What Tongue are You?

 

We have recently added 4 more authors to our wagon--welcome! You can visit them to see how they apply languages to their work: 
Anastasia V. Pergakis,  J. D. Brown, Alex J. Cavanaugh, Deirdra Eden-Coppel, M. Pax,  Jeffrey Beesler, Charlene A. Wilson, and Andrew J. Cooper! 


I love to invent words. I have a list of made-up words in my writerly sketch book. My first novel is a high fantasy read using invented words for native creatures. The goblins have their own language, which I didn't translate. Oops.

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Nowadays, I keep a dictionary in a separate file and refer to it as I write the novel.

I keep my words simple, pronouncable. I don't always directly translate what a character says:

"Fermer la porte." Collette shivered.

"Do you mean close the door?"

Collete nodded.

V.

"Fermer la porte," Collete pointed to the door with a shiver.

"You get cold too easy, I swear." John kicked it shut. "You're welcome," he taunted.

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Like in the second example, I drop clues so you won't catch a headache. I do the same with real languages such as my Viking novel and Eros.


 


How do show your character language?

Book Review: Kite: a Novel in Earth Obrit , by Bill Shears

Mason Dash is your ordinary man who enjoys being his own boss. He works high over Earth's atmosphere in a satellite-like machine that cleans up floating debris. All is yawns and boxers. That is, until . . . unexpected chaos unfolds when a computer program becomes self-aware and hungers for power. Dash's virtual 'doll', Sheila, stows away during one of his shifts. Sheila is the only 'person' who can communicate with this software tyrant, but there are other dangers afoot!

Science fiction has such a different feel! The possibilities are expansive. I had fun reading, in vivid detail, the twisted mind of a tiny module living as software inside Kite. Rich detail explains the world it lives in, always moving the story forward. If computer programs wanted to take over the world, this would be the right book for them.

The story is well-written and well thought out. There is swearing here and there, and a 'joining' of programs similar to mating for those who are wondering about content. I had the feeling that the story didn't want to end--you'd have to read to find out yourself!

Visit Bill Shears to find out more about his work!

Order your copy of KITE!

Servers and Writers are Related.

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We went to the Olive Garden on our date night. It was very pleasant. Our server made sure our drinks were filled, our empty plates removed, and our food just right. So, is there a relation between servers and writers?

Yes, yes, yes!

How, you ask?

What if the waiter forgot to fill your drink? Or your food was cold? What about forgetting the cutlery for your juicy steak?

We don't notice the server if everything goes smooth. But oh, boy, we notice alright when she messes up, don't we?

Well, that's how it's like for writers. The reader won't notice the writer as s/he reads our work, but if we don't polish them books, our authorness screams in their faces and reminds them that they are reading a book.



How do you feel when you stumble across author intrusion?

Like the Pioneers--

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The Mormon Pioneers fled the eastern coast for a place where they could find hope and life. Many had to leave by the seat of their pants: pack only what they needed.

Heirlooms? Abandoned.

Blankets? What could be piled in the tiny handcarts.

Cookware? Only the bare necessities.

Shoes? What was on their feet.

Children? Well, only the tiniest got to ride, while the older ones helped pull or carry the younger ones.

I was praying earlier this week about my writing dilemma, and as I prayed, I a sudden thought about how these people struggled with the thinnest of things came to mind. I can only imagine having to pack up and leave immediately, taking the stuff that would help keep my family of 6 alive in the wild.

The reason why I bring this up is because it relates to my writing. I've been burdening myself with figurative heirlooms, the extra blankets, extra shoes, a few more pillows, a handful of plates and extra tin cups and maybe a jar of pickles for the craving.

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I've realized that, on my journey across my writer frontier, I should only take with me what I absolutely need and not what I want. I've found my thoughts to be cluttered with things that have been weighing my heart down to the point that writing has lost pleasure. I need to review my inventory and weed out the things that aren't aiding in my adventure to publishdom.

Since then, I can feel my internal balances shifting to a better fulcrum; a new starting point that has promising venues with a lighter weight to pull as I go along this terrain that is familiar, yet strange. Daunting, adventurous and magical.

How do you pack your handcart and handle the journey?

Self Sabotaging

The road ahead feels unsure, rocky and precarious. I know I can do it, I know I can! I've made it this far!

I am preparing one of my manuscripts for submission and the hardest part is for me to take courage and do it. I am afraid of the what ifs, you know, the little devil on my shoulder telling me that I can't?

How do you do it?

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