, I read the article on a site I visit often and trust, the press release looked legit, and there were examples such as how zero would become xero and visualize would soon be visualise.

What didn’t register was the date of the original article – April 1. The article was an April fool’s gag. Good one, Daniel!

So rest easy - the letter “Z” has nothing to fear.

Have you ever fallen for an internet gag?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: David Sacks, King Lear, letter Z, English Language Central Commission, alphabet,

Blending Foreign Words with English

Translation is at best an echo. – George Burrows

Kiortame pivdluaritlo (Eskimo). Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! (Welsh). Sawadee Pee Mai (Thai). Naya Saal Mubbarak Ho (Urdu). Kenourios Chronos (Greek). Or as we say in America, Happy New Year! Thanks to TheHolidaySpot.com, I discovered New Year wishes were easily translatable into many languages.

Even though I can only use the terms around my husband, I’ve added a few expressions to my vocabulary from the various international places I’ve lived. It’s fun and sometimes foreign words or phrases express a concept or feeling better than the English equivalent, if there is one.

Pronunciation could be a problem, but recently I ran across more foreign words that I’d like to add to my personal use list. I found them in an article titled “20 Awesomely Untranslatable Words from Around the World” by Jason Wire. This article led me to “20 More Awesomely Untranslatable Words from Around the World.” Since the author did come up with definitions, I am assuming by untranslatable he meant that there is no comparable English word.

I liked all he words he listed, but I only selected five of my favorites. I think these words would be good additions to our English language.

Mamihlapinatapei - Yagan (indigenous language of Tierra del Fuego) – the wordless, yet meaningful look shared by two people who both desire to initiate something but are both reluctant to start.

Tartle -Scottish – The act of hesitating while introducing someone because you’ve forgotten their name.

Wabi-Sabi -Japanese –a way of living that focuses on finding beauty within the imperfections of life and accepting peacefully the natural cycle of growth and decay.

Cafuné- Brazilian Portuguese – The act of tenderly running one’s fingers through someone’s hair.

Jayus -Indonesian – a joke so poorly told and so unfunny that one cannot help but laugh.

Do you ever add foreign words to your conversations? Do you have a favorite foreign word or phrase?

I hope everyone’s New Year got off to a great start that only gets better with each passing day. Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: George Burrows, New Year, untranslatable words, foreign words and phrases ,

Annoying Words and Phrases

No one has a finer command of language than the person who keeps his mouth shut. - Sam Rayburn

With Christmas behind me, I can forget about shopping and focus on the upcoming New Year. I’d like to start 2011 off on the right foot. For instance, when speaking to people, I want to do my best to not irritate them with words or phrases they find annoying. Thanks to a recent Marist Poll of 1020 adults, I know the top five offenders.

“Whatever” heads the list as the most annoying word in the English language garnering 39% of the vote. “Like” was second with 28%. “You know what I mean” came in third with 15%. “To tell the truth” followed with 10%. “Actually” earned 5% of the vote.

According to their statistics, people over the age of 45 with no children in the household found “whatever” slightly more annoying than the group consisting of 18 to 29-year-olds. This second group found “like” more annoying. You can find the specifics of the demographic breakdown here.

Whatever is usually a conversation ender, so there’s less likelihood of it being overused during a single discussion than the other four words. However, none of annoying words bother me—maybe because I know I’ve used them all at one time or another.

If I had been asked, I would have nominated, “my bad.” Though I’ve learned that it’s a flippant apology, when I hear this phrase I want to ask, “My bad what?” My husband says this shows my age and my complaint would cause most people to LOL. He’s probably right.

Whatever.

What word or phrase would you select as the most annoying?

There are only a few days left to participate in Darcia Helle’s Indie Books Holiday Giveaway, so be sure to hurry over to enter if you’ve been procrastinating.

Wishing you all a safe, happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you next week

Tags: Sam Rayburn, annoying words, my bad, Darcia Helle, Indie Books Giveaway,

Unusual Gifts for Writers

A book is a gift you can open again and again. – Garrison Keillor

Though I always have good intentions, I end up needing to make a couple of last minute purchases every year. As an author, I think I’m easy to please. I like paper, pens and books, books, books. Finding the right gift for some people, however, isn't so easy.

In my effort to come up with ideas, I stumbled across some unique gifts for the writers. Or perhaps you may want to buy something for yourself in order to rekindle your creative spirit.

Here’s a sampling:

At ShakespearesDen.com, you can find a Jane Austen action figure, complete with book (Pride & Prejudice, of course) and a writing desk with removable quill pen. William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde action figures are also available.

If action figures aren’t your thing, they also offer literary figure plush toys and puppets. Though it seems rather irreverent to me, there ‘s even a Shakespeare rubber duck.

They offer more practical gifts, too. Such as coasters, wine charms, gargoyle bookworm bookends, and a silk tie covered in signatures of famous writers. Or there’s Who Dunn-it sticky notes that are shaped like a shoe print, thumbprint, and magnifying glass.

Theliterarygiftcompany.com offers a writer’s toolbox that contains a plot twist spinner and creative cards to help with writer’s block.

At fishseddy.com there are cute ceramic trays that look like lined writing tablets.

When inspiration strikes at 3 a.m., there’s a great throw-blanket with pictures and names of many well-known authors to keep your inspiration going and your body warm. You'll find this at The Professional Collection.

Do you have last minute shopping to do? What is your favorite writing gift that you bought for yourself or that someone has given you?

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas holiday.

Tags: Garrison Keillor, gifts for writers, Jane Austen, Shakespeare,

Methods Not to Use When Writing Detective Stories

Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth. – Arthur Conan Doyle, Sr.

I haven’t written a detective story, but I think it would be fun to try my hand at it someday. After all, I think they’re fun to read or to watch on TV. Like working a crossword without peeking at the answers, trying to figure out the “whodunit” part before it’s revealed is the main attraction for me.

As with any genre, there are rules about what you can and cannot do. I recently ran across a list of twenty "laws" on writing a detective story by S.S. Van Dine (pseudonym for Willard Huntington Wright). He died in 1939 before DNA and other sophisticated methods were used for crime solving, but his is an interesting list. I thought I’d share a few of his guidelines with you.

The reader must have equal opportunity with the detective for solving the mystery. All clues must be plainly stated and described.

There must be no love interest. The business in hand is to bring a criminal to the bar of justice, not to bring a lovelorn couple to the hymeneal altar.

The detective himself, or one of the official investigators, should never turn out to be the culprit. This is bald trickery, on a par with offering some one a bright penny for a five-dollar gold piece. It's false pretenses.

There simply must be a corpse in a detective novel, and the deader the corpse the better. No lesser crime than murder will suffice. Three hundred pages is far too much pother for a crime other than murder. After all, the reader's trouble and expenditure of energy must be rewarded.

A servant must not be chosen by the author as the culprit. This is begging a noble question. It is a too easy solution. The culprit must be a decidedly worth-while person — one that wouldn't ordinarily come under suspicion.

My favorite, though, is his last credo listing “…a few of the devices which no self-respecting detective story writer will now avail himself of.” According to Mr. Van Dine, “To use them is a confession of the author's ineptitude and lack of originality.”

The devices are: (a) Determining the identity of the culprit by comparing the butt of a cigarette left at the scene of the crime with the brand smoked by a suspect. (b) The bogus spiritualistic se'ance to frighten the culprit into giving himself away. (c) Forged fingerprints. (d) The dummy-figure alibi. (e) The dog that does not bark and thereby reveals the fact that the intruder is familiar. (f) The final pinning of the crime on a twin, or a relative who looks exactly like the suspected, but innocent, person. (g) The hypodermic syringe and the knockout drops. (h) The commission of the murder in a locked room after the police have actually broken in. (i) The word association test for guilt. (j) The cipher, or code letter, which is eventually unraveled by the sleuth.

If you write detective stories, do you follow Van Dine’s credos? Do you have your own set of rules? When reading a detective story, what sort of device irritates you?

For Van Dine's entire list, visit Gaslight.

If you haven’t already, remember to stop by to enter in Darcia Helle’s Indie Books Holiday Giveaway for your chance to win one of hundreds of print and eBooks. Entry is easy.

Thank you for stopping by today. I hope to see you next week.

Tags: Arthur Conan Doyle, S. S. Van Dine, Willard Huntington Wright , writing detective stories, Indie Books Giveaway,

Become a fictional character

A writer should create living people; people, not characters. A character is a caricature. - Ernest Hemingway

Author Jasper Fforde’s characters have the enviable ability to literally jump in and out of books. For instance, in the first book of the series, The Eyre Affair, when the villain Acheron Hades kidnaps Jane, it’s up to the protagonist, Tuesday Next, a special ops in the Literary Division, to save the title character and the book. In the second book, Lost in a Good Book, Tuesday Next hops in and out of The Trial (Kafka), Great Expectations (Dickens), Alice in Wonderland (Carroll), and The Raven (Poe).

What fun it would be if we were able to meet the characters of our favorite books in this manner.

Though it’s not possible to leap into books except in our imagination, there is now a way to become a character in a book by a prominent author. Through December 20th, authors including Thomas Perry, Jane Smiley, Stuart Woods, and Dave Eggers are featured on a charity auction on eBay to raise money for the First Amendment Project. Click here to see the entire list of writers involved.

The authors are auctioning off characters in future books. According to the site, “Your name can be an FBI agent or a stripper with a heart of gold in the next entry in Suzanne Brockmann’s Troubleshooters series; a villain or a victim in Thomas Perry’s next entry in the Jane Whitefield series, a wounded World War I soldier or drunken Bohemian in Andrew Sean Greer’s next novel, as a character in a new musical by Janet Burroway, or a character in a cartoon series by Ben Katchor, Chris Ware or T Campbell…”

The last time I checked, the highest bid was $500.00 for the stripper character in Brockmann’s series.

My characters tend to take control at some point in the writing process. I assume this happens to other writers. If the characters suddenly decide not be killed off or go down the path the author intended, it’s possible (though not probable) the winners might find themselves as the protagonist/antagonist in a popular new series.

Would you bid to have your name become a character in a book? What sort of character would you like to be? If you could pop into a book to mingle with the characters, which book would you choose?

Just a reminder about the opportunity to win books (no bidding required) at Darcia Helle’s Indie Books Holiday Giveaway. I’m excited to be among the forty-seven authors who are offering hundreds of free print and eBooks. Click here to see the list of participating authors and books. Entry is simple. Click here for the form.

Thank you for stopping by today. I hope to see you next week.

Tags: Hemingway, Fforde, The First Amendment Project, eBay auction, Darcia Helle, Indie Books Giveaway,

Slang

Slang is a poor man’s poetry. - John Moore

Thanks to my sister I have to admit I started my wish list for Santa already. She emailed me an article from the Wall Street Journal about The First English Dictionary of Slang, 1699, and now I feel I must own the actual book.

I’m aware that each generation develops their own slang. I wrote a blog about modern slang phrases added to the Urban Dictionary. I don’t write historical fiction. Working any of the words or phrases into a contemporary novel would be challenging. However, none of these logical things dampen my desire to add it to my collection of reference books.

Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew was uncovered and recently republished under the new name. Canting, by the way, was the language of thieves and ruffians. The book was to educate the upper London classes in case they found themselves in the ‘wrong’ parts of town. Or perhaps, so that those rich enough to have servants could understand them. The dictionary also includes military slang and colloquialisms.

A few of the words you’ll find are:

Anglers - Cheats, petty Thieves, who have a Stick with a hook at the end, with which they pluck things out of Windows, Grates, &c. also those that draw in People to be cheated.
Blind-man’s-holiday - when it is too dark to see to work.
Blobber-lippd - means having lips that are very thick, hanging down, or turning over
Cackling-farts - Eggs.
Chouter - to talk pertly, and sometimes angrily
Conveniency – wife; also a mistress
Fubbs –a fond word for children
Fuddle – an excellent tipple
Grumbletonians -Malecontents, out of Humour with the Government, for want of a Place, or having lost one.
Rum-bluffer – an excellent host
Rum-bung – a full purse

Another interesting and rather ironic tidbit I got from my internet research of the book is that there is no agreed etymology for the word “slang.” I think I’ll have to make this a topic for another blog.

Before closing, I’d like to thank Stephen Tremp of Breakthrough Blogs for the Supernova Award for simply hosting him during his virtual book tour which was a pleasure for me to do. If you missed his post on Promoting and Marketing, you can find it here.

For any booklovers on your Christmas list, I’d also like to mention that personalized signed copies of The Ride will be available this holiday season for only $20.00. Simply email me at jane@janesutton.com for details.

Are there any reference books you hope Santa brings you this year?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again next week.

Tags: John Moore, The First English Dictionary of Slang , canting, slang, Stephen Tremp, The Ride,

Bizarre Characters and General Hodgepodge

I write about real people in disguise. If anything, my characters are toned down-the truth is much more bizarre. – Jackie Collins

I was in Las Vegas last week for our annual get-together with a wonderful group of friends. I didn’t take my computer, so I was completely unplugged from the internet. It wasn’t as hard to adjust to as I anticipated. In fact, to be honest, it was very liberating.

Now I'm home and the fantasy life of Vegas is fading as I switch gears into catch-up mode. When I have lots to do, I tend to go in circles and my thoughts are rather jumbled. The result is this rather eclectic mixture of topics for today’s post, so I'll dive in now.

As usual I didn’t walk away with any big money jackpots. My Vegas windfall is more in the form of character ideas. I can’t imagine there being any better people watching place in the world.

I’m not talking about performers or casino employees when I say some people are so off the charts in looks, actions and voice that I wondered how anyone could turn them into a believable character. Describing these colorful folks exactly as I saw them might have the reader shaking their head and saying, “No way. No one’s this outrageous.”

I find perfect characters boring—I can’t relate to them at all. Is it possible, though, to go too far in the other direction? I ’ve read that if you want a satirical tool your characters can be unrealistically eccentric which leads me to wonder exactly what is unrealistic?

I don’t have the answers to my own questions, so if anyone has any ideas on the topic I’d love to hear them. Tips on writing about unusual characters are also welcome. Who is your favorite quirkiest character in a novel?

On a completely different topic, I like to thank Rayna for featuring me on her blog, Coffee Rings Everywhere, last Wednesday. I’m flattered to be the subject of one of Rayna’s drabbles. A drabble is a story told in exactly 100 words and Rayna has one to offer daily. A resident of Bombay, India, her drabbles are always interesting and educational, expertly showing the similarities and differences between our cultures and lives. I recommend stopping often.

Changing the subject again - be sure to mark your calendar for December 1 when the Indie Books Holiday Giveaway begins. Forty-seven authors are offering hundreds of free print and eBooks. All you have to do is enter and that's super easy.

Next I’d to credit Marvin Wilson with coining the term, “blogcation.” I admit to stealing, I mean borrowing, the word for my last post. I couldn’t remember where I first saw it, but it seems it originated on The Old Silly’s Free Spirit blog. This comes as no surprise as Marvin’s posts are always creative.

Finally, happy Thanksgiving to all of you in the U.S. I hope your day is filled with joy and laughter and lots of good food.

Thank you for stopping by today. I hope to see you next week (I'll do my best to stick to a single topic).

Tags: Jackie Collins, blogcation, Las Vegas, drabble, Marvin Wilson, Thanksgiving, Coffee Rings Everywhere, unusual characters,