I’ve written a few words here and there, but I’m behind my goal for the year. I like to get my proofreading jobs behind me first. Sometimes I can write some words during that time, but I don’t want to take away from my client’s time. I should be done in about a week, then I’m going to try to catch up on word count until the next job.
I’ve gotten feedback from my five beta readers and editor on my mystery written under the other pen name. I’ve gotten everything from “I LOVED it!” to “Mystery isn’t my thing, but I liked the romance in it”. The feedback was mostly good with very few changes suggested. I’m waiting mostly on the cover.
About the Southern stuff. I’ve noticed from time to time that my editor makes changes in my manuscript that I don’t quite understand. And, occasionally, so will a beta reader. And I try to figure out WHY it’s wrong. And it finally occurred to me that some of the words and phrases I write are used a lot here in my area but probably aren’t where they’re from. I’ve tried to take some of the southern stuff out of my speech and writing, but some of it I refuse to let go of. I’m Southern, and I’m proud of that heritage. But when it’s REALLY local, I have to decide whether to keep it or ditch it. One such phrase I remember writing is “sick at my stomach”. My editor changed it to “sick to my stomach”. I fixed this one because I assumed the way I say it is probably localized in this area. But I have NEVER said “sick to my stomach”. I’ve always used “at”. So then, hubby and I talked and decided if you were physically ill, “at” is used, but if you were appalled at something, “to” is used. “I’m sick at my stomach.” “That just makes me sick to my stomach.” So what do you think? Which way do you say it? And are there things that are local to your area or your region that editors or betas call you on? I’d love to hear them!
By the way, when I proofread, there are sometimes things that must be local to where those authors are from since I’ve never heard some of the phrases, or they sound wrong to me. So it’s not just the South. 🙂
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