The Word Cloud

Crossing the road, a lorry knocked him down.

I've never forgotten the trap of this one, after a teacher made us all learn: "Bubbling briskly, the witch stirred the toad's legs into the cauldron."

But your example, Caf, is why the 'rule' peddlers are usually wrong - because how language works can't be reduced to a couple of rules of thumb...

Emma

By the way, Emma, I'm sure you weren't wondering, but it definitely wasn't you who gave any bad advice. Nearly a thousand posts on here, and I haven't seen a dodgy one yet.

Awww, thanks Steve! Though apparently, if you believe Amazon reviews, I've written a dodgy second novel ;)

Amazon reviews are often not worth the... er... electronics they're printed on. I've heard that authors & publishers create fake personalities to write positive ones of their own, and then bad ones for any competition. Not sure where I read that... it might've been an Amazon review. Of sorts.

Any positive ones from real critics?

I hadn't realise C old B had disappeared from the Cloud, but you can find her alter ego here, if you want her:
http://helpineedapublisher.blogspot.com/

Tony - yes, and Nicola's blog is well worth keeping an eye on. She knows whereof she speaks, even if her current piece is a rather gloomy one.

"Any positive ones from real critics?"

As in reviews of my work? Yes - they're on my website (not my blog)

Tony - thank you for the pointer to Nicola's page. Surprised you didn't embed that link as a testeroonie.

There you go... Emma shows us how that's done.

Thanks for the link to your website, Emma.

Ah, I surely would have done, Steve, but I posted here before I read your cool hyperlinking blog.

I never was good at... er... timing.

Hi Steve, when I first put my oar in, I didn't know you were writing from the "pleasing the publisher's" point of view. Obviously, everything they say is correct and beyond criticism. Poor peasant's like me, have no idea which rules are English Grammatical Rules, which are "Publisher's Rules" and which are just fashionable Rules, that seemed like a good idea at the time. Thank God I'm not trying to write an intellectual literary work, imagine what a bugger up that would be! I did understand Emma's "bubbling witch" example, so thanks for that, and I do like Carf, it has a certain ring to it.

O.K. now you guys are getting all first world on me again with this hyperlink stuff. I'm lost -again.
Carf!

I had a writing philosophy from the very beginning. My first book (non-fiction) was written from the heart, with complete honesty and exactly the way I wanted it to be. I will always have that for me, close friends and people I want to share it with - no one can take that away. Then I set about getting it properly published. I recognised that any agent or publisher would bugger about with it (at least to a certain degree) to get it however they wanted. There's no such thing as a 100% true non-fiction book - all you need to hear is the industry mantra to realise that: dramatise, dramatise, dramatise. Not only have I updated versions designed to appeal to publishers, but I decided to allow changes to it in any way that got it published. Even if they crucify its heart along the way, my perspective is two-fold:

1. I've always got the original version that will remain untouched.
2. Once I'm published (successfully enough), that brings a little credibility and opens up the door to being allowed to write more how (and what) I want to. Then I can bring some proper, truly important writing to the world that I will not allow any buggering about with.

Out of the mouths of babes and Clouders Steve. I agree with the last sentiment wholeheartedly.

Trouble can also arise when you employ more than one editor during the course of a project and they disagree on a way forward. One suggests that you should ditch an idea because it simply doesn't work, so you do, only to have the next suggest that you should include it.

Generally, if ever you have the slightest doubts about something within your writing not seeming right, it normally transpires that your thoughts were justified and vice versa.

Let your flow go with it Steve. Trust your instincts.

FREEDOM!

Hang on. Where did the other page go? I think that I may have commented on a previous page entry...Yep, there we go, entry No. 25 but this has come up as entry No. 12?

Story of my life; always one page behind.

That'll teach me to post when I'm sober.

Kim, my instincts told me you would urge me to trust my instincts. Smasing to hear from you, too.