blamebrampton: 15th century woodcut of a hound (Default)
blamebrampton ([personal profile] blamebrampton) wrote2009-01-18 11:13 pm

Some points of clarification ...

Pursuant to the previous post.
1. If you as an author say that Harry had never seen such deep colors in a sky as he did that morning, I, personally, do not mind. If you have Hermione saying 'It's C-O-L-O-R', then I won't be the only one rolling my eyes at you to judge by yesterday's comments.

2. If you are posting to an archive that insists on British spelling, that's what you provide. Just as you would provide safe fics to the younger oriented archives and dodgy displays of man flesh to the pornier ones. If I ever turn to SPN-dom and they have an archive that demands it, I will be traveling and honoring with the best of them. But if it's just for our own ljs, then I think authors' choice is fine.

3. No one wants Americans to pretend to be British. It never ends well, and it means that some of the great fics of deep emotional resonance from people like Fray and Sansa, and Heathen's poignantly witty comics and Lil's lyrical art would never happen because the artists would all be too busy worrying about whether their characters were being stoic enough. This would be a disaster.

Or, even worse, it would mean more fics in which Draco Malfoy says 'I'm going nutters, you gobshite! What I wouldn't give for a Sainsbury's curry!' And nobody deserves that.

4. Though it would be lovely if overt Americanisms could be kept to a minimum. The obvious things … especially slang and companies. Needless to say, all of you whose work I read manage this very well, so if you have this popping up on your flist, it's something you already do. 

5. We all notice 'Mom'. We know Scholastic did it to you. This is why we have voodoo dolls of their CEO under construction. It would be a great favour if you could use Mum. And the pants/underpants/trousers issue can cause unintentional humour.

6. We do express emotion, just quietly, or with a degree of irony or self-deprecation. Harry is rather highly strung in canon, Hermione's propensity to flee to the girls' loos if she needs a cry is more typical. If the situation calls for absolute emotional honesty, then it is done very  privately and we joke about it later. As Lizzie says in Pride and Prejudice, ``It has been coming on so gradually, that I hardly know when it began. But I believe I must date it from my first seeing his beautiful grounds at Pemberley.''

ETA: And, as Shiv points out, animals receive the full extent of our personal feelings. And more public displays of affection. Not  like that, you disturbing individual.

7. The whole aluminium issue was Humphry Davy's fault. And if minerals were held to the same nomenclature rules as plants, it would be alumium. Strange but true.

8. Horrifyingly, the Macquarie dictionary in Australia lists alright as an acceptable variant spelling, and not just for the adverbial form (which I could accept as an American variation functioning in the same way as altogether/all together). This is not all right, and if any of you know any Macquarie lexicographers, I strongly urge you to remove all alcohol from their persons as they have clearly partaken FAR too liberally. They also prefer fiord, which is obviously madness, over the elegant fjord.

9. Not that this applies to anyone on my flist, but droit de seigneur was NEVER an English concept, more Sumerian. Must learn to not read fic synopses on archives. Stick to the flist, it's a safe place!

10. The heatwave is coming back. Bleargh.

[identity profile] grey-hunter.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 11:58 am (UTC)(link)
HP/Priscilla fic

Yes, please! Complete with Elrond, perhaps?

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:00 pm (UTC)(link)
If there was, it would be swamped by my interest in your clever plots! I'm quite serious, if it's not something ghastly, then there are many details that the brain glosses over if it is otherwise enjoying itself.
ext_135179: (Default)

[identity profile] thisgirl-is.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:07 pm (UTC)(link)
Please write this. No really, PLEASE.

[identity profile] grey-hunter.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:12 pm (UTC)(link)
LOL I will try to be more boring then. ;)

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:14 pm (UTC)(link)
That would be needlessly cruel given that I spend my days editing gardening and DIY stories at the moment ;-)

[identity profile] grey-hunter.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:36 pm (UTC)(link)
*pets* Gardening. That's harsh.

[identity profile] ex-pseudicid32.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Ew. Now that was uncalled for.

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:55 pm (UTC)(link)
That is one solution!

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:56 pm (UTC)(link)
*Looks daggers at you*
*Plans for Slytherin named Heathen who is SO into MCR in next crack fic*
*DUCKS!*

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:57 pm (UTC)(link)
You must never meet Shiv, the two of you would be unstoppable and that nice girl on my flist who seriously believes that people are plotting and planning for a New World Order would be proven right. Which would be disastrous in and of itself ;-)

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:58 pm (UTC)(link)
What can you expect of a man who attempts to excuse alot? *Sigh*

And I quite agree!

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 12:59 pm (UTC)(link)
*cough* (eggnog) *cough*

(Though my fake American would have you dying of laughter. I can get the Californian accent if I have been listening to it immediately before, but my phrasing is woefully awful.)

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 01:04 pm (UTC)(link)
There's loads of interiority, it's just very codified. Once you know the code, it's easy to spot, though it's not immediately obvious to modern English speakers. Sadly, like Shakespeare, Austen is often taught Very Seriously, so all the naughty little jokes and personal giveaways are missed by poor students looking for the Great Literature.

I once had a student arrive at university convinced there was no sex in Shakespeare, and when I said 'country matters?' in a joking fashion, looked at me blankly. I sighed.

In the seventeenth century there was a man named Nahum Tate who went around revising Shakespeare to cut out all the 'uncouth' bits. I fear many teachers still do the same.

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 01:07 pm (UTC)(link)
It's worse than that, half of the dictionaries are having arguments over what is and isn't all right to include. Some are cheap and sluttish and let any old words in, while others deny the possibility of words that are in extremely common usage and which have good provenance. No wonder we're all so confused!

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 01:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Snort! Curry should never be something gooey with pine nuts! Oh dear!

YOU MADE AN HP CHEMISTRY JOKE! I love you! Thank you for the cool air, it ha just arrived and is lovely.

I always quite liked the connection between mum and mummy, since I could warn my mumsy that if she didn't behave, I would have no qualms about hiding her in the British Museum (she can very VERY naughty!)

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 01:21 pm (UTC)(link)
!! XXX!

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 02:15 pm (UTC)(link)
The OED uses realize, there are perfectly good reasons to do so!

I have to say that I notice the emotion in your fics, but I don't find it alarming. It's part of what makes your stories so charming!

Hmm. When do blokes cry?

[identity profile] wemyss.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 02:39 pm (UTC)(link)
Blood, gore, murder, sudden death, the Death of Little Nell? Fascinating and often funny.

Bill Sikes's dog? Uncontrollable weeping.

Re: Hmm. When do blokes cry?

[identity profile] blamebrampton.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 02:43 pm (UTC)(link)
Do not mention the otter! You know the one ...

[identity profile] beatnikspinster.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 03:27 pm (UTC)(link)
:D *is demon seed*

[identity profile] bryoneybrynn.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 03:46 pm (UTC)(link)
My boys? Emotional? Never! ;) Though really, you should see how it is before I tone it down!

As a matter of sober fact...

[identity profile] wemyss.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 04:15 pm (UTC)(link)
... I initially thought to mention T*r*k*, and chose not too, as it was too sad.

[identity profile] aldehyde.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 04:58 pm (UTC)(link)
this post had me laughing out loud JUST AS THE BIG BOSS WALKED BY. i had to stop laughing in mid..laugh! it was very difficult, i tell you.

'I'm going nutters, you gobshite! What I wouldn't give for a Sainsbury's curry!'

ahaha i totally want a cracky fic based around this line ;)

but seriously speaking, i think you made some wonderful points. would you mind if linked to this and the original post on my journal? i think authors on my flist [who aren't on your flist already] would find it educational :)

[identity profile] aunt-agatha.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 06:56 pm (UTC)(link)
This is a fantastic post.

*applauds*

[identity profile] shiv5468.livejournal.com 2009-01-19 07:14 pm (UTC)(link)
I'll have any droits that are going.

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