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Post by Becca Mills on May 9, 2014 13:52:13 GMT -5
I don't think one is better than the other, it just depends where you're from or where you learned English. Yeah, I agree -- what looks "normal" is just a matter of what you're used to. Commas and periods outside the quote marks look weird to me, like they've missed the train and are trailing along behind, trying to jump on the caboose. But you have to admit, the UK way is simple and has a clear, straightforward, consistent rationale behind it, and the U.S. way really doesn't. I do admire it when rules can be clear and simple, so that you don't need a 32-cell table to explain them. I'm going to lift my teacup ... er ... Diet Coke can in a east-northeasterly direction on this one. |
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Post by Alan Petersen on May 9, 2014 14:00:46 GMT -5
I don't think one is better than the other, it just depends where you're from or where you learned English. Yeah, I agree -- what looks "normal" is just a matter of what you're used to. Commas and periods outside the quote marks look weird to me, like they've missed the train and are trailing along behind, trying to jump on the caboose. But you have to admit, the UK way is simple and has a clear, straightforward, consistent rationale behind it, and the U.S. way really doesn't. I do admire it when rules can be clear and simple, so that you don't need a 32-cell table to explain them. I'm going to lift my teacup ... er ... Diet Coke can in a east-northeasterly direction on this one. I was born and raised in Latin America and we get the same thing from Spaniards with the whole Spain Spanish versus Latin American Spanish. And I was taught American English since my Dad was American, so to me American English seems natural compared to British English. I've never really studied British English, so I'm not sure about the clear and straightforwardness of it. I just really known the one version well.  But I've read books from British authors set in the UK and I don't have any problems reading British English at all. I like it since I really feel like I'm over there reading the story. |
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Post by removinglimbs on May 9, 2014 19:15:32 GMT -5
It's like if I write about a character "slapping a magazine into his revolver". I actually read that once! Now THAT would really make me grind my teeth! |
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Post by Becca Mills on May 9, 2014 23:15:43 GMT -5
It's like if I write about a character "slapping a magazine into his revolver". I actually read that once! Now THAT would really make me grind my teeth! Maybe it was this gun:  Wacky, huh? |
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Post by Rinelle Grey on May 10, 2014 2:45:09 GMT -5
I do believe as a writer we need to do our research regardless if you're writing British or American English to at least get the lingo correct. I believe EL James was criticized for her characters being American's born and living in Washington but saying things waiting in queue, or the lift vs the elevator. Stuff like that is lazy. It's like if I write about a character "slapping a magazine into his revolver". I actually read that once! I think though, that researching language usage is much more complex. I mean, it's easy to go, 'my character has this type of gun, what type of ammunition does it take?' but the differences between American and British are so complex. You can't look up every word in your novel, just to see if an American would use it, or something different. Yes, there are lists for the commonly substituted words, but they can't possibly contain everything. And sometimes the phrasing is just as important as the words used. If you were going to do this, the only way would be to have an American editor comb it thoroughly for misused words. Even then, I'm sure some would slip through. This is why I don't, and never will, write books set in America! |
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Post by lindymoone on May 11, 2014 4:25:06 GMT -5
Now THAT would really make me grind my teeth! Maybe it was this gun: Wacky, huh? I read this " the HARdick handgun" and it seems the illustrations bear that out... |
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Post by Deleted on May 11, 2014 8:50:24 GMT -5
I do believe as a writer we need to do our research regardless if you're writing British or American English to at least get the lingo correct. I believe EL James was criticized for her characters being American's born and living in Washington but saying things waiting in queue, or the lift vs the elevator. Stuff like that is lazy. It's like if I write about a character "slapping a magazine into his revolver". I actually read that once! Absolutely! I'm an American. My characters are American. Brits over at Writers' Cafe joked about me calling Writers' Cafe "WC." Well, if you refer to a toilet as the "WC" in the US, you're going to get some strange looks. If you use the term in a book that takes place in an American setting with American characters, yeah, that's lazy. No American refers to a toilet as "WC." I've traveled to the UK four or five times, but I would never write a book that took place in the UK without doing extensive research. |
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