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Noticing Newbies: December 21, 2016 Issue [#8037]

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Noticing Newbies


 This week: Say This Not That
  Edited by: Tornado Dodger Author IconMail Icon
                             More Newsletters By This Editor  Open in new Window.

Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter


The Noticing Newbies Newsletter's goal is to make the newer members feel welcome and encourage them with useful information and/or links to make navigating Writing.com easier. Writing.com members of all ages and even veteran members can find useful information here. If you have specific questions, try visiting "Writing.Com 101Open in new Window. and/or "Noticing NewbiesOpen in new Window..


Meet The Noticing Newbies Full-Time Newsletter Editors






Word from our sponsor



Letter from the editor



I've been a member of this site for over 12 years. That's a long time and in that time, I've made a lot of mistakes. That's important though because that is part of the learning journey. Writing is a journey, an adventure of sorts. So pack up your knapsack and let's get hiking. You must write to get better. There is an old quote that says, "Mistakes are proof that you're trying." and it's true. There is no shame in making a mistake when you're still learning. So with that in mind, how many of these mistakes have you made?

*FacePalm* Sneak Peak
This is something I see a lot and I think the best way to remember this is something I learned from Grammar Girl. Think of the two 'ee's in peek like eyes that are peeking. Sneak peek is secretly looking where peak is something you'd use to describe a high point or pinnacle. There is one other "peak". Do you know what it is?

*FacePalm* Peaked my interest
Peek, Peak, and Pique are the three choices that sound alike but mean very different things. In "Peaked my interest" it almost sounds correct but in truth, it should be pique. Pique is a French word that means 'prick' and means to excite or arouse which fits the line much better.

*FacePalm* Deep-Seeded
This is actually something I didn't realize either until I read about it. I grew up in the Midwest and thought this originated from a farmer and was something that came about talking about seeds in the ground. Instead, the correct phrase is deep-seated which of course means deeply rooted or firmly established.

*FacePalm* Extract Revenge
How many of you have seen this written? It shouldn't but it always makes me laugh. I picture some great conspiracy with vanilla extract going on. *Laugh* Extract means to remove or take away and also is the name of a flavoring used in baking. The correct phrase is "exact revenge" and means to establish or achieve revenge.

*FacePalm* Wet Your Appetite
Another common mistake is this phrase. It almost seems plausible because your mouth is wet, right? Okay, the correct phrase is "Whet your appetite". Whet means to sharpen and usually is used in reference to tools but is also used in reference to appetite or even desire.

*FacePalm* Case and point
I think one reason people confuse this is that it's very similar and easily confused with "By and large". This is actually supposed to be "Case in point" which comes from the French and basically means an example that illustrates a point.

Any thoughts of these? Share your thoughts in the feedback section.

Write and Review on! ~ Brooke

*Down*"This book deserves to be in your collection.
For a quick question or a quick review, The Grammar Devotional is great."
--The Writing Resource.
ASIN: B004A90E5I
Amazon's Price: $ 11.99


[Related Links] *Thumbsup*
This month's links are educational items that help teach us about different things in our community.

*StarR* "The Learning Tree"  Open in new Window. by iKïyå§ama Author Icon
         Helpful instructions on writing, proofreading, editing and reviewing.

*StarP* "The Badd Spelors Handbooke"  Open in new Window. by Acme Author Icon
         Some where to rant about the rights and wrongs of writes and tomes

*StarV* "Items on the Craft of Writing "  Open in new Window. by Joy Author Icon
         A folder for books and items about writing

*StarO* "Its -vs- It's: Apostrophe Abuse!"  Open in new Window. by Ladyoz Author Icon
         A brief essay about the oft-misused apostrophe in "it's".

*Starg* "Grammarama"  Open in new Window. by Davy Kraken Author Icon
         A library featuring commonly committed errors of the English language.



Editor's Picks


All of this month's editor picks have been written by a new author that has filled out their bio-block. Filling out the main section of your portfolio allows people to get to know you and your writing. It's the first step to becoming part of our little family here at Writing.com

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor

Excerpt:
a limited number of pieces that have an infinite array of possibilities.
more combos than a rubik's cube.
more count than the visible stars in the night sky.
with these 26 symbols one can convey a serious thought, a comedic event or incite a war.

~*Star*~

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor

Excerpt:
Where was he? Nowhere. I barely even knew what he looked like, let alone how to know it was really truly him when I met him. Maybe he wasn't coming. Maybe he thought I'd try to cheat, or bail on him. Would I really do that if I had the choice? Oh, yeah. I'd be out of there before you could blink.

People were milling around on the busy sidewalks, and it was all I could do to catch a look at each and every one of them, just to make sure. It was like ants had invaded me, crawling under my skin and making me prance on my feet. My nerves were practically bouncing.

And then there he was.

~*Star*~

 
Riptide Open in new Window. [ASR]
An island girl finds a seal skin a man claims belongs to him.
by Rosetta Author Icon

Excerpt:
Normally a dingbatter playing in the ocean wouldn't have drawn my attention, but this one looked like he was searching for something. Two days prior there was a musty seal skin under that same pier, half buried under damp sand, tide washing up over it. I wondered if that was what he was searching for. A strange thought, but it was the only thing that made sense of his obvious frustration.
Freezing, the man's eyes moved toward me, pegging me in place with an uncanny lavender stare. His head slowly turned to follow them, a face too far away to make out from where I was seated, yet somehow I felt his ire at being observed. It radiated toward me on invisible waves as he moved, taking heavy, awkward steps toward me. He walked with a slight drag to his step, a stumble that reminded me of a three-year-old's uncertain toddle. Though the man headed my way was much less focused on where he was putting his clumsy feet in relation to the sand and far more interested in whatever homicidal fantasies were playing through his mind.
The thought to run came and went. It was tourist season. With dingbatters everywhere, there was no way he could hurt me without being noticed. And I was probably imagining things anyway. When she was alive, Mama always told me I had my head too far in the clouds to ever see the ground.

~*Star*~

 Silence Comes Open in new Window. [E]
A poem I wrote.
by Marlow Rivers Author Icon

Excerpt:
Silence comes before
the first breathe

As it comes before the last

Pick up your flag (take up your cross), it’s too late
the war horses are coming
and they come with hate

and silence comes before the first breathe
as it comes before the last

~*Star*~

 Last Night Open in new Window. [ASR]
A scientist contemplates the meaning of life.
by Jasey R. DePriest Author Icon

Excerpt:
"Yelp!" she spun around and squinted against the dying light. A man and his dog silhouetted against a blackened sky. Concentrating she could hear his laughter and the yips of excitement from his companion.
She sighed heavily.
"I have to see this through. I can't end it like this. I owe it to... to myself." she thought as she began the trek to the beach house.
Once there, she grabbed a glass of wine and sat outside.
The abyss of sky yawned hungrily, seemed eager to snuff out our tiny sphere.
The patterns of the stars were turning toward oblivion. The calculations, occult mathematics shrouded by ages, did not lie.
These last nights, worrying as gravity wells and cosmic rays clicked into place, were all she had left.
It was a cruel burden, this knowledge. Better to be ignorant and momentarily shocked as the world is consumed by fire.

~*Star*~

 
Jack Frost Open in new Window. [E]
I once lived in such a place with only the outer slats. No insulation or drywall.
by Starwriter Author Icon

Excerpt:
Winter’s freshness has unfolded,
Tucking away the fall land.
Firewood hibernating on the floor
As Jack Frost shakes my hand.

The hunger of a fiery stove,
Stave not the cold wind’s breath.
These walls unclothed save the outer slats
With cracks running a breadth.

~*Star*~

 
Roadtrip Open in new Window. [13+]
A couple moves across the country but along the way.....
by Ragna Bjornson Author Icon

Excerpt:
Nate put the car in reverse, “Florida’s a dead end. It has been since the recession. You’ve been out of work for more than five years. When I got laid off, I knew there was nothing left here for us.”
Lila looked in the rear view mirror as they pulled away. She’d miss the life they built here. She’d miss all the things that made their little apartment home—things they had to leave behind. “Right—well, let’s get coffee. Four in the morning is too early, even for a grand adventure.”
Nate smiled at her, “An adventure?”
“Yes, an adventure Nate. We’re moving twenty-five hundred miles in the car. We’ll go through states we’ve never been to before, and it’s easier for me to look at it as an adventure.”
“Adventure it is then.” He squeezed her hand, “Where do you want to stop for coffee?”

~*Star*~

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor

Excerpt:
This is about clowns. To some they are the jesters of the world, starting in the old world of knights and kings. Jesters, in all practicality, specifically trained to entertain royalty. Making the long nights bearable and the days reserved only for monstrosities committed in English wars. Today we call them jokesters of youth. We can usually find these clowns at birthday parties, circuses, and even famous restaurants.
The fear of them can be immense. The ugly faces painted upon one's face even in humor can be frightening. They remind some humans of monsters we can see but hide well behind masks. John Wayne Gacy was a nightmare perfect example of the horrors associated with the jolly victors of what is behind the mask.

~*Star*~

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor

Excerpt:
"Essence we need to leave" my father called me. So I made my way down from my room wandering from my window, I stalked down the stairs dragging my fingernails down the wooden bannister, my dress draping over the stairs, the servants opened the doors for me and I was helped into the carriage. I sat opposite my parents and with one tap with the whip on the horses rumps they galloped off and we headed to the centre of London.

It was a long ride from our manor, but once we arrived we all got out of the carriage, I flicked the hood up and walked into the council chamber. Everyone nodding at me as I walked, I stood at my parents side and I had to remain silent since it was improper for a woman as young as myself to speak. I stood there listening to their meaningless chatter. They were talking about taking over most of the plantations in the area. A chat that a young woman such as myself should know since I would inherit the family legacy when my parents pass.


~*Star*~

 The Rise Against, Chapters 1-2 Open in new Window. [18+]
One woman is caught between her past and her future in the city of Rio de Janeiro
by S B Keith Author Icon

Excerpt:
Purple shadows twisted their way over the gleaming city of Rio de Janeiro. What was once a large bay rimmed by pristine beach front had been replaced with a sea of large solar panels. Their sensitive cells began to be covered with automatically deployed steel doors. This created a great metal wave that could only be witnessed by the airships that gently floated among the cityscape. They rose up from the canyons of steel to hover over the city. Precisely placed warning lights flickered to life, creating a myriad of slow dancing red stars on the increasingly inky sky. Few people on the city streets below noticed them.

Most of the pedestrians were trying their best not to get trampled by other people. This was made harder by the occasional silent truck making a human wave as it attempted to make its way to their destination. There were no other kinds of vehicles on the streets. The only real noise came from the mixing of thousands upon thousands of voices that slowly filtered up to the airships floating above.

~*Star*~



 
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Ask & Answer


I received some wonderful feedback to my last newsletter [#7831] "Behind the MaskOpen in new Window. and I'm proud to share it with you.

From Jeff Author Icon
Roleplaying games were one of my very first experiences with storytelling. Up until that point, I had only been a passive audience member as a reader... and then suddenly I was in the middle of a story that I was helping to create as it went, first as a player, then as a dungeon/game master. I still play to this day and I credit RPGs with teaching me an enormous number of valuable things from vocabulary words (phylactery! somatic! obelisk!) to scientific principles (energy weapons, faster than light travel) to simply how to tell a good story. When you're responsible for keeping a group of 5-10 people engaged and excited by a narrative, you sure learn quick what works and what causes them to tune out! *Laugh*



From Elfin Dragon-finally published Author Icon
Well, this is the first I've heard of "Larping" but not of playing RPGs. Played D&D when I was a kid, brother was usually the DM. But I've graduated to playing video game based RPGs and strategy games. Not so much online, but single player. And I've always told the naysayers that I taught my two oldest nephews some valuable lessons with my video game RPGs. Sharing (because they're single player's) and how to read (because older versions were subtitled). The trick is, as with any game, not to get seriously involved in them, to just have fun.




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