tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post2032183672597540251..comments2024-03-18T06:16:18.802-05:00Comments on A Newbie's Guide to Publishing: Guest Post by A.J. AbbiatiJA Konrathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-37962571359300928992013-07-04T16:17:33.456-05:002013-07-04T16:17:33.456-05:00Thanks everyone who picked up the NORTAV Method......Thanks everyone who picked up the NORTAV Method....and to the 150 or so who grabbed The Transliterator.....enjoy!!!!<br /><br />-Jimajabbiatihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17654127244275207376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-31770195358316775992013-07-04T16:04:55.278-05:002013-07-04T16:04:55.278-05:00@Carradee, thanks for that link to Holly Lisle'...@Carradee, thanks for that link to Holly Lisle's clinic. I'll try A.J.'s method first (free is always good in my book :-)), but I'll know there's something else I can look at if that method doesn't work for me.<br /><br />And I'll be picking up that writing book today (which is also available on Smashwords, if anyone is wondering).Nancy Beckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06214579721075450777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-69099474741204629422013-07-04T15:30:38.963-05:002013-07-04T15:30:38.963-05:00Hi A.J.
Creating a new language seems like way to...Hi A.J.<br /><br />Creating a new language seems like way to much work for me but I know a Fantasy writer who I will pass this on to. I did take a look at your writing book and picked up a copy. It looks great.<br /><br />ThanksColin Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02511279879308565952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-78117461341630369112013-07-04T11:04:14.913-05:002013-07-04T11:04:14.913-05:00I've tried to make the consonance of my new wo...I've tried to make the consonance of my new words evocative of what I wanted to suggest in the mind of the reader. Names with more "v" and "en" for the windy people, with more k for the rock people, with more "an" or "ian" for the water people, and with more "y" for the fire people. <br /><br />I tried to let my instinct and my sense of story guide me with the new words. Alan Spadehttp://emmanuelguillot.over-blog.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-76040269798792872822013-07-04T10:12:28.310-05:002013-07-04T10:12:28.310-05:00Amazing! Thank you so much for the new language cr...Amazing! Thank you so much for the new language creation tool! I need it for a science fiction trilogy I'm working on.Karen Brysonhttp://www.ahorsewithnoname.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-65332680445799420332013-07-04T09:58:50.165-05:002013-07-04T09:58:50.165-05:00I developed an ancient language from an extinct tr...I developed an ancient language from an extinct tribe that one of my characters rediscovered. She was naturally fluent, to her surprise.<br /><br />-To start off, I made up words, but with a predetermined idea of how these people would talk (A Mexican, an Englishman, and a Frenchman will all speak differently. even saying the same word will sound different thanks to dialect). Words made up were all basic, which mostly included nouns and verbs related to this place. Making up words alone seems cheap, but adding dialect and purpose in the formula makes it seem unique.<br /><br />-When two things had similar meanings, the words would also look similar (example: carpet, ground, floor, tile would have similar prefixes/suffixes). This shows pattern in the language, making the reader try to translate words for themselves subconsciously. Right or wrong, they will feel satisfied.<br /><br />-Because this tribe is very old, I eliminated pronouns, conjunctions, etc, adding phonics to the words instead to imply these things, and creating ways to arrange the words without them. When the character translates (not transliterates) the language verbatim, the translation seems gritty and incomplete, as any rough translation would be. This makes the language feel authentic.<br /><br />Those three things alone will make a reader interested in the language and not wonder if the writer just made crap up. I actually had numerous compliments on a language that's 40 some words big. However, With the work I've put into it, I can easily expand that, should she use this language again in the future.<br /><br />There are more ways you can develop a language. The key is, don't just make up words. The more time and thought given to your language, the more readers will enjoy it.Josh Brownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-28028510985450945202013-07-04T09:27:01.641-05:002013-07-04T09:27:01.641-05:00Great post. I suppose I'm one of "those g...Great post. I suppose I'm one of "those geeks" that likes this sort of thing. Kudos, A.J.<br /><br />Since I have a personal connection to the C.S. Lewis family, I think it was inevitable that my first trilogy followed the more immersive and exhausting route in creating a dialect. But unlike a complete formation of a written language (a la Tolkien), mine was originally an oral one that I then dictated. This seemed to suit my background as a musician: I wrote what I heard – what sounded good in my ear. It laborious, to be sure, and I would have enjoyed using A.J.'s tool. <br /><br />The result, however, paid off, as my readers felt drawn in by the dialect; I still get emails that sign on and off with Dionian phrases. It's very endearing.<br /><br />ch:Christopher Hopperhttp://www.christopherhopper.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-43434847209850073152013-07-04T06:35:40.322-05:002013-07-04T06:35:40.322-05:00Happy 4th everyone. Off topic but I am in the Amaz...Happy 4th everyone. Off topic but I am in the Amazon Overall Top 100 paid right now - and I sold 1500 copies in the past 24 hours. <br /><br />When reaching that level at a time other than the dead heat of Summer, I required closer to 3000 copies in the same timeframe. <br /><br />Just an idea of the summertime drop-off in readership for most authors. No surprise; the entertainment industry noticed this decades ago and stopped releasing new episodes of TV shows while also premiering fewer big ticket movies. <br /><br />BUT, for us indies - NOW is the time to release/promote/sell; as one can more easily achieve some visibility. <br /><br />Likewise; it seems to hit the USA Today Bestseller 150 list in the colder months requires 5-7k sales in a week; perhaps now that figure is cut in half? With a new release set for late July I will be back to document results. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-53180201361816379502013-07-03T14:40:43.467-05:002013-07-03T14:40:43.467-05:00When I needed languages for my made-up fantasy wor...When I needed languages for my made-up fantasy world, I first played with transliteration, but I didn't like the result. The sounds and grammar followed the same patterning as English, and I wanted them to differ.<br /><br />I ended up using Holly Lisle's <a href="http://howtothinksideways.com/shop/create-a-language-clinic/?ap_id=Carradee" rel="nofollow"><em>Create a Language Clinic</em></a>, and I love it. It let me quickly create the core sounds and grammar for a few different conlangs, which has proved particularly useful as the series continues.<br /><br />However, I'm also the kind of person who enjoys researching entymology and such, and I enjoy learning how other languages work. ^_^Carradeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05431561739001270522noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-69641261070376487512013-07-03T14:29:40.507-05:002013-07-03T14:29:40.507-05:00Oofah, should have added a THANKS to A.J. for the ...Oofah, should have added a THANKS to A.J. for the language creator.Nancy Beckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06214579721075450777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-71688461154488718772013-07-03T14:28:25.940-05:002013-07-03T14:28:25.940-05:00Fascinating, as Mr. Spock might say. ;-) Though I ...Fascinating, as Mr. Spock might say. ;-) Though I haven't gone the high fantasy or epic fantasy route, I may one day (and I do write fantasy).<br /><br />I remember a writer, whose name escapes me, was well known online for being conversant in Klingon, another invented language.<br /><br />And a little trivia (fantasy nuts like me probably already know this, but what the hell): Tolkien's favorite real language? Spanish. I thought it would be Italian or French.<br /><br />Nope. I can't tell you why he especially liked Spanish, but then again, I'm not a philologist nor do I play one on TV. :-)Nancy Beckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06214579721075450777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-15703888995174758722013-07-03T13:13:29.160-05:002013-07-03T13:13:29.160-05:00I once started making up a cat language for my fan...I once started making up a cat language for my fantasy story that was, I may as well admit, inspired heavily by Watership Down. But I've never finished it (yet?), so it hasn't seen the light of day. :)<br /><br />Alice M. Roelkehttp://www.amazon.com/A.M.-Roelke/e/B00A2AV9BWnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-74047911577323835392013-07-03T13:05:39.419-05:002013-07-03T13:05:39.419-05:00For my fantasy books, I would assign different con...For my fantasy books, I would assign different consonants to another consonant, and do the same with vowels. I would then match them up based on the original word. So, say the letter B was assigned to R, E was assigned to A, and N was assigned to X, BEN would become RAX. Of course, I would use longer words, and just start making lists. The original might be BEN, but then you use RAX and do the same thing over and over until you find a word that sounds about right. <br /><br />That's how I came up with the word land of Marenon, the creatures called sarians, Stuhocs, and Erellens. And much more of course. Then if it's not spelled axactly how you'd want, but you like the sound, you just change it to whatever you want. It was a lot of fun for me. Jason D. Morrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04473532447312789024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-31697963116893766562013-07-03T13:00:12.186-05:002013-07-03T13:00:12.186-05:00This is amazing....This is amazing....Jason D. Morrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04473532447312789024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-53423153178488345812013-07-03T12:16:50.306-05:002013-07-03T12:16:50.306-05:00Wow! That language creator is brilliant! Thank you...Wow! That language creator is brilliant! Thank you very much.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com