Numbers as Names!

I've just finished reading a book ... one of those "towering family sagas" encompassing a "compelling love story of an intelligent, sensitive, and supremely passionate young girl" whose "uncompromising code of honor leads her to choices that will reverberate for generations" ... You know the sort of thing.

Well, it's not a bad yarn as far as the genre goes, but what got me was one of the characters whose name was 3V. No ... Really ... Yes, the number three and then the letter V.

Every time I was happily immersing myself in the trials and tribulations of our heroine, along would come blasted 3V and my concentration was gone. It was a case of the author being just too clever by half and it got me pondering ...

"11, I know you and your brother are new to the class but I can see you standing right in front of me! Please answer when I call your name."

"(Sigh) ... We're having a running race tomorrow," says Teacher, attempting to get back to normal, "have you ever been in a running race, 1,1?"

Some authors can get away with giving their characters clever names, particularly satirists. I've mentioned Evelyn Waugh before ( http://www.write101.com/W.Tips169.htm ). One of his main characters is called Mr Joyboy, and he's the chief embalmer at Whispering Glades Funeral Home (what a jolly job), and the heroine, Aimée Thanatogenos, is the funeral home's beautician who really loves her job because she doesn't have to listen to her clients talking all the time.

Aimée is a form of that popular name, Amy, and means "beloved" ... or "the loved one." Thanatogenos comes from two Greek words thanatos - death and genos, which "... may mean offspring, a limited or extended family, a clan, a tribe, a people, a biological entity (e.g. all the birds), or indeed any group of beings sharing a common ancestry" (wikipedia.com). So her name conjures up the wonderful notion of turning corpses into life-like images. (In the novel, many Loved Ones are sent off with monocles stuck over their non-seeing eyes, pipes in their hand or teddy bears hugged to their person.)

When writing, you need to be careful about what you call your characters. Shahid Le, Tatiana McAlister and Luigi Khan just don't cut the mustard, whereas Duc Le, Tatiana Kondakova, Angus McAlister, Luigi Cassini and Shahid Khan all sound a lot better.

Now, please don't think I'm casting nasturtiums on anyone who does have a name of mixed cultural and national heritage ... I'm not.

Which brings us to dear old Mrs Malaprop, whom we met some time ago: http://www.write101.com/W.Tips206.htm Click on the link to spend a few minutes commiserating with Lavinia who was having an attack of the malaprops this particular day ...

Last week, when we left Dr Morgenes, he'd had an encounter with a mysterious stranger who gave him "an odd shaped box, wrapped in black velvet and secured with fraying ribbon" (as strangers are wont to do), before he'd made his way home with his mysterious package. There, he found a man waiting for him and the man's name was Mobius ...

You decide ... Prod that Muse of yours, dust off your imagination and start writing here: http://write101.blogspot.com (Use the Comments button at the end of the Never-Ending Story entry to add your contribution.)

patronym, pseudonym, tautonym, eponym, hypernym, metonym, paronym, meronym, hyponym, acronym

8. a person whose name is or is thought to be the source of the name of something, such as a city, country, or era

9. taxonomic designation, such as Gorilla gorilla, in which the genus and species names are the same

Here's a little tale Dave found that illustrates the importance of being precise ...

St. Peter said, "I'd like to get you guys in now, but our computer is down. You'll have to go back to Earth for about a week, but you can't go back as priests. What'll it be?"

The first priest says, "I've always wanted to be an eagle, soaring above the Rocky mountains."

The second priest mulls this over for a moment and asks, "Will any of this week 'count', St. Peter?"

"No, I told you the computer's down. There's no way we can keep track of what you're doing."

A week goes by, the computer is fixed, and the Lord tells St. Peter to recall the two priests.

"The first one should be easy," says St. Peter. "He's somewhere over the Rockies, flying with the eagles. But the second one could prove to be more difficult."

absquatulate, oneiric, footle, scatology, mammothrept, abligurition, eschatology, marcid, objurgate, ukase

1. act foolishly, as by talking nonsense - FOOTLE From the Latin futuere, which has nothing to do with what happens tomorrow ... this is the Latin word for sexual intercourse.

2. to scold or rebuke severely - OBJURGATE From the Latin ob 'against' and iugare 'to scold'

3. branch of theology that is concerned with the end of the world or of humankind - ESCHATOLOGY This is not to be confused with the poo-seekers below, but comes from the Greek word eskhatos 'last.'

5. run away; usually includes taking something or somebody along - ABSQUATULATE dictionary.com explains the origins of this as: "Mock-Latinate formation, purporting to mean 'to go off and squat elsewhere'”

6. any order or decree issued by an authority; an edict - UKASE This word comes to us from the Russian ukaz, 'decree'

7. the study of faecal excrement, as in medicine, palaeontology, or biology - SCATOLOGY One of those professions that makes you go "Hmmm" when you ponder why people decide to follow the path of poo all their lives.

8. prodigal expense for food; extravagance in cooking or serving food - ABLIGUTITION dictionary.com tells us the origins of this very useful word: [From the Latin abligurire 'to spend in luxurious indulgence.' This in turn is from other Latin words ab + lingere 'to lick.']

9. a child brought up by its grandmother; a spoiled child - MAMMOTHREPT This one comes from two Greek words, meaning grandmother and to nourish.

10. of, relating to, or suggestive of dreams - ONEIRIC From the Greek word oneiros 'dream'

This is the last week of voting for the current Preditors and Editors Readers Poll, and I really appreciate your support. Feel free to mention Write101 to your friends ... tell them to browse the archives and then ask if they'd also like to vote.

Remember, all you have to do is click the link, scroll down till you see my name (or Write101.com) and then enter your name and email address (your privacy is protected and details are not shared or sold). You'll need to confirm your vote by clicking on a link in the email you'll be sent.

And if for some reason those links don't work, click on the main voting page and scroll to find the above categories: http://critters.critique.org/predpoll/

Important: Once you've voted in a category, any future votes over-ride previous ones ... so you can't vote for more than one entrant in each category.

Greetings from beautiful (snow-covered) Lake Geneva! Having this 'connection' to all of you is awesome and energizing. (Gloria, WI, USA)

A warm merhaba from the cradle of civilizations, Turkey (Sultan Dogan, Ankara, Turkey)

This week, I'd like to introduce you to a site that Rebecca Smith, one of our subscribers found. It's devoted to helping aspiring writers ... but why don't I let editor, Antony Jones explain?

The View Factor

by Antony A Jones

Writing has been a way of life. Writing has been my psychiatrist, my friend, my punch-bag, and my companion. I feel blessed to have found an outlet for imagination, creativity and fantasy. Most importantly, I have found an outlet for my points of view and opinions; my critique, my disgust of and respect for; my thoughts of and view of, the world around me.

All this has been made available by having the ability and the freedom to place words upon paper – for the last ten years that paper has been of the electronic kind. I have been lucky enough to find my words published and printed; confident enough to tackle any genre of wordplay. I have been able to hold the positive as well as the negative responses to my work; knowing that each comment in itself has merit.

About The Site

Given all the above, it occurred to me via many emails and conversations, there should be a common place for all writers to display their written words; whether the submitted article was a review, an anecdote, a commentary or some factual essay or report – whether the intent was to entertain or inform, invoke thought or tears.

It was also apparent, that many new writers, who had not yet had the opportunity to stretch their literary wings, needed an unbiased and unique platform to practice on. For the more experienced writer, a portal to display their excellence and at the same time help others in becoming more accomplished. So was created a website which is not genre specific and is topical enough to interest everyone; from every corner of the world.

The View Factor is a new kind of web-site. A variety magazine where “You Have A Voice” – where we encourage you to express that voice!

The mission of The View Factor is simply to encourage people to write. Everyone should enjoy the gift of expression. There is no bigger thrill (for a writer) than knowing that someone has read your prose or verse, and is left with a sense of enjoyment. That enjoyment can be in agreement or even disagreement. The fact that they have at least read your work is reward enough!

The View Factor does not propose to teach, there are other sites likely more efficient at that than us. (Write101.com for example, is the best resource on the net for learning all those skills you will need – and we are not just saying that!). Once you have learned to use those tools, we provide your workbench to practice on.

Pay a visit to www.theviewfactor.com and take a look around. We are sure you will find something of interest. Once you are comfortable with our site, feel free to send in your article. We will publish (almost) any article which is interesting or has a message, as long as it meets our guidelines.

See you soon.

Editor

The View Factor

The origins of this word are shrouded in mystery, but it owes something to the Greek word for 'enjoyment.'

I hope you have an apolaustic weekend and don't find yourself needing to use this week's Latin phrase:

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