blamebrampton (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
blamebrampton) wrote2009-01-18 11:13 pm
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.
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.
no subject
I think as long as you leave out 'Crikey, Draco, that's a bit crook,' you have nothing to worry about ;-)
*Ducks to avoid flung cat*
*Wishes hadn't ducked as spent yesterday in the sun and may be dying of thumpy head ...*
*Encourages you to assist with penis post*
*Hugs with ice*
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LOL - seriously, using drug as the past tense of drag has been a rather persistent little problem, and it makes me cry tears of blood. Rather like trying to hurl one of my cats - Kai is about 6.5kg now (possibly more).
I do wonder what my life would be like if I'd never crawled into this crazy world - I'm pretty sure it wouldn't include such exhortations as 'puhleese assist with our penis post'. :D
I really am becoming very disturbed about my language use. And I think 'Crikey, Draco, that's a bit crook,' could work well in a 'Draco meets the outback' story, which then prompts me with a HP/Priscilla fic bunny. Arghhhhh!
*drips*
no subject
(And help with the penis post ;-)
I'm reading Justine Larbalestier's magic trilogy, and her Australianisms are sometimes outrageous. One of her characters grew up in the bush living in a lot of indigenous communities, and she sounds reasonably plausible. But another is allegedly from the Shire and Newtown, and he sounds as though he is out of A Bush Christmas (the B&W version).
no subject
I spent a lot of my childhood on our farm out bush, but only the most craggy of cockies really spoke 'stralian. Although I think I hear worse these days on the 57 tram.
I would help with the penis post, except I'm not sure I have anything new to add. The only thing I can think of is knob jockey, for a persistent wanker. That pathetic cry you hear from me from time to time about my brain being mush? Not an empty wail. *failz*
Way back when I had this bunny where Harry had come to Aus after the war to 'get away from everything' and ended up a very happy and successful gay man in Sydney, and Draco became Minister for Magic, and for some classically contrived reason needed to bring Harry back to the UK to assist on something. Draco had a 20 year old daughter, and Hermione was his ex (yes, I had reasons for ALL of this), and Draco was STRAIGHTSTRAIGHTSTRAIGHT. So ... as my bunny went ... here's this confident, tanned, metro Harry with an accent and a very Aussie approach to life staying as a 'guest' in Malfoy Manor with a very uptight Draco, and a Draco's-daughter who gets a crush on him. >.>
I didn't write that one either.
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You know, it'll be too hot to do much this week, you'll have some writing time ...
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:P
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no subject
Yes, please!
Complete with Elrond, perhaps?