Reading your footnotes Terry, the mental picture of your wife throttling the Irish police officer for comments re 'womenfolk'. 😅😂Imagining a lawyer making a case with this (self effacing) style would be interesting. I've heard speakers do this and it makes me crazy!
Funny -- I am quite familiar with the non-assertive speaker in this monologue. It is the very same type of monologue that crowds my poor head every time I sit down to write a story. The anti-muse. It hangs around for the first and second draft and then, just before I hit "PUBLISH", it comes back. We are old friends.
I like this post a lot - and I loathe the odious ‘wife’, ‘Mrs’, (and ‘hubby’) references. It’s never good to blur someone into an anonymous third person. But, here in West Berkshire these and others are too common. Oh - and great reference to ‘My Last Duchess’. It’s one of my favourites - and a great one to teach. Though I think it’s not only his ‘last’ duchess he’s bumped off .... Good stuff as always.
I think there were - my 11th grade (year 12) English teacher always stressed then emphasis was on ‘My LAST duchess’ … and the warning he’s giving the courtier who’s arranging for his next one is pretty clear. It’s possibly informed by the Bluebeard tale?!
Awesome post - it really made me think about risky vocab choices in unassertive, 'hedging' kind of conversations.
Also....... *coughs* ....I'm afraid I'm one of those 'please just get on with it!' conversationalists. I'm a NIGHTMARE. I'll never forget someone I hadn't known for very long saying to me 'GET TO THE POINT, REBECCA!'
I shut up in a flash! 🤣
My Substack posts take me a day to write and the rest of the week to cut down from 10,000 words of prevarication to just the 1,500 I like to publish.... 🤣
Hey! You cut back from 10,000 words!? Me too! You and I we get every thought down and then go back and find something usable! Wastes a little time, maybe, but works for me!
Actually, I may have hit the 'hyperbole' switch to make that statement, Sharron. Although I do edit pretty brutally, I don't think I've ever started with a whole 10,000 words for a Substack post. I'm so sorry.
But when I start writing, like you I get it ALL down. Sometimes I sit here scribbling away with my pen, and the words are landing on the page while I'm muttering crossly under my breath about how I want to get all of THOSE words all out of the way so that I can access the better stuff! After a long time writing AROUND the thing I'm writing about - and with luck! - I might have some bits in there that I want to use.
And THEN I get the scissors out....! I cut 800 words from what I'd thought had been my final final final I'm-not-going-to-change-this-at-all-any-more version of my latest post the day before I scheduled it, and it was far better for it! 🤣
Eighteen months ago I had NO idea that this was how writing happens - or at least how it happens for me....! #mindblown
Soul sisters! I am with you on this process exactly. I invariably cut twice as much as I keep. And, I am embarrassed to say, I have been known to edit a piece again AFTER it has been published. And this week? I wrote a story, I published it and then I deleted the whole damn thing and started over. (I believe in England you would call me a fusspot.) However you do it, my friend, keep it up - your posts are brilliant. ( And whenever you doubt that, just remember Sharron assured you.)
Thanks for kind words, Sharron. I find it hard to cut stuff because it's pretty pared down already. At school I was always pulled up for not writing enough:
Teacher: you need to fill it out more.
Me: why? I've explained it fully.
Teacher: but it ought to be longer, e.g. With more examples?
Me: why do I have to explain it more when I've already explained it?
If you're a fusspot, wear that name with a badge of honour! I'm proud to be one - Grandma started it. 'You're a fusspot, Rebecca!' she would tut. I rather liked it.
My writing is carefully crafted, because my pen is a precision instrument applied in the service of literary beauty. My prose is intended to stand as my legacy. My epitaph will read "Ye who would know Terry, do not look here, seek him in his works. "
I think there's a fine line between being annoyingly unassertive and being an obnoxious twat. I used to be in the former category and hope that I haven't moved into the latter. I must write about what a girl said to me once. I'll make a quick note in my ever-expanding ideas list.
Not keen on those either; I think it much nicer to hear affectionate terms, I am otherwise puzzled by what feels to me like a lack of respect or love for the person you choose to be with.
As for the unassertive experiment, finding it hard to warm to him, which I didn't expect! Good caricature.
I agree with you, Mya. It seems incredibly disrespectful. I've met people like that character, and after about twenty seconds I just feel like saying "Please just get on with it!!" Thanks re good caricature.
Reading your footnotes Terry, the mental picture of your wife throttling the Irish police officer for comments re 'womenfolk'. 😅😂Imagining a lawyer making a case with this (self effacing) style would be interesting. I've heard speakers do this and it makes me crazy!
Me too! Yes,that officer for off lightly 😂
Funny -- I am quite familiar with the non-assertive speaker in this monologue. It is the very same type of monologue that crowds my poor head every time I sit down to write a story. The anti-muse. It hangs around for the first and second draft and then, just before I hit "PUBLISH", it comes back. We are old friends.
The anti-muse. I like that 😆
Me too, Sharron
I like this post a lot - and I loathe the odious ‘wife’, ‘Mrs’, (and ‘hubby’) references. It’s never good to blur someone into an anonymous third person. But, here in West Berkshire these and others are too common. Oh - and great reference to ‘My Last Duchess’. It’s one of my favourites - and a great one to teach. Though I think it’s not only his ‘last’ duchess he’s bumped off .... Good stuff as always.
Thanks, Bryan. You mean there were more? 🤔
I think there were - my 11th grade (year 12) English teacher always stressed then emphasis was on ‘My LAST duchess’ … and the warning he’s giving the courtier who’s arranging for his next one is pretty clear. It’s possibly informed by the Bluebeard tale?!
That makes sense.
Awesome post - it really made me think about risky vocab choices in unassertive, 'hedging' kind of conversations.
Also....... *coughs* ....I'm afraid I'm one of those 'please just get on with it!' conversationalists. I'm a NIGHTMARE. I'll never forget someone I hadn't known for very long saying to me 'GET TO THE POINT, REBECCA!'
I shut up in a flash! 🤣
My Substack posts take me a day to write and the rest of the week to cut down from 10,000 words of prevarication to just the 1,500 I like to publish.... 🤣
Hey! You cut back from 10,000 words!? Me too! You and I we get every thought down and then go back and find something usable! Wastes a little time, maybe, but works for me!
Actually, I may have hit the 'hyperbole' switch to make that statement, Sharron. Although I do edit pretty brutally, I don't think I've ever started with a whole 10,000 words for a Substack post. I'm so sorry.
But when I start writing, like you I get it ALL down. Sometimes I sit here scribbling away with my pen, and the words are landing on the page while I'm muttering crossly under my breath about how I want to get all of THOSE words all out of the way so that I can access the better stuff! After a long time writing AROUND the thing I'm writing about - and with luck! - I might have some bits in there that I want to use.
And THEN I get the scissors out....! I cut 800 words from what I'd thought had been my final final final I'm-not-going-to-change-this-at-all-any-more version of my latest post the day before I scheduled it, and it was far better for it! 🤣
Eighteen months ago I had NO idea that this was how writing happens - or at least how it happens for me....! #mindblown
Soul sisters! I am with you on this process exactly. I invariably cut twice as much as I keep. And, I am embarrassed to say, I have been known to edit a piece again AFTER it has been published. And this week? I wrote a story, I published it and then I deleted the whole damn thing and started over. (I believe in England you would call me a fusspot.) However you do it, my friend, keep it up - your posts are brilliant. ( And whenever you doubt that, just remember Sharron assured you.)
Thanks for kind words, Sharron. I find it hard to cut stuff because it's pretty pared down already. At school I was always pulled up for not writing enough:
Teacher: you need to fill it out more.
Me: why? I've explained it fully.
Teacher: but it ought to be longer, e.g. With more examples?
Me: why do I have to explain it more when I've already explained it?
Teacher: 🙄
SHARRON, WE ARE THE SAME PERSON!!! 🤣
If you're a fusspot, wear that name with a badge of honour! I'm proud to be one - Grandma started it. 'You're a fusspot, Rebecca!' she would tut. I rather liked it.
OMG 😲 fusspot squared.
Fusspots of the World - UNITE!
No, please don't
🙌
I do most of the writing mentally, so there's virtually no editing when I come to write . Hyperbole is one on my planned experiments 😂
'... there's virtually no editing when I come to write.'
You can go off people, you know... 🙄
😉
My writing is carefully crafted, because my pen is a precision instrument applied in the service of literary beauty. My prose is intended to stand as my legacy. My epitaph will read "Ye who would know Terry, do not look here, seek him in his works. "
😁
I envy that,Terry! It is so efficient. I, myself, have no idea what is in my head until I see the words on "paper". I wish I could do it your way.
I just write in my head a lot 🤓
I'm with you, Sharron! But I'd quite like to be 'more Terry' sometimes....! 🤣
You may wish to enrol on my course: Become a writing powerhouse in a week.
Me too, though not usually by a factor of 7.5 times the final word count 😂
🤣 Rebecca is prone to exaggeration... 🙄
😂
Thanks, Rebecca. I like words like "awesome" applied to my articles.
🙌
I think there's a fine line between being annoyingly unassertive and being an obnoxious twat. I used to be in the former category and hope that I haven't moved into the latter. I must write about what a girl said to me once. I'll make a quick note in my ever-expanding ideas list.
No. I want to know what the girl said to you right now. Don't make me wait, teaser!
See Start the Week #38
🤣
ok, i'll put it in start the week
😁
Not keen on those either; I think it much nicer to hear affectionate terms, I am otherwise puzzled by what feels to me like a lack of respect or love for the person you choose to be with.
As for the unassertive experiment, finding it hard to warm to him, which I didn't expect! Good caricature.
I agree with you, Mya. It seems incredibly disrespectful. I've met people like that character, and after about twenty seconds I just feel like saying "Please just get on with it!!" Thanks re good caricature.
I'm not a fan of the missus or wifey 😒 But it's a thing people do.
I suppose it's the male equivalent of "the old man", which I don't like either!
Or the equally odious hubby.
"Hubby" 😂 Yes! Odious is rihght!
I agree with you on both counts.
😂😂 Thanks, and sorry!