Knowledge Tuesday: The Semicolon ;)

As an editor, I’ve noticed a trend of overusing and improperly using the semicolon. Perhaps it is because semicolons are cooler looking than commas. Maybe an author decides they already used a bunch of commas, so they must switch to something else. I don’t know, but there are right and wrong ways to use a semicolon.

Semicolons are typically a formal grammar punctuation. You will find them in nonfiction, essays, research papers, etc. For fiction, semicolons should be used sparingly, like one per 50 pages sparingly.

The most common use of the semicolon is to separate two independent clauses* that are not joined by a conjunction**.

            For example:

The participants in the first study were paid; those in the second were not. (Example taken from the Concise Rules of APA Style, 6^th edition)

In film, a low-angle shot makes the subject look powerful; a high-angle shot does just the opposite. (Example taken from The Bedford Handbook, 8^th edition)

Another use for the semicolon is to separate elements in a series that already contain commas.

            For example:

The color order was red, yellow, blue; blue, yellow, red; or yellow, red, blue. (Example taken from the Concise Rules of APA Style, 6^th edition)

Classic science fiction sagas are Star Trek, with Mr. Spock; Battlestar Galactica, with is Cylons; and Star Wars, with Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Darth Vader. (Example taken from The Bedford Handbook, 8^th edition)

Sometimes semicolons are used between independent clauses linked with a transitional expression. For a list of transitional words and phrases, click here. 

            For example:

            Many corals grow very gradually; in fact, the creations of a coral reef can take centuries.

Biologists have observed laughter in primates other than humans; chimpanzees, however, sound more like they are panting than laughing.

(Examples taken from The Bedford Handbook, 8^th edition)

Where I see semicolons misused the most has to do with adjectives or adding more description to a sentence.

            For example:

            (Incorrect)  The woman was kind; sweet and caring to a fault.

            (Correct)  The woman was kind, sweet and caring to a fault.

Semicolons generally shouldn't be used in dialogue either. Unless your character speaks very formally, it would sound weird for someone to speak in semicolons. Think about it. 

A good way to remember not to use semicolons is the winking emoticon ;). If someone winks at you once, it can be charming, playful, flirty. If they keep winking at you, then it becomes downright creepy.

So remember to use your semicolons sparingly. Most of the time you’ll just need a comma, except at times for the rules above.

After all, you don’t want to be a creepy winker, do you? ;) ;) ;)

*Independent clauses are two sentences (subject, verb) that can stand alone but have been joined together by a semicolon.

**Conjunctions are words like “and,” “or,” “but,” “nor,” “for,” “so,” and “yet.”

Knowledge Tuesday: Harry Potter Books Word Counts

No one can disagree that JK Rowling’s Harry Potter books have become a phenomenon. I picked up Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in summer 2001. Then I read it and the other three that same summer and had to wait for what felt like an eternity for books five, six, and seven. On Friday, the last part of the movies will arrive—and yes, I’m attending the midnight showing—and it’ll be the end of a series that means so much to me. Of course, that meaning will come on Thursday’s post. *grins*

Today, I want to talk the books in word counts:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – 76,944 words

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – 85,141 words

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – 107,253 words

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – 190,637 words

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – 257,045 words

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – 168,923 words

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – 198,227 words

That’s a grand total of 1,084,170 words. Over a million words. Wow. I would’ve read a million more. *laughs* And, that’s not even including Quidditch Through the Ages, Fantastical Beasts & Where to Find Them, or Tales of Beedle the Bard.

Of course, as writers, we should pay attention to how many words the first book was. That’s pretty normal for a children’s fantasy novel. Maybe bordering on high for a word count range for that age group—although, who are we kidding? Harry Potter is for all ages.

They say it takes 10,000 hours or 1,000,000 words to write anything worth reading. I wonder how many words JK Rowling wrote before Harry Potter. I would say she definitely has mastered her fantastic Harry Potter universe.

Knowledge Tuesday: How to Create an Origami Crane (Written instructions + pictures)

If you look at the post before, I created a vlog showing how to create an origami crane. Here are the written instructions with pictures:

1. Get a square piece of paper. If you don't have one, you can take a rectangular sheet, fold it diagonally and cut off the end.

2. Fold the paper diagonally. Open it up and fold it diagonally the other way. When you open it up again, it should have a "X" crease like this:

3. Turn the paper over and fold it horizontally. Open it up, turn the paper clockwise and fold it down horizontally again. The paper should look like this:

4. Fold it down horizontally again. Take the corners and fold the paper inward. It should do this easily. Then flatten the sides down, so it looks like a smaller square, like this:

 

5. Take a side and fold it toward the middle. Do the same with the other side. It should look something like this:

6. Flip the paper over and repeat step 5. It should look kite-like, like this: 

7. Fold the top triangle down on both sides to create a crease. Then open one side up and gently fold it down, so it looks like this:

8. Flip the paper over. Repeat the last part of step 7 until it looks like this:

9. Take the paper and fold the insides in again like you did in step 5. It should look like this:

10. Flip the paper over and do the same for this side as you did in step 9. It should look like this:

11. Now see where the slender pieces can move up and down. Lift them up and fold them to the side. These parts will make the head and tail. It should look like this:

12. Take one of the pieces, bring it back down, open the side part a little and fold that slender piece on the inside, like this:

13. Repeat step 12 and flatten the pieces, so it looks like this:

14. Pick one side to be the head. Fold the tip of it down. Move the wings out to the sides a bit, and your finished product should look something like this:

Now you try it.

Knowledge Tuesdays: Magic Eye

According to Wikipedia, Magic Eye is a series of books published by N.E. Thing Enterprises (renamed in 1996 to Magic Eye Inc.). The books feature autostereograms (precisely, random dot autostereogram), which allow people to see 3D images by focusing on 2D patterns. The viewer must diverge his or her eyes in order to see a hidden three-dimensional image within the pattern.

The Magic Eye images have a horizontally repeating pattern which differs slightly with each repetition, therefore giving the illusion of depth when each eye focuses on a different part of the pattern. The stereograms were created using a patented process that allows colorful patterns to be used in creating the final images.

Magic Eye stereograms have been used by orthoptists and vision therapists in the treatment of some binocular vision and accommodative disorders.

Personally, I have always loved the Magic Eye series. For some reason, my eyes almost automatically focus on seeing the images. I know other people who can’t see them for the life of them.

What about you? Do you see them? Or find them fascinating? Or is it just me?

Knowledge Tuesdays: Adverbs Don’t Always End in –ly

As writers, we’re often told to get rid of adverbs. To some extent, I agree with that statement. If we can find a stronger verb, then we should. If we can show the action instead of tell using an adverb, we should. It’ll make our writing stronger. Can you get rid of every adverb? Honestly, I think not, and I don’t think we should try either.

So what are adverbs?

An adverb is a part of speech. It is any word that modifies any part of speech or other verbs other than a noun (modifiers of nouns are primarily adjectives and determiners). Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives (including numbers), clauses, sentences and other adverbs.

Adverbs typically answer questions such as how? (adverbs of manner), in what way? (adverbs of frequency), when? (adverbs of time), where? (adverbs of place), and to what extent? (adverbs of purpose). This function is called the adverbial function, and is realized not just by single words (i.e., adverbs) but by adverbial phrases and adverbial clauses. Side note: In Latin class, we always had to break up a sentence and tell the parts of speech. I remember the adverbial clauses/phrases the best because we had to not only say whether or not it was an adverb but what type. Of course, I was a bit of a know-it-all and corrected the teacher a time or two on them and was known as “Miss Smarty Pants” or “The Genius.” So embarrassing!

  

Here is a list of common adverbs. It’s a long one that goes on for eight pages, and I’m sure we’ve all used some of them in our writing.

So what are your feelings about adverbs in writing?

Knowledge Tuesday: J is for Julius Caesar

I’ve always adored history, but one of the most fascinating persons from history for me has been Gaius Julius Caesar.

Julius Caesar was born on July 13, 100 BCE and died on March 15, 44 BCE, or on the Ides.

A lot of legends swirl around this historical figure. He was rumored to be descended from Venus (a rumor I think he started). As a young man, he was kidnapped by pirates and vowed to return to kill every one of them after ransom was paid. He kept his word on that one. He was a brilliant military tactician, and he had enough charisma to sway the Plebs and many others. Seutonius wrote he was a man to every lady and a lady to every man.

He was practically unknown until 60 BCE when he jumped into the political spotlight. That’s right. He was forty when he got into politics and launched his fast-pace career.

Of course, he is most famous for the way he died by assassination. Although Shakespeare did him a disservice when he said Julius Caesar’s last words were “Et tu, Brute” (Latin for “And you, Brutus”). According once again to Seutonius, his last words were more likely “Kai su, to tekon” or “And you, my child” in Ancient Greek.

If I could meet one person in history, he’d be near the top of my list.