tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post3177195010902732929..comments2024-01-02T16:42:15.732-05:00Comments on Redlines and Deadlines: It's Not "PC", It Just Makes SenseECPI Editorshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00569261288668237013noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-39744280184029971492008-04-30T10:05:00.000-04:002008-04-30T10:05:00.000-04:00Great topic!Great topic!Debra Glasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11569641430632477351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-87771163398191974102008-01-08T10:24:00.000-05:002008-01-08T10:24:00.000-05:00Thanks for the heads-up, anonymous commenter! More...Thanks for the heads-up, anonymous commenter! More proof that research is important. I'll edit appropriately.<BR/><BR/>While some railroad had been laid in the US by 1830, it's true that there wasn't much going on in California until the 1860s, and <I>that</I> is when Chinese workers began to immigrate to the States.<BR/><BR/>Thanks again! Keep reading. We appreciate a sharp eye.<BR/><BR/>NickECPI Editorshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18084080828327026555noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-4980911058261223092008-01-07T14:52:00.000-05:002008-01-07T14:52:00.000-05:00I had to face the unpleasantness of typing both "n...I had to face the unpleasantness of typing both "nigger" and "faggot" in the same sentence for an EC book I have in edits.<BR/><BR/>It was in character, and demonstrated more about the character and his country than any exposition could. (He'd already used "Injun" and "mud people" too)<BR/><BR/>I like accents.<BR/>I like using them to create the character's speech patterns, and establish their backgrounds. If a character speaks differently in the story than they did growing up, do they relapse? under what circumstances? Do non-native speakers slip into their native tongue? When?<BR/><BR/>That said, I don't want to plow through pages of "ah cain't go nohow, case mah haid is painin me" dialogue. A suggestion of the dialect is sufficient.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-64684962076909648582008-01-07T10:41:00.000-05:002008-01-07T10:41:00.000-05:00even though the books are fiction, they are a refl...<I>even though the books are fiction, they are a reflection of reality</I><BR/><BR/>Yep. This topic always intrigues me. I AM Native American - and a few other things - lol. But (just my perspective) it's not that being NA or a BBW, green-eyed, a senior citizen, or any other "label" defines <B>ME</B>...it's that I define the label, because I am a reflection of my reality.<BR/><BR/>Whoopie Goldberg once said she considers herself an actor first when she's going for a part. She doesn't think Black, woman, Jewish, or whatever else, in other words. She thinks actor and how she can define that role.<BR/><BR/>That's how I view myself, so that's how I define my characters when I write them. Generally, we are the melting pot first...then what's inside the pot. The pot molds the ingredients, not the other way around. Depends upon the genre and style, though...and how we want that reality to be reflected. (perfect line, Raelene)<BR/><BR/>I'm most likely butchering this stream of consciousness, but maybe it'll make sense. That's why I need editors - LOL.Bobbie (Sunny) Colehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10039523903143674505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-38352276070820613142008-01-05T18:08:00.000-05:002008-01-05T18:08:00.000-05:00In one of our recent Ellora's Cave books, the "N" ...In one of our recent Ellora's Cave books, the "N" word is used. (Yes, the one that most of us can't even bear to type - nigger.) A reader wrote to us, very upset. Yes, that word is horrible and no one should use it - but unfortunately, millions of people in this country do use it continually. I tried to explain to the reader that the editor and authors had carefully considered that word usage, and concluded it was appropriate. The person in the book was a very negative character - racist, homophobic, crude, etc. His nasty, offensive dialogue is how the authors illustrated him, rather than just static description.<BR/><BR/>Would I have been brave enough to use that word if I were writing a book? No, I doubt it. Do I expect our editors to flag such usages and put them under a microscope? Yes, indeed. But if it truly fits the story and the times and the character, then no, we do not ban words. So the PC-ers may be upset with us, but even though the books are fiction, they are a reflection of reality.<BR/><BR/>RaeleneECPI Editorshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00569261288668237013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-57239763330653023772008-01-05T10:56:00.000-05:002008-01-05T10:56:00.000-05:00Re Sam: "In one of my books, my editor changed the...Re Sam: "In one of my books, my editor changed the word 'Indian' to 'Native American' in every instance. It made the passages sound stilted, and in dialogue it was terrible"<BR/>Wouldn't this depend on who is thinking/saying it? Perhaps a character from 2008, from the city and up on PC words would say Native American. But if it were set in another time or said by someone more backwoods or illiterate-they would say Indian, right? When do we cross that line and still keep the characters in character?Aimlesswriterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03012050763172251381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-70687447185906261322008-01-05T07:00:00.000-05:002008-01-05T07:00:00.000-05:00In one of my books, my editor changed the word 'In...In one of my books, my editor changed the word 'Indian' to 'Native American' in every instance. It made the passages sound stilted, and in dialogue it was terrible. I negotiated and managed to get most of the Indians reinstated. I believe strongly that one should be careful of not hurting another's sensibilities, but there is such a thing as going overboard on the PC boat. <BR/>:-)Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05943062466398436785noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-13992824501164483322008-01-04T22:31:00.000-05:002008-01-04T22:31:00.000-05:00Great topic! You make a bunch of very important po...Great topic! You make a bunch of very important points. However, if I were to read about "a railway worker of Chinese descent in 1834" regardless of what he was called, I'd be very, very skeptical. Generally speaking, the railroad was little more than a dream until the Gold Rush of 1849, and was not finally completed until 1869. <BR/><BR/>Great blog, though!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983687699975451453.post-27804138933739422992008-01-03T22:32:00.000-05:002008-01-03T22:32:00.000-05:00Good topic! And something I agonize over in some o...Good topic! And something I agonize over in some of my stories. I have one character who is an uneducated black man who runs a kitchen. He is harrassing one of my main characters who is also black. I've gone back and forth on if I should say something like: the old black man. In the end I settled for: The big chef was wearing kitchen whites that were covered in grease and perspiration. Rounder then he was tall, Morgan looked like he hadn’t bathed in weeks. Involuntarily, Willy began to breathe though his mouth so as not to inhale the old man’s putrid odor.--<BR/>Still not sure I like it. Some times I write stuff and then go back to worry of the PC of it all. I wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings but where do we draw the line? A character is a character! There are many different people in the world--so how do I paint them if I can't discribe them without offending someone? Most of my characters are a blend of people I've met in life. <BR/>Is this something an agent would tell you if/when they sign you? "Oh, better change that sentence! Its not PC."<BR/>And what about Stephen King who routinely uses characters depicted as ingnorant and backwoods types? I'm sure not all Maine peeps are like that. Of course I do realize he is Stephen King and he could write what ever he wants, but isn't this kinda what you're saying not to do? SK paints great characters by doing this stuff. <BR/>Thanks again for this topic. I think I'm going to save it for my files. Can I share it with my writing group???Aimlesswriterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03012050763172251381noreply@blogger.com