– Gene –
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I ran out of time this morning and will have to beg forgiveness for not writing a journal entry. I'll try to do better tomorrow. But I did manage to write a very short Blog Entry
More another day . . .
There are so many books and articles aimed at educating the new "writer" that one wonders sometimes if any of them are of value, and if so, which of them are and which are not.
Yesterday I read an article in The American Scholar that is titled – Writing English As A Second Language. It is so clear and sensible that I think it can also benefit the native English speaker. It opened my eyes to what I can do to improve my own writing.
If I cut long or obscure words and use short, simpler, more familiar words, it may make me appear less intelligent to lofty intellectuals dedicated scholars, but if so… then so be it. I will be understood.
Shortening words can be counter-productive misused though.
Shortening words and phrases, such as cell for "cellular telephone" and writing re: for "regarding," seem (to me) to be a bit extreme — but it has become common practice and is therefore acceptable.
Here is a picturesque figure of speech, a quip I believe to have been originated by me —
"I care about that almost to the degree that being an hour late for my daily bowel-movement would concern me."
Then I shortened it —
"I care about that almost as much as being an hour late for my daily bowel-movement."
Then I shortened that —
"That concerns me less than missing my daily bowel-movement."
Hmm…
A friend of mine yesterday criticized my personal comparison of The Works of Shakespeare to the writings of Stephen King over on my BLOG, the one titled Writing's a Hobby, Not My Profession.
He said of it:
Your "blog" entry, in most basic and banal terms, equates Shakespeare's
works with those of Stephen King. Are you tone deaf or just stubborn?
And I have been thinking about his statement and especially his so perplexing question off and on ever since.
Hopefully I will find an appropriate answer soon.
"If there is a special Hell for writers it would be
in the forced contemplation of their own works."
—John Dos Passos
More another day . . .