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| bio | website | |
|---|---|---|
| location | United Kingdom | |
| age | 59 | |
| visits | member for | 2 years, 1 month |
| seen | Apr 23 at 16:31 | |
| stats | profile views | 32 |
Got a degree in language & literature a long time ago, but I don't read much fiction/creative writing these days.
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Apr 22 |
comment |
“…and the fire from the stove engulfed him” or “jumped on him” or “covered him” or “devoured him” or what? @David: Not necessarily. But in this case, I believe the OP isn't even a native speaker of English, and there's surely no doubt that leap out is far more common in his context than any of engulfed/jumped on/covered/devoured. I also think it's unlikely a native speaker would say/write He opened the stove and the fire from the stove... Firstly, it would invariably be flames, and secondly, repeating the stove is bordering on "unnatural". OP's version doesn't reflect "creative use of language", so much as lack of familiarity with natural English. |
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Mar 28 |
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Should I write about how the character solved some riddle or let the reader solve it himself +1 for excellent suggestion! |
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Mar 28 |
awarded | Yearling |
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Jun 21 |
comment |
How do I cite Google Public Data in my bibliography (APA format)? This "cut-down" APA6 guide may help. |
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Apr 23 |
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Title Choice: “The Girl [Without/Who Didn't Have] A Soul” @SomeNorCalGuy: I vote to close according to what I want to see answered on ELU, rather than according to what the faq says, or how others interpret it. OP's first question (Do they mean exactly the same?) struck me as trivial/pointless. The second (Which sounds better as a name for a short story?) seems like a "creative writer seeking advice" question to me - so I'm quite content it was migrated, even if you don't want it here after all. |
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Apr 22 |
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Title Choice: “The Girl [Without/Who Didn't Have] A Soul” @Neil Fein: I didn't migrate it - I'm not a mod, so I have no power to do anything like that. But I think I'd have voted to close if it had stayed on ELU, regardless of any feasible extra details OP might supply. Having said that, I think it is answerable on writers.se as it stands - imho, the xxx who didn't have a yyy is something of a "stock format" particularly for children's short stories. But you're a mod on writers.se, whereas I'm only an occasional visitor, so I'm certainly not going to argue with your decision. |
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Apr 18 |
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Title Choice: “The Girl [Without/Who Didn't Have] A Soul” This should go on writers.se |
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Apr 4 |
answered | Would it be weird if I write “a simple sample something”? |
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Mar 28 |
awarded | Yearling |
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Mar 16 |
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Trying to indicate that the frequency is annoying I actually don't think that's an accurate rephrasing for exactly what OP wants to convey. This version could easily apply when the speaker isn't in fact annoyed at all, but for some completely unrelated reason wants to point out that it's being asked too often. Perhaps he even likes answering this question because he's done it so often he finds it easy - but his boss thinks this is a non-productive activity, and is planning to change the mechanism by which such questions are routed through to the speaker. |
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Mar 16 |
awarded | Critic |
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Mar 16 |
answered | Trying to indicate that the frequency is annoying |
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Mar 15 |
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Need help to rephrase this sentence to prevent a run-on Belongs on writers.se |
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Mar 15 |
revised |
How to write a book for a given reading level? added 143 characters in body |
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Mar 13 |
answered | How to write a book for a given reading level? |
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Mar 13 |
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Deaf speechmarks? Another alternative would be to use different speech demarcation symbols - put the signings <between characters like this, for example>. |
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Mar 13 |
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Deaf speechmarks? I think this should be on writers.se, but I suggest using a different typeface (italics if you've nothing better). |
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Mar 6 |
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“The company from Redmond” vs “The Redmond company.” I think in practice you'd be more likely to see "Redmond-based company" rather than plain "Redmond company". |
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Feb 24 |
awarded | Nice Answer |
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Feb 20 |
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I want to explore the psychology of a ruthless, macho killer. What mistakes should I avoid? @Carl Seleborg: The reader needs to be skilfully encouraged and guided, obviously, but he'll enjoy the tale more if he's been "actively engaged", even though he won't normally be consciously aware of this. The bonus for you if you get this right is that the reader fills in exactly the kind of "background details" that seem right to him - rather than always taking yours, which may not always work so well for everyone else. |
