It seems to me, Chicago Manual of Style notwithstanding, that Secretary of State is a unique title - there is only one of those at a time - with unique duties. You can be a "general," but General of the Army is a specific title that means a 5-star general. A "a general of the Army" can be any general of 1-4 star rank. Lower case secretary of state suggests the person is a secretary of a state (which one?) with nebulous duties. So unless my publisher nixes it, I would capitalize it, even standing alone without a name attached.
101 2019-06-17 22:06:17
Re: Capitalization of Secretary of State? - Capitalization (8 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
102 2019-06-06 19:17:37
Re: Old-time slang (13 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I remember "chrome-plated" as being derogatory, as implying a fraud, like, "All hat, no cattle." And "radioactive" I remember as an adjective for someone to avoid.
"Can't dance" meant it wouldn't work.
A DA hairstyle. . . well, I think you know what that was.
103 2019-06-06 18:56:25
Re: Lit Quiz (25 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Got the book right, Alan. The character who said it - Jake Barnes. I like that quote from your grandmother!
104 2019-06-06 18:06:02
Re: Lit Quiz (25 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
1. Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye
2. "It is awfully easy to be hard-boiled in the daytime, but at night it is another thing."
105 2019-05-11 11:23:50
Re: The Results of the 2018 CIBA Awards Are In! (24 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Congrats, Randy!
106 2019-04-23 17:17:02
Re: What is up with this formatting?! (18 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
j p lundstrom wrote:
jack the knife wrote:I've been manually editing these for about a year now.
Funny. I haven't had any problems, and no one could be less tech savvy than I. I did have some difficulty when I first joined, and found that changing my browser (at Sol's suggestion) fixed things. Not that you're having the same trouble. I would ask him, and see where the problem lies. JP
What browser do you use?
107 2019-04-22 12:18:30
Re: What is up with this formatting?! (18 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
When I copy and paste a chapter from Word to the site and review it, it looks fine. But when it actually appears, there are no paragraph separations and no italics. I've been manually editing these for about a year now. Does it with both Google Chrome and Explorer. Didn't used to, and I didn't have to do the CTRL/V thing before, either. to get it to paste.
108 2019-03-25 21:38:49
Re: In-line vs Regular Review (20 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
vern wrote:
Suin wrote:j p lundstrom wrote:Refresh our memory--
Generally, do writers prefer to receive an in-line or regular review?
Feedback?I think it depends on the reviewer. Some are great at inlines and can leave dozens of comments about commas and word choices, while regular reviews can be very powerful for big-picture feedback.
Yes, you can give/receive powerful big-picture regular reviews, but there is nothing to prevent that same powerful big picture review and more with an in-line review. IMO, the only reason to choose a regular review would be that at least five things to improve can't be found as ostensibly could be the case in a very short piece whether poem, essay, very short story, etc. Still, the reviewer has the option to choose the one they are most comfortable with. Take care. Vern
Aptly said, Vern.
109 2019-03-24 11:04:28
Re: In-line vs Regular Review (20 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Mariana Reuter wrote:
I prefer the in-line reviews over the regular ones. Much more, and deeper, suggestions can be shared through the in-line reviews.
I don’t reply to every comment (some point at typos, no need to reply to them). However, I do reply to most of them because I want the reviewer to realise I did pay attention to what he/she pointed at. I want the reviewer to keep reviewing my work, so I want them to feel their comments were appreciated.
Sometimes, I answer with an argument against a comment not because I think it’s crap but because I feel what I tried to convey was not understood and needs to be further explained. Most of the time, the reviewer’s answer to such arguments allows me either to realise I need to do some rewriting, or to confirm me the reviewer double checked and grasped the message he/she had failed to at first glance, in which case no rewriting is needed.
I also like when I write an in-line review and the writer answers some/most of my in-line observations. It opens a communication mean between the two of us and helps me to keep on reviewing their work.Kiss,
Gacela
Exactly.
110 2019-03-23 21:38:55
Re: In-line vs Regular Review (20 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Rachel Parsons wrote:
jack the knife wrote:What I like best are responses to my in-line comments in addition to a closing response. Only a few authors do that, and unless they specifically respond to my in-line comments in their closing response, I have no idea if my comments were worthwhile. A "Thanks for the review, I appreciate your comments" is pretty worthless to me as a reviewer. Accordingly, I try to respond to in-line comments of my own work when appropriate.
I try to respond to in-line reviews to let people know that their comments are worthwhile. Sometimes, because I disagree, especially on the technical issues.
Yes, when I disagree (not just with a wording alternative suggestion), I will often express that. Likewise, if the author disagrees with my comment, I'll DM him/her if it's an important issue. That's the only way to extend the dialogue process, and it's a limitation of the system. At times I've had to establish a "connection" with the author (the only way you can send them a DM) just to do that.
111 2019-03-23 19:11:55
Re: In-line vs Regular Review (20 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
What I like best are responses to my in-line comments in addition to a closing response. Only a few authors do that, and unless they specifically respond to my in-line comments in their closing response, I have no idea if my comments were worthwhile. A "Thanks for the review, I appreciate your comments" is pretty worthless to me as a reviewer. Accordingly, I try to respond to in-line comments of my own work when appropriate.
112 2019-03-14 16:11:04
Re: Recreated published shelf and Bookstore (9 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Got it done.
113 2019-03-14 14:18:15
Re: Recreated published shelf and Bookstore (9 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Sol - Is the 60-word limit to the blurb carved in stone?
114 2019-03-08 11:35:51
Re: Beta readers wanted (2 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Thanks, Randall! Message me your e-mail address.
115 2019-03-08 03:15:54
Topic: Beta readers wanted (2 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I've got a friend looking for beta readers for her book. It's about Las Vegas in the '80s, when she came to town and unwittingly became part of a mob family. Real people are in the story, but it's not really a memoir. Anyone interested?
116 2019-03-04 21:56:12
Re: 3 Ways Insecurity Hurts Your Writing (6 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
[quote=Temple Wang Some people will find holes in your story that you didn’t expect.
Plot holes are always a crucial concern for me. If someone pointed one out in one of my stories, I'd be embarrassed I hadn't recognized it, but grateful it had been pointed out. This is what makes TNBW worthwhile. Someone insecure, afraid to post their stuff because they're afraid of criticism, would not last long here.
117 2019-02-27 02:45:01
Re: Aeon Timeline (4 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Sounds like I could use it for my WIP!
118 2019-02-26 13:31:00
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Kdot wrote:
Dirk B. wrote:Kdot wrote:you should remove everything after /ref= so that Amazon cannot track how users are arriving at your story (which may negatively impact your reviews)
Why would that negatively impact reviews? It's still a link to Amazon from a reputable site. They get their cut if someone buys.
In the unlikely event you should get a number of reviews from the same link, Amazon may accidentally flag them as shills. I don't believe it's common, but why lose your valuable reviews?
It's happened before. I think Ann Everett posted about this some time ago.
119 2019-02-26 11:32:07
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Temple Wang wrote:
jack the knife wrote:Temple Wang wrote:Just curious - is the Book Shelf feature on this site a significant source of sales for authors on this website? For example, in a month, how many books would you guess you sell from having the link here?
I would guess close to none, but that's not the point, it seems to me.
I see. Thank you.
Well, I wasn’t really trying to make a point. I was genuinely curious. But now that you mention it, if selling books is not the point, then what is the point?
Thank you
I don't think selling books to each other here at TNBW is the point. But having links to those books would show the products that result from membership in TNBW and be a reminder that publishing success is possible for those just starting out.
120 2019-02-26 02:09:30
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Temple Wang wrote:
Just curious - is the Book Shelf feature on this site a significant source of sales for authors on this website? For example, in a month, how many books would you guess you sell from having the link here?
I would guess close to none, but that's not the point, it seems to me.
121 2019-02-25 23:19:04
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Kdot wrote:
you should remove everything after /ref= so that Amazon cannot track how users are arriving at your story (which may negatively impact your reviews)
Yes!
122 2019-02-25 21:31:31
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Yes!
123 2019-02-25 19:28:46
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I copied and pasted the Amazon links to my books onto my profile page. You have to highlight the link, then right click on it, then click on the Go to... It's working for my links.
124 2019-02-25 02:19:38
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Okay, I added the Amazon links to my books to the bio on my profile page. I think they work.
125 2019-02-25 01:52:30
Re: Bookshelf publications have gone missing!! (35 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I know how to copy and paste, but I don't see where I can do that in my profile, unless I edit my bio and add it there.
