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The Write Way 26 November 2004 You Have to Laugh... Greetings, I know you share my sense of humour (why else would you still be with me after all these years?), and I always find myself giggling at those wonderful statements and situations that just scream, "You can't be serious!"
Comedy is closely related to tragedy, coming from komos 'a revel' and oidos 'a singer.' The interesting thing is that the Greeks came up with their tragedies first, and only after decades of audiences going home thoroughly depressed, did someone say, "Hang on a tic, old son. What about a little light relief?" and lo, the comedy was born. Greek comedy was "light-hearted and filthy and dealt with the goings-on of everyday folk like corrupt religious leaders, golden-hearted prostitutes, venal slaves, and bent magistrates." (Frank Muir The Oxford Book of Humorous Prose) Not much has changed, has it? No wonder we all love a good comedy ... And here's the funniest photo I've seen in a long while. You'll see what I mean when you get there (... or maybe you'll just nod sagely, mutter something about that mad woman from Down Under and hit the Back button): http://www.write101.com/writing2.html This week's quiz: All these are derived from Greek words ... match 'em up: hecatomb, boustrophedon, enchiridion, nepenthe, colophon, omphaloskepsis, diaglyph, miasma, panopticon, isypheans 1. a sunken or depressed engraving or carving on a stone or gem (as opposed to cameo) 2. a publisher's emblem printed in a book (usually on the title page) 3. unhealthy vapors rising from the ground or other sources 4. a great sacrifice; an ancient Greek or Roman sacrifice of 100 oxen 5. an ancient writing system: having alternate lines written in opposite directions; literally `as the ox ploughs' 6. a concise reference book providing specific information about a subject or location 7. a drug used by the ancients to give relief from pain and sorrow (possibly opium or hasheesh); anything soothing and comforting 8. a circular prison with cells distributed around a central surveillance station; an area where everything is visible 9. contemplation of one's navel 10. extremely difficult and futile; endlessly laborious Last week's word of the week, merkin, has stirred the possum in no uncertain terms! I've had numerous subscribers write to tell me, delicately of course, that the word is not just for any old, run-of-the-mill female wig, but is in fact a pubic wig. Yes. That was my first response, too. Why? So there you go, now we all know to use this one with care. Makes me very glad I refer to my 'Murkin friends as 'Murkins and not 'Merkins! As you know, this little quiz has made an appearance in cyberspace every Friday morn since 1998, and now you can have your very own collection of quizzes to help while away those idle hours. I've compiled 102 quizzes into an ebook modestly called, A Word for Everything. But you know me, I can't stop with just the quizzes, so I've interspersed them with a collection of words from our Word of the Week segment, tossed in a few odd little tales about words and the occasional pun or wordplay ... as is my wont. All in all, there are definitions for 1076 words ... almost a word for everything. My family are all keen Scrabble (TM) players, and we're always on the lookout for words to use up all those Xs and Zs you seem to accumulate, so in response to their special request, I've added a bonus chapter of words that contain X and Z - just in time for the holidays! Next year, this chapter will be part of the second volume of A Word for Everything, which is currently in production, but you can have it free with Volume 1 when you order before the end of 2004. Click to see a sample and to order: http://www.write101.com/quizbook.htm The ebook makes a great gift idea for all those logophiles in your life and for anyone who loves word puzzles. Last week's quiz: quaquaversal, kerf, farouche, sapid, flagitious, peripatetic, irenic, splenetic, vilipend, froward 1. having a strong, pleasant, savoury taste - SAPID 2. withdrawn temperament and shyness coupled with an air of crankiness and sullenness - FAROUCHE 3. extremely brutal or cruel crimes; vicious; infamous; scandalous - FLAGITIOUS 4. dipping toward all points of the compass round a centre, as beds of lava round a crater - QUAQUAVERSAL 5. walking about or from place to place; travelling on foot; an itinerant - PERIPATETIC 6. marked by bad humour; ill-tempered - SPLENETIC 7. stubbornly contrary and disobedient; obstinate - FORWARD 8. groove or notch made by a cutting tool, such as a saw or an ax - KERF 9. speak ill of; disparage - VILIPEND 10.promoting peace; conciliatory - IRENIC Our Map of the World has some fascinating glimpses into the places our Merry Band call home. Drop by if you haven't been back for some time and don't forget to read the messages. (Just click List) : http://pub37.bravenet.com/guestmap/view.php?usernum=3170114826 A Little Something Extra If you'd like to see your name in print (especially on a cheque from a publisher), then I have just the book for you. It's called Get Paid to Write and it's by Thomas A. Williams. Put it on your Christmas Wish List and leave it around for the family to find ... US writer, Tom Williams has been on both ends of the writing and publishing stick. He's edited for other publications, owned and published his own newspaper and written for other editors, so if anyone knows what it takes to get your work printed, it's Tom. For those wanting to break into magazine writing, Tom discusses the six most common flaws and how to remedy them. He explains the anatomy of a magazine article so you can be sure you cover all the important parts of the story; tells how to determine the tone of your chosen magazine; what not to leave out of your article; how to handle quotes; how to make a smooth transition from paragraph to paragraph and then explains the freelancer's paradigm. This paradigm shows how simple it is to write your article so that it works, as Tom says, "the way our minds work, moving effortlessly from the general to the particular, leading the reader on with effective storytelling." Get Paid to Write covers a range of topics to help freelance writers find ideas, write sellable articles and get published. Whether you're writing for magazines, newspapers, corporations or planning a book, you'll find plenty of advice from someone who's been there, done that and lived to write about it! Get a copy now. Word of the week: Selcouth (adj) rarely known; unusual; strange; marvellous This one comes from the Anglo-Saxon word seld 'rare' and the Old English cuth 'known,' and it should only be used for those unusual things that inspire a sense of wonder. The marvellous part of the definition is spot on. Marvellous comes from the Latin word miribilia 'wonderful things.' Oxymoron of the week: educational television This week's Latin phrase is one you can use when you leave work on Friday: Ave atque vale (Hail and farewell) Regards, Jennifer P.S. Want to donate to the upkeep of this newsletter? Here's how: 1. Pay by PayPal: https://www.paypal.com OR 2. Use your credit card on my secure order form: http://www.write101.com/orderform.htm OR 3. Send a cheque (made payable to Jennifer Stewart): http://www.write101.com/contact.htm To unsubscribe from this list, send a blank email to: mailto:WritingTips-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com or go to the web site, at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WritingTips This menu will also let you change your subscription between digest and normal mode. Copyright 2004 Jennifer Stewart Individual articles copyrighted by
their authors.
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