Tag Archives: terminology
A unicorn is not a gryphon, and precognition is not empathy.
At its core, this post is about the importance of fiction writers using correct/accurate terms for things in their stories, even things that everyone knows are imaginary/not real. Several days ago on a Facebook group, there was a discussion about … Continue reading
It is raining… by zombies?
Have you heard of the “zombie test” for determining whether a sentence contains passive voice? It goes something like this: if you can add by zombies after the verb and have the sentence make grammatical sense, the verb is passive. … Continue reading
Mid-what??
I know I’m not supposed to blog about topics such as word meanings (or grammar, punctuation, or spelling) ever again, but I have to do it this once more or I’m going to end up throwing a metaphorical cyber-fish at someone. So… [ellipses for … Continue reading
Facts for fantasy writers: weapons and armor
Everyone probably knows at this point that any writer of contemporary fiction who gets facts about guns wrong in their stories will receive a lot of email and comments and reviews letting them know exactly where they made mistakes (even if it’s … Continue reading
Charles Wallace Murray is SOOOO much cooler than “Annie” Skywalker.
I knew that title would get your attention… 🙂 True story: Once upon a time, my housemate asked me to go see The Phantom Menace with him and a few of his friends (I’d already seen it, and hadn’t been … Continue reading
On participles and why/how NOT to dangle them
I threatened promised to write a post about dangling participles. Here it is. First, a few simple facts: — A participle is the -ing form of a verb. Write is a verb; writing is the present participle of that verb. (Pay … Continue reading
This makes no sense…
I’m having a stupid day (or week) or something, because I just don’t understand… Compare and contrast: You have a science fiction story in which the protagonist builds a time machine and travels a few centuries into the future, where stuff happens. … Continue reading
P
It’s another of those “grey areas” between science fiction and fantasy, although some people, readers and writers alike, have some especially (yes, pun — of sorts) strong opinions about which side of the line it falls on. P is for … Continue reading
North of Andover 