I've never been virtuous
Which means I'm not patient. I was so careful this year to get all ready for NaNo ahead of time. I've got all my notes organized and everything outlined and... NAO PLZ. Heh.
Interestingly, though, it gave me some time to research historical speech patterns in regard to profanity and terms of endearment. This is an education, I have to tell you.
Puritans, for example, didn't hold with terms of endearment, and their "profanity" was pretty tame - I copied down some of the things people were fined, whipped, and put in stocks for, one of which was yelling "Curse ye, woodchuck!" after being caught sleeping during Sabbath meeting. :D The other one I liked was "Before God I could breake thy heade!" I'd forgotten what a KJV cadence the speech of the Puritans had, but thanks to years of memorization drills in Sunday School, I'm pleased to say it will be fun to write.
I also learned how to say "tits and ass" in German, "shit" in Old English, and "Jesus wept" in Welsh. :D My dad says profanity is the sign of a weak mind, but personally I feel like knowing the profanity takes you a long way toward idiomatic understanding of the language. Also, I think the way people cuss is a little window into their heads, because everyone has their own set of swear words in different combinations that they'll use automatically (even if they're substitute ones like "sugar!").
Dad was right about one thing, however. If you take the normal swear words out of your vocabulary, you have to get creative (I think most people with small children have discovered this fact), and that will certainly expand your mind. There's nothing quite like standing there having just slammed your hand in the door, looking at the four-year-old in front of you, and trying desperately to think of something to say besides "MotherFUCKER that hurt!" because you know he's going to go to daycare and repeat it. :D
These are the kinds of things I'm learning and thinking about whilst researching immortal characters in a story that spans over a thousand years, from 5th-century England/Wales to 21st-century central Texas. Writing is fun.
Interestingly, though, it gave me some time to research historical speech patterns in regard to profanity and terms of endearment. This is an education, I have to tell you.
Puritans, for example, didn't hold with terms of endearment, and their "profanity" was pretty tame - I copied down some of the things people were fined, whipped, and put in stocks for, one of which was yelling "Curse ye, woodchuck!" after being caught sleeping during Sabbath meeting. :D The other one I liked was "Before God I could breake thy heade!" I'd forgotten what a KJV cadence the speech of the Puritans had, but thanks to years of memorization drills in Sunday School, I'm pleased to say it will be fun to write.
I also learned how to say "tits and ass" in German, "shit" in Old English, and "Jesus wept" in Welsh. :D My dad says profanity is the sign of a weak mind, but personally I feel like knowing the profanity takes you a long way toward idiomatic understanding of the language. Also, I think the way people cuss is a little window into their heads, because everyone has their own set of swear words in different combinations that they'll use automatically (even if they're substitute ones like "sugar!").
Dad was right about one thing, however. If you take the normal swear words out of your vocabulary, you have to get creative (I think most people with small children have discovered this fact), and that will certainly expand your mind. There's nothing quite like standing there having just slammed your hand in the door, looking at the four-year-old in front of you, and trying desperately to think of something to say besides "MotherFUCKER that hurt!" because you know he's going to go to daycare and repeat it. :D
These are the kinds of things I'm learning and thinking about whilst researching immortal characters in a story that spans over a thousand years, from 5th-century England/Wales to 21st-century central Texas. Writing is fun.