Cole Parker

We can always count on Des to put things in perspective. C

In case anyone is interested, which I don't really expect they are, but still-- I'm about a third of the way through editing J,E. I'm finding a lot to smooth over and rework. I say this based on Camy's comment that there is something out there still to be read. If someone hasn't read this story and means to, now realizing it's there to be read, I now think it would be better for them to wait till the AD version appears, as it will be a new and improved version, as all the advertisers claim. I'd expect I'll be finished with J,E next week sometime if can keep up my present torrid pace. The things we authors do at the behest of our ravenous fans!<g> C

What, the last check bounced? I thought we agreed, ten dollars a week and no more fulsome puffery. Oh, here it is. I forgot to send it. I'll mail it tomorrow. That ought to stop you. C

See! SEE! I knew I was stepping on Trab's toes, even venturing shyly into his area of expertise. C

At your advanced age, you might find enhanced blood flow necessary for certain ancillary functioning. While I certainly am not in need of such help myself, as a public service, I thought I should mention to you that tourniquets on arms and legs during moments of intimacy might help. For more advice on this topic, please contact Trab. He seems to know a lot about straps and such. C

I don't like the tone of that qustion.Please tell me there're no problems with Mark.Or with you.C

Odd, I thought I'd responded to Dude's post, and yet, there's nothing there but some odd 'coon scratching. I'll try again. I know he has seniority privileges, but I didn't realize the included overwriting lesser people's writings. Unfair, that's what it is. Anyway, now that I'm done ranting at the rodent, yes, I'd be delighted to post J,E here. As with all my stories, when I post them anew, I re-edit them, which is good because I always find things needing fixing. So, I'll get to it, and hopefull have it in Dude's hands within a week or two. Thanks for all the hyping you guys were doing, even if it did embarrass me. I guess a little extra blood flow to various parts of the body is a good thing. C

I found myself italicizing single words in a sentence a lot when I began writing, and find myself not doing it so much now. I hadn't thought of that until I read the foregoing, but it dawns on me it is true. I did it for the exact reason Bruin said. I hear dialogue sentences in my head as I write them, and where emphasis was needed, I added it. With a little more writing maturity under my belt, I don't quite feel the need to do this now as when I started. I don't think this has been a conscious decision on my part to dispense with this guidance for the reader, but instead it just came with experience. I don't really know why I stopped dong it so often--I now only do it very rarely--but it probably has to do with more confidence. With more confidence in my writing, I think I've developed more confidence that the reader doesn't need my help. But when I started, I tried not only italicizing words to empahsize them, but italicizing them and putting them in bold face. I cringe when I see that now. C

I'd try my luck except I don't do gore. Really not my thing at all. But this place is swarming with editors. Someone should pop up. C

It could have been yesterday. The days, they do rush by. C

Very good, Colin! A perfect use of all caps. But a disgusting and very disturbing example of the need to. C

That's why you guys used to get me as an operation dummy. I didn't know my way around there, eithef and stubled into a theater one day and became, now, what''s the word, not a vivisectionist, um, oh, I've got it, a vivisectionee. C

Yeah, but you had training in that sort of thing. I was one of the dummies you got to experiment on. Incidentally, to change the subject, great job on your latest Naptown Tale! C

There was a post in the forum yesterday or the day before from Anthony saying he'd love to edit and no one is taking him up on it. You might see if you can find him. He may be great. Why not give him a try? C

While it sounds very proper to say, don't us all caps, it's sort of sleazy, low-class writing, I've seen it done by good writers. I would agree that a better way to do it is say that someone shouted or emphasized or bemoaned something. Then there's no doubt what emotion your character is emoting, and you don't have to stoop to using upper case letters. However, and it's a huge however, writers and their writing need to be flexible. What if, for instance, you've just strung a bunch of 'he saids' and 'she complaineds and 'they crieds' together in a row, and now want a statement made without attribution? So you write something like, Jack turned around and saw Mary coming. He was seething with anger. "You BITCH! You left me there, stranded! WITHOUT ANY PANTS!" Now I don't want to modify or weaken that by adding a 'Jack screamed, red in the face.' I want to leave the statement bare and intense and hot. The best way I can think to do that is just as I show it. Using caps. There's no question what they mean, and if you're getting your intent across to the reader, I see no problem with doing it. Occasionally. I think in much of writing, it's difficult to always obey hard and fast rules, like never use caps to show emotion. I thoroughly agree that one shouldn't rely on it. There are generally better ways. But occasionally we have to be able to write outside of the rule box to create the effect we want. C

Wib, you forgot to add the last line to that story. It went something like: And I'm collecting some pretty interesting photos at work, photos that should make me some pretty good bread some day.

And the well-reasoned, intelligent and sober response to the school board is to recommend violence against them. I'm starting to wonder who let all the loonies loose. C

We all know where the vast store of knowledge in the subject area is. In Trab's chain store.C

Most of us tend to drive down the middle. Especially if we drive an SUV. C

This has to be the raciest blog I've encountered here.Gold lame undershorts, dirty movies, what's next?I'm still waiting to hear more about the chains.C

Where in the world did you come up with that. I had to look it up. And you accuse ME of too obsucre a vocabulary. Trabeculae. Not quite sure how I'd work that into a sentence. I don't talk about that sort of thing! C

And you say you have no imagination, Trab, that you can't invent things out of whole cloth. Of course you can. You've just ruined that argument for yourself from now on. So maybe you should write the next chapter of The Tantalizing Tales of the Travails of the Troubled Trubshaw. C

Good point. One would hope the parents woud care. C

Damn you guys are persistent. I thought I set up a perfectly good diversion there. It didn't daunt you a bit. Give me time to think of something else. How about putting out another chapter of Trab's Tale of Trubshaw? That would be more worthy of your time, don't you think? You guys all seem to have fallen on your swords. Someone come up with something! C

Indeed! There's a special hell set aside for gorillas, too. And if there isn't, I'll design one. C