1,251 Reply by amy s (edited by amy s 2016-03-17 00:51:28)

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

That was K giving me crap about the name 'Gillis' because I use it in a singular sense, as a pleural and as a counting unit.  (Although M as a gladiator is a hoot to think about).  I tried to come up with a similar-use noun in comparison. Gladiator was one attempt.

So either I need to count them as a single unit (a gillis), or multiple (gillises/ gilli/ Gillis/ cluster of gillis) or like a murder of crows, flock of sheep, quarum of dwarves...maybe a 'pouring' of Gillis?

Just for fun...
Haggle of Harpies
Kingdom of Dragons
Swarm of Orcs
Clutch of Kobolds
Hive of Howlers
Gentry of Giants

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1,252 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Janet, don't let our idea derail NS. Keep writing since you are in the home stretch.

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1,253 Reply by njc (edited by njc 2016-03-17 01:02:25)

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

The collective singular is fine.  When you need the particular plural (fishes instead of plural fish) use Gillis plants or Gillis pots.

Geez, some people don't know the proper past tense of sh*t.  English is an irregular language, and whatever you're mapping into it can be just as irregular.

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1,254 Reply by AJ Reid

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

amy s wrote:

That was K giving me crap about the name 'Gillis' because I use it in a singular sense, as a pleural and as a counting unit.  (Although M as a gladiator is a hoot to think about).  I tried to come up with a similar-use noun in comparison. Gladiator was one attempt.

So either I need to count them as a single unit (a gillis), or multiple (gillises/ gilli/ Gillis/ cluster of gillis) or like a murder of crows, flock of sheep, quarum of dwarves...maybe a 'pouring' of Gillis?

Just for fun...
Haggle of Harpies
Kingdom of Dragons
Swarm of Orcs
Clutch of Kobolds
Hive of Howlers
Gentry of Giants

This would also make one hell of a drinking game! wink

And no worries! I want to get NS done so that Black J can have his turn too! I have no idea when I'm supposed to fit in ghost stories, but I want to do it, it would be good for me in so many ways. One day!

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1,255 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Flutter of Fairies
Blink of Unicorns
Congress of Elves

I like the idea of drinking games. Especially when I use some of my CME dollars to travel to WA and hang out for a weekend...

I can't wait to see you some day!

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1,256 Reply by njc

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

An Elevation of Elves
A Horn of Unicorns
A Chaste(Horn) of Unicorns
A Taling of Fairies
A Growth of Gillis
A Gruesome of Gillis

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1,257 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Oooooo!

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1,258 Reply by AJ Reid

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

I'd be passed out by round 2. You guys are geniuses!

Amy ... I'm coming down with something. Nice nasal drip, sore throat, ears, head. Only problem, can't afford one day away from work. sad I just need to make the weekend and then I'll REST. SO thanks for not wiping the door handles around TNBW! tongue

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1,259 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Stay away from caffeine, drink lots of water and juice. And remember that Tylenol is your friend!

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Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Juice is loaded with sugar, which suppresses the immune system. Go with water, lots of vitamin C, and zinc lozenges. And a few shots of apricot brandy to make you feel damn good. tongue

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1,261 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

I've been updating my master copy with reviews. I've officially done 80 and only have about 600 more to go. Why didn't I piecemeal this instead of leaving the entire lump for 'later'? 

The reason I'm writing this is because Elishiva is doing what I did and saving her reviews for later revisions. Don't make my mistake. Do it now. Save yourself the pain.

A

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Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

amy s wrote:

I've been updating my master copy with reviews. I've officially done 80 and only have about 600 more to go. Why didn't I piecemeal this instead of leaving the entire lump for 'later'? 

The reason I'm writing this is because Elishiva is doing what I did and saving her reviews for later revisions. Don't make my mistake. Do it now. Save yourself the pain.

A

Eek! I'll do my best. smile Been a bit of a slowpoke with the writing lately, though.


-Elisheva

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1,263 Reply by njc

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

I'm saving many of mine (though not all) because I know I will be a better writer when I get back to them--at least I had better be!

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1,264 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

It's true that I'm a better writer than I was a year ago. And that I see things more clearly. And I'm going through to eliminate 'was' and 'were' verbs. I'm cleaning up the punctuation and all those extra spaces. I'm tightening the action so that it moves quicker.

But, oi. This is a ton of work. I was giving a discouraged writer some advice about revising, and I realized that the words applied to me. If I ignore my own advice, I'm a hypocrite. And it fills the time while I figure out the next chapter's flow and action. But hell in a hand basket. My eyes hurt.

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Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

I kept going back to keep the beginning of the story updated with suggested changes as I plodded on. Eventually, that became too hard. If someone gives me a good idea for chapter 3, it easily could have a major effect on later chapters. Over and over, ad nauseam. I still have a whole act to write and just came up with a major change for Caligula, which will affect earlier chapters. I'll play with it as I finish the book, and it may yet get tossed after I'm done the current draft. By then, much of the early feedback about the book may be irrelevant.

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1,266 Reply by AJ Reid

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

To me, it interrupts/interferes with my writing too much and I kept on taking two steps back, one step forward. Astute observers will note that at that rate, I'd never finish the first draft, never mind a novel. Plan is to take it one chapter at a time and just keep swimming. smile

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1,267 Reply by Norm d'Plume (edited by Norm d'Plume 2016-03-29 02:30:48)

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Time for an epigraph about the Julii family, beginning with a stupid question for Dr. Ess. Is the following sentence correct usage of exhibit: The family also exhibits a large number of psychopaths (the way one is said to exhibit symptoms)?

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1,268 Reply by njc

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

amy s wrote:

It's true that I'm a better writer than I was a year ago. And that I see things more clearly. And I'm going through to eliminate 'was' and 'were' verbs. I'm cleaning up the punctuation and all those extra spaces. I'm tightening the action so that it moves quicker.

But, oi. This is a ton of work. I was giving a discouraged writer some advice about revising, and I realized that the words applied to me. If I ignore my own advice, I'm a hypocrite. And it fills the time while I figure out the next chapter's flow and action. But hell in a hand basket. My eyes hurt.

Well (saith Helana Handbasket), I don't know how much I'm going to rewrite.  I have a few early chapters that are sound and many more that need heavy work.  If I'm going to have to rebuild the engine, I'm not going to bother replacing the spark plugs just now.

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1,269 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Fair enough. It could be that I've just reached a point where the fine details matter. Personally, I think it's because I'm brain dead from these serial cold/ flus and the only thing I can wrap my head around is minutiae. 

Dirk: The terminology is, "There is a strong family history of psychosis, personality disorders, and sociopaths. None of it was ever diagnosed, but behavior doesn't lie. Emperor #1, cut off his own toes with a bolt cutter. Emperor #2 believed he was king of Rome and instated the Roman culture/ rules that we follow today. Emperor #3 was known to go into prolonged, 'fugues' where he stared into space and held the same position for days on end."

You get the idea. Have fun with it :-)

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1,270 Reply by njc

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Isn't #3 catatonia?

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Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

I think #3 describes my normal state of being.
And the answer to njc's question is yes.

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1,272 Reply by njc

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Ouch!  Two people got reviews in ahead of me.  I'll do it before 01:00 (07:00 Zulu time).

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1,273 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

Anticipating your review, but take your time. I've been updating critiques. My butt hurts from sitting so long. Time to walk around the house.

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1,274 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

There is another chapter up. This is the one that took me > 2 weeks to plan and plot out. Glad I got it out of my system and into print. Now I just have to figure out the next chapter and make the magic cooler than shit. Not an easy task. Time to pull out my magic hat!

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1,275 Reply by amy s

Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread

NJC,

It was funny seeing that comment you made about #MSWL. Transgender teenage vampires? Was that it? Hilarious. They do make requests like that sometimes. I'll make sure that I mention it when another one comes up.

It suits the current political environment and time of social change, but someone having a finished manuscript using characters based on this subject seems a bit surreal to me. I still follow #MSWL on Twitter, though. I'm finding that I'm making opinions of who I would like to work with. Kind of a dream list, actually. And I'm seeing what I like (and what I don't) on Twitter when I follow certain authors. It is a useful and painless form of research. I'm getting used to tweeting, as well.

As to what I've been doing with my time (now that the ear infection is better and I can hear high-pitched sounds again…lemme tell you, answering the phone at work was a TREAT), is make a synopsis and summary of Dictates and Acts. I've described every chapter in 5 or 6 lines and I'm using it to go through and see what needs to be added in. Where the holes are.

Ex: I need to go into Andalaya's duel with Alina. I need to make Alina a bigger presence and more of a threat during the beginning of the story. The Guildhouse needs to be described better in the beginning. Acts will end at the duel (or around the place) with Kat and Anver being HFN (happy for now).  The second Anver book will deal with the necromancer and the other Masters will play a bigger part as I muddle the cast list. A student will die in the beginning to create a mystery. Kha will start to mention the risk of current necromancy in Book 2, rather than keeping the reader from focusing on Alina's villainy in Book 1.

Hmmm. Ashes of Academia? Age of Academia? Dunno. But I'm quite pleased with my work, even though (technically) I haven't done anything. Writing out each chapter description gave me a nice distance to see what I need to patch.

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