Who writes this stuff?

[Bertram Henze]

I agree with Strunk in some points, e.g. when he's against burying the core meaning in some subordinate clause, but OTOH too much minimalism is doubleplusungood when it comes to clipping the richness of language

[journeybear]

Oh, I agree, of course. There surely is a middle ground, a happy medium, wherein one will find his or her needs and desires served best. Most important in any form of communication is meaning, and most important in method is accurate transmission of this meaning, to maximize understanding and minimize misunderstanding. Conciseness is indeed a good approach, as it enables the recipient of a communicated thought to perceive this meaning without having to sift through possibly overwhelming amounts of verbiage. But like you, I don't care for the end result to be a bloodless, dried-out husk of stlistically correct formations with the kernel of well-chosen words in well-crafted forms crushed and discarded. There are so many more words in the dictionary than are used in everday communication, and they exist to be used.

Many times I have read an old book and been impressed by the choice of words, which the author used precisely because they were just the right ones to convey his meaning. One of the reasons I find so much enjoyment in movies from the 30s and 40s is the writing that went into the screenplays. For an hour and a half or two I get to experience living in a time when people spoke a language that rich and colorful. Sure, that's not the same as real conversational language, but it seems a lot closer to language's potential than what I usually hear in the present. I am also grateful for this medium, which provides the time that permits the composition of sentences that I seldom am able to produce in conversation. This is a luxury, and a rare free one. Enjoy it, and use it well.

[Charlieshafer]

OK, if this is turning into an English Lit. session, you are all assigned to read Gilbert Sorrentino's "Gold Fools" by next Friday and report back to me. No excuses will be accepted.

[journeybear]

Yikes! OK, I'm sorry. I was kidding! Kidding about it all! "Written entirely in interrogative sentences?" Who has the time or patience to read that? Do you think I do? I yi yi!

Excellent citation, though ...

[Denny Gies]

But Ed, the year is still young. We have lots of posts to go.

[mandolirius]

But Ed, the year is still young. We have lots of posts to go.

True, but for a brief moment I wrote someone's favourite post. Hey, like me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, join my site, devote yourself to vicariously living my life! That's what I love about the internet......it's all about me. Isn't it?

[Dave Cowles]

A grand display of grammatical preening. You certainly don't want to fail to enjoy not missing this one!

[Charlieshafer]

Yikes! OK, I'm sorry. I was kidding! Kidding about it all! "Written entirely in interrogative sentences?" Who has the time or patience to read that? Do you think I do? I yi yi!

Excellent citation, though ...

It's a slog, but if you make it through 50 pages, I'll award you with a gold star and a collection of really lame demo cd's I've been sent over the past year.

[journeybear]

Thanks, but ... You may not find this hard to believe, but that falls short of sufficient incentive. I used to write for a music mag, and the stuff we got sent ... Hoo boy! We would actually listen to all of them, though - props for us - but in the six years I was there, I can recall only two unsolicited CDs worth anything. One was from a fellow named Kenny Chesney, which we passed on (we were more indie-rock-and-pop-oriented), the other by a guy you might know - Marc Teamaker, whose album surprised me, and impressed me enough to include on my annual Best Of list. These constituted a fraction of a tenth of a percent of what we received. So, um, thanks all the same. Next in the queue: Patti Boyd's autobiography. Though I just picked up at the library book sale, a coffee table book: the history of the Grand Old Opry, published in 1975. That might be next instead. Ms Boyd's book keeps getting pushed back, somehow ...

[Bertram Henze]

I recommend reading Mr. Mitchell's Cloud Atlas, which contains a remarkable variety of past, present and future versions of the English language.

[journeybear]

Yay, that be the true true. In all the yarnin', this got my curio, especially in the latest segments. Saw the movie, haven't read the book, and this sprang upon me without warning. A bit of interpolation got me through most of it. It certainly was colorful! And it helped to cogg where in the story (stories) I was. Somewhat ironic that the language being spoken in the furthest forward times harkened back to something resembling much earlier patterns, almost like pirate-speak.

[Astro]

Bob. I think the guy that rights this stuff is named Bob.

But I may have spelled his name backwards.

[Bernie Daniel]

"on a scale of one to ten", "at the end of the day" "going forward".....and on and on. Once these catchphrases become common-speak, people just start throwing them in for no useful purpose. Mostly notice it in speech but sometimes in writitng too. That's why I hate them - they eat braincells. And don't even get me started on "literally".

Shut up! Braincells? OMG, that's like awesome! You know?

[John McCoy]

...the exact quote from Shakespeare's "Romeo And Juliet" ("what's in a name" etc.)....

I think the line you're seeking is:
"You can change the name of a rose, but you can't do nothing about the smell."



(Anybody recognize this and know source?)

[journeybear]

Actually, I was looking for the correct phrasing so I could then mangle it - um, paraphrase it - thusly:

What’s in a name? That which we call a mandolin by any other name would sound as sweet.

I think I'll stick with that.

[MikeEdgerton]

Pick guard is not stalled, but it is included in the case.

At least that won't slow you down any. I'm surprised nobody caught that one unless I missed it.

[Ed Goist]

This thread seemed the right place to post this gem of a Craigslist ad...
I am sure many of us understand exactly where this person is coming from...
Testify Brother!

[John McCoy]

I love that!

Reminds me of an eB-- listing I once saw. It ran something like this:

A dried-out ball-point and a bent paper clip I found in my desk drawer.

Buy it Now: $1000.00

[Gary Hedrick]

I needed this thread after the crap I've put up with today........I've laughed and laughed......clever bunch of folks here on the Cafe

[allenhopkins]

I needed this thread after the crap I've put up with today........I've laughed and laughed......clever bunch of folks here on the Cafe

Yeah, well, same to you, fellah…!

[Tom Cherubini]

Remember, when you write, avoid cliche's like the plague!