tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post2413023553222751622..comments2023-10-20T06:50:20.134-07:00Comments on Anna Murray, Author: Oral vs. Written Language and The NovelAnna Murrayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11381853248381285405noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-66503083165114216212011-05-14T17:03:32.697-07:002011-05-14T17:03:32.697-07:00Thanks, RW. It's a pet peeve of mine.Thanks, RW. It's a pet peeve of mine.Anna Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11381853248381285405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-64031015211123970742011-05-14T16:45:54.465-07:002011-05-14T16:45:54.465-07:00Sorry, Anna. I'll try to fix that.Sorry, Anna. I'll try to fix that.RW Bennetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09958497986718480846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-63162166286562782872011-05-14T13:56:28.075-07:002011-05-14T13:56:28.075-07:00Thanks for the nice review, and I'm glad you e...Thanks for the nice review, and I'm glad you enjoyed the book. If you get a chance to edit your review, could you add the words "SPOILER ALERT" at the beginning, as you give a plot synopsis? Thanks!Anna Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11381853248381285405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-268856387620267222011-05-14T13:42:50.979-07:002011-05-14T13:42:50.979-07:00Very interesting post Anna. I think a writer can s...Very interesting post Anna. I think a writer can slip in a few ums and ers, and add to the reader's understanding and enjoyment.<br /><br />BTW, I just posted a review for Unbroken Hearts at Amazon. I don't know if it's up yet. Well done!RW Bennetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09958497986718480846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-6621831603052493462011-05-14T10:21:26.717-07:002011-05-14T10:21:26.717-07:00This post DID have some great comments on it befor...This post DID have some great comments on it before the Google blog system meltdown. The post came back, but the comments did not :(Anna Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11381853248381285405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-81488134193526654352011-05-12T11:04:12.170-07:002011-05-12T11:04:12.170-07:00This is a great post, and a very interesting conve...This is a great post, and a very interesting conversation! One of the challenges for writers is capturing all of the nuances we have access to in speech (e.g. prosody, gesture, etc...) and conveying them to the reader.<br /><br />I also made an error when saying we can't put "uh" and "um" in writing. I agree with Doug and Anna: we can use them to great effect in imparting realism to dialogue. I guess what I meant to say was that those "uhs" and "ums" in writing don't reflect our own difficulty (the author's) in conveying what to say next in the same way that it does in speech. That kind of information isn't available to a reader (which is probably a good thing)!D. Girard Watsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12107595856946881274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-40021431487454813582011-05-12T09:08:27.475-07:002011-05-12T09:08:27.475-07:00I'm with you. I use ums and uhs quite often in...I'm with you. I use ums and uhs quite often in my writing. Roy Easton (a cowboy character in my series books) is known for his thoughtful Hmmms and ums.Anna Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11381853248381285405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3817709076890922561.post-38730277046453450432011-05-12T09:01:09.553-07:002011-05-12T09:01:09.553-07:00Nice blog, Anna. And I enjoyed the link to D. Gir...Nice blog, Anna. And I enjoyed the link to D. Girard Watson's article as well. I do however have to disagree with his statement, "So what's a writer to do? We can't put "uh" and "ums" in our writing, and even if we did, it probably wouldn't make the listener more attentive."<br /><br />I use such fillers in dialog very frequently. If done properly, not only does it provide a sense of realism, it imparts a different meaning than if a sentence is written without them—displaying confusion, hinting at a lie, giving a sense that the speaker is carefully parsing their words for some reason, etc.<br /><br />Just as fillers convey important information in speech, they can do so as well in fiction when used to proper advantage.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com