Distinctions: ‘Than’ and ‘Then.’

In my education and experience as a writer and editor, I have noticed many misuses of words, especially common words. Such erroneous practices have become prevalent in the writing community and continue to stand out in my mind as something both serious and disturbing. For that reason, I have decided to write an ongoing series of articles, called simply “Distinctions,” which will explain the differences between the featured terms and how they are or should be used in writing. At the end of each article, I will provide either a quiz or set of exercises for readers to test their knowledge and skills. Hopefully, this ongoing effort will allow said readers to gain something to help them be better writers.

In this post, I focus on ‘than’ and ‘then,’ two words of similar (but not exact) spelling but vastly different in application and part of speech.
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Than

The word ‘than’ is a conjunction used to: (1) express a choice or preference, (2) show the temporal relationship between two points, and (3) demonstrate unequal alternatives, such as in the diversity between types (i.e. locations, manners, identities, descriptions, etc.). (see here)

Conjunction: Choice and Preference

Examples:

If you’re afraid of heights, you are better off taking the train than flying.
Mary would rather go to college than work at the store for the rest of her life.

In both examples, the conjunction “than” illustrates a choice based on individual preference, although the reason for the choice in the first reflects a fear of flying, whereas the reason in the second suggests a desire to succeed career-wise.

Note: Readers should keep in mind both alternatives are equal in significance in this instance. This sense of equality denotes the importance of the choice involved.

Conjunction: Point in Time

Examples:

We had barely arrived than we had to leave again.

This usage reflects the temporal relationship between two actions. The group arrived at the unmentioned location at a point in time when they were forced to leave again.

Conjunction: Unequal Alternative

Examples:

Patti is larger in size than Debra, although they are both well-proportioned.
Rob had no way to know where Cindy was other than ask her sister.
Jim could not find better quality sushi anywhere than at Y’s restaurant.

This is a comparison of the physical description between two women. Here, ‘than’ sets off the distinction of inequality: Patty is larger than Debra.

As for the second example, “than” relates unequal states: either (1) Rob either knows by means of asking Cindy’s sister or (2) he doesn’t know at all (Conversely, two equal alternatives might be: knowing one way vs. knowing another).

the third line is a comparison regarding the quality of sushi at one restaurant as opposed to another or others. “Than” promotes the distinction.

Preposition:

Example:

He is a person than whom I can imagine no one more courteous.

As a preposition, “than” allows the subject-noun to appear as someone with a quality greater or different than other individuals. Here, the distinction is established by describing one person, the one with the uniqueness, instead of comparing two or more.

By the way, as a preposition, “than” always precedes “whom” and “which.”

Then

The word ‘then’ can serve as an adverb, adjective and a noun:

Adverb – a time reference (past or future) and a position in the order of succession.
Adjective – a state of being related to a point in the past.
Noun – a temporal reference taking on the role of main subject.

(See here)

Adverb: Time – Succession

Examples:

Tom had a better outlook on life then.
Instructions are to be followed in chronological order, such as ‘1,’ ‘2’ and then ‘3,’ if they are to lead to success.

In the first instance, ‘then’ refers to an earlier time point than that suggested in the rest of the sentence. Tom had a better outlook at some time in the past than in the present.

The second usage is the more common—that of succession: first this, THEN that. This is the step-by-strep process required to lead to a state of completion and/or success.

Adjective: State of Being/Existence:

Examples:

Dan, the then vice president of the council, was a rogue for equality.
The then forest was filled vastly with Redwood trees until it was leveled to make way for a new housing community.

The use of ‘then’ in both cases describes the subject-noun’s state at a certain point in the past. Dan was a rogue when he was the VP of the council, just as the forest was filled with Redwoods prior to the building of the housing community.

Noun: Reference of Time

Examples:

Till then, farewell

As a noun, ‘then’ places emphasis on the time point itself as a distinct noun-reference, a central point.

The sign-off, “till then,” signifies a particular point in future time when two people are destined to meet again. It serves as the central focus behind the address, so it takes on the role of subject.

Summary:

Generally speaking, ‘than’ and ‘then’ bear a simple distinction:

• Than: comparing alternatives, equal or unequal. (“this rather than that”)
• Then: comparing points in time (“not now, but then”) or points of order or succession (“first this, then that”)

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Quiz:

1) Which of the two references a position in the order of succession?

• Than
• Then

2) With regard to ‘than,’ which of the three categories above does each of the following fit? Categories: ‘Choices and Preferences,’ ‘Points in Time’ and ‘Unequal Alternative’)

• Actions speak louder than words ___________________________________
• Bark is worse than one’s bite ______________________________________
• Better late than never ____________________________________________
• Better safe than sorry ____________________________________________

3) Use each word in a sentence:

• Than _____________________________________________________________
• Then _____________________________________________________________

4) True or False:

• If Matt wants to get ahead on his daily schedule, than he better get up early.
• Tammy finished her homework and then went with her friends to the movies.
• The than president of the university, George Wilson, felt pressures from all sides of the conflict.
• Rather then taking his vacation during the summer, Mike decided to wait until the winter when he could get away from the cold.
• Mexico is a place than which no person can feel more relaxed while on the beach.

5) Fill in the blank:

Dorothy Whitaker was an extremely organized person; she couldn’t do anything without a sense of order or a plan of action. First she would decide what she wanted to do and why, and _______ she would draft up a plan to carry it out. Without doing this first, she felt confused and lost.

One spring day, Dorothy decided to clean out her garage. The space was cluttered with everything from old magazines, a fleet of bicycles, torn furniture, dented paint cans and an endless array of various other items from years-gone-by. Rather __________ jumping right in, however, she sat down with a notebook and made a list of all the items contained within her garage, and _______ she would decide what she wanted to do with each. She felt more secure doing this ________figuring everything out along the way. The garage was a place ________which required the most care, especially since she had decided to rent out the upper floor, and the stairs were on the inside. Access was imperative!

Dorothy finished her detailed list, and _______ set out to draw up a plan of action for cleaning out the space in question. She’d obviously have to start at the front and _______ work her way to the back. In order to do this with the greatest degree of accuracy, she guided herself through the site, pen and pad in-hand, carefully taking note of everything and exactly where each item was, and ______visualizing the entire organization process. This was better to her _______ working it out along the way. The former wouldn’t take nearly as long; the latter alternative would be messy and confusing. Her first potential renter would be coming the following day, and she needed to get this done quick.

After she completed her plan from beginning to end, to her satisfaction, she got started on her job. Just inside the door was a wall of boxes. This wall was shorter _______ the one on the other side of the garage, but it was deeper. She pulled them out and stacked them in four separate areas according to content: books, old knickknacks, clothes, and music records and tapes. _________, she came to the bicycles, which were in a tangled mess. Only one was usable, so the others went to the garbage rather _______ salvaged or sold. The paint cans came next. They formed a sprawling piled along one wall. She had just picked up her first two cans _______________ the rest came tumbling downward. One can with a jarred lid spilled its contents on the cement. How aggravating that was! Rather _______continue moving cans, however, she took mop in-hand and cleaned the mess so she wouldn’t spread it on her shoes. Luckily, the spill was slighter ________ she would have otherwise feared. When the floor was clean, she resumed her job on the cans, this time being more careful. Fifty cans in all! Of them, she decided to keep only seven or eight, which remained unopened. These would go in the cupboards along the rear wall.

That completed one side of the garage, and it took her only two hours! First she would take a break for lunch, and ________ she would proceed on the other side.

This time, however, instead of tackling the high wall of boxes at the front, she decided to work sideways toward the opposing wall to that which had bore the pile of paint cans. This was strategic; she had a plan in mind for doing this. She pushed the old couch to where the paint had been to create some moving space, and _______ wound up her hoses one at a time. These would eventually hang on the wall, but temporarily rested on the couch. The barbecue grill had wheels, and so she pushed it to the other side of the garage as well. The only thing that remained was the picnic table on which rested a stack of laundry baskets and an old microwave, the latter of which went to the curb. As soon as she moved the picnic table out of the way, allowing her access to her ladder which leant over the side window, she dusted and cleaned the back counter and inside the cupboards. No other part of this job required more time and care _______ this, for silt had collected everywhere. When the entire area was clean, she went into the driveway and brought in the eight paint cans, four at a time, and, using the ladder, slid them inside the shelves of the one cupboard, and ______ locked the door when she was done. The other cupboard had contained old rusted tools, which were discarded, but she filled it with knickknacks. Those boxes were now empty. The boxes of records and tapes went underneath the counter, along with those containing books. The boxes with clothes would go to charity.

Okay, that the garage was nearly clean, except for the large wall of boxes at the front. She shifted her ladder and ________ climbed . . . Those boxes at the top, of course, were light and half-filled with outdated bills and other documents, which went right to the curb with the microwave. Somewhere along the line, she found some Christmas ornaments. A few bulbs were shattered, and a Santa figurine was faded in color, but the rest was in good condition. Of the wall of boxes, half went out to the now-cleared driveway. The boxes at the bottom were larger ______ those at the top, but she managed to sift through them without having to even move them. These items, among them a coffee maker, an old radio that still worked and a tiffany lamp, went to the back counter. She crumpled the cardboard and took it out front, and _______ stacked the remaining few boxes against the wall in a single pile three-high. She _______ draped the hoses on hooks overhead and situated the couch underneath the stairs, which ran up the back wall to the upper level. After she swept out the entire space, she beamed over a job well done.

“I see you keep your garage clean,” the man said, striding through, glancing here and there. He was a bit shorter ______ his host, but his voice boomed. “I like cleanliness.”

Dorothy smile. “Oh yes,” she said. “I liked to keep things organized all the time. So, you’ll take the apartment, _______?”

The man nodded. “Of all the places I’ve looked at over the past two weeks, I’ve found none more spotless ______ this. That’s very important to me.”

“Well ______,” Dorothy finally said after a pause. “Welcome to your new happy home. Come on in. I’ll make us some coffee,” and ______ they turned and headed for the house.

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Please let me know if any part of this is not clear enough. Each word takes on a number of roles, so flooding the article with a multitude of different definitions was unavoidable. I tried to simplify each one for the benefit of those readers who seek basic meanings and references, but it still might be too much. If you have any suggestions, please don’t hesitate to share. Thanks.

Distinction: ‘There,’ ‘Their’ and ‘They’re’.

In my education and experience as a writer and editor, I have noticed many misuses of words, especially common words. Such erroneous practices have become prevalent in the writing community and continue to stand out in my mind as something both serious and disturbing. For that reason, I have decided to write an ongoing series of articles, called simply “Distinctions,” which will explain the differences between the featured terms and how they are or should be used in writing. At the end of each article, I will provide either a quiz or set of exercises for readers to test their knowledge and skills. Hopefully, this ongoing effort will allow said readers to gain something to help them be better writers.

In this post, I focus on ‘there,’ ‘their’ and ‘they’re,’ three words that are similar in pronunciation but whose respective meanings are quite unrelated.
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There

The most misconstrued of these three is ‘there,’ a term that writers apply generically for in cases requiring any one of the three in question.

This particular form has two viable uses: (1) an adverb indicating general location or calling attention to something or someone, and (2) as a pronoun in a sentence where the verb precedes its subject. (See here)

Adverb: Location Reference

Examples:

Becky is at Dean’s house; she spends all of her time there.
The book is over there.

The term ‘there’ serves as a means of indicating without stating specification, which is sometimes considered lazy but is acceptable if its reference is clear because it avoids repetition. In the first example above, the term ‘there’ has a particular reference: Dean’s house”; in the second, the location of the book is unknown without further information. Perhaps the object in question is lying on someone’s bed, on a desk or table, on a shelf, in the garbage can or even being used by someone else at the time the speaker points out its location. In any case, ‘there’ serves the same function and purpose in both cases: as an adverb establishing the whereabouts of a noun discussed in the sentence in which it is mentioned. In the first instance, that noun is the object; in the latter it is the subject.

Adverb: Attention-Getter

Examples:

“I am right, so there!”
“There you go!”

In these instances, ‘there’ serves as a verbal reference that functions as a means of emphasizing a point made by the speaker and/or the end of a discussion.

Pronoun: ‘There’ Sentences

As common as they are, ‘there’ sentences are generally considered weak and inadvisable. Still, ‘there’ can be used to introduce a sentence in which the verb precedes its subject.

Example:

There is no hope.

In this case, ‘hope’ is the subject-noun to which the verb ‘is’ refers.

Yes, people DO speak this way, but grammarians and editors alike suggest revising the sentence so that the subject is concrete and the meaning of the sentence goes unaffected and/or unaltered, as in:

[All] hope is lost.

The above revision is clear and concise, and the subject is specific and identifiable.

As a general rule, writers are to employ minimal use of ‘there’ sentences for reasons given above; concrete/active sentences are usually the strongest to use. Readers prefer direct statements with a well-defined subject, as in The picture remains uncolored or The film is black and white as opposed to There is no color in the picture/film.

The exception to the above rule is dialogue. As said, people use ‘there’ sentences (“there is/are/was/were”) quite often in everyday speech, and so dialogue should reflect that. Of course, fiction and creative non-fiction are distinct in style from non-fiction, such as news reporting and research. Still, ‘there’ sentences are usually but not always a big no-no in formal compositions; ‘concrete/active’ form is routinely preferred here as well.

Their

This form is a possessive variation for the plural pronoun “they,” nothing more. (See here)

Possessive Pronoun

Examples:

Their house
Their yard
Their studies
Their term papers
Their rights as citizens
Their music style

As seen, each of the instances above clarifies ownership of something, usually concrete but always specific. Possessive expressions can serve as either the subject or object of a sentence:

Subject: Their house caught fire last week.
Object: I really love their music style.

In the first example, the possessive expression serves as the subject of the sentence; in the second, the object.

This term (possessive pronoun) is formally referred to as the ‘attributive adjective’ and used to place an entity in a particular context or reference point. Take the following examples:

Their arrival in Paris
Their yard work leaves much to be desired.

This instance (i.e. function) doesn’t sound possessive, but it is in the sense that it refers descriptively to a condition applied to said entity. Hence: the term ‘attributive adjective.’

One application as denoted at the link above serves as a source of contention for me, and that is the use of “their” as a neutral correlative for single references:

The group is in their last phase of study.

The word “group,” though implicitly comprised of several members, is a single body of individuals and is therefore a single noun (others include ‘committee’ and ‘Republican Party’). IT should take a singular pronoun-reference so that number, as the grammar rule (and common sense) dictates, remains consistent. Which singular pronoun-reference should IT take, you might ask? Hmm, let me think a moment. . .

Apparently, however, this form is acceptable now, especially in casual speech and when gender is not specified, as in . . .

That person has stripped all of their clothes in the middle of winter. They must be thick-skinned..

Composing sentences clearly enough will allow writers to avoid this conundrum. For example, all one has to do is simply restate “that person” as “that man,” which in turn changes “their clothes” to “his clothes” and “they” to “him.” The revised sentence would then read:

That man has stripped all of his clothes in the middle of winter. He must be thick-skinned.

Now, the sentences are consistent in number and grammatical in form.

They’re

This form is self-explanatory, yet is always botched. Why? I have my theories, but I don’t wish to generalize or offend, so I won’t venture there.

Simply put, ‘they’re’ is the contracted form of “they are” and “they were,” and is the only one of the three that takes on a verb status (i.e. doesn’t require a verb). (See here)

Contraction

Examples:

They’re going out tonight.
They’re in the semi-finals this year.
They’re Asian.

Enough said.

Combined Forms

Writers can combine these three forms in single sentences, but the distinctions must be understood before doing so, otherwise sentence(s) will appear and read awkward.

Consider this conundrum:

John and Jenny renovated they’re home this summer, and despite the added expense, they enjoy living their; there pretty much living the dream they always wanted.

Obviously, this is wrong. What is the correct form?

John and Jenny renovated their home this summer, and despite the added expense, they enjoy living there; they’re pretty much living the dream they always wanted.

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Quiz:

1) Fill in each of the blanks with the correct form:

• Contraction = __________________________________________
• Location Reference =_____________________________________
• Possessive Pronoun=_____________________________________

2) What form has a verb incorporated into it?

• There
• They’re
• Their

3) True or False:

“They’re wonderful people. I am glad I met them.”

4) Use each form in a sentence:

• There _________________________________________________________
• Their __________________________________________________________
• They’re ________________________________________________________

5) Fill each space with the correct form:

There, They’re, Their

Maggie and Jim were a wonderful couple, despite the fact that each one had a personality totally opposite of the other: she a free spirit with no concerns in life whatsoever; he a well-disciplined and overly protective man with a professional career as a district attorney. __________________ life together was so complete that __________________respective differences didn’t matter.

“_______________ are perfect,” _________________ friend Carny has said. “_______________ so much in love that they focus only on the good things.”

That perspective would prove foolish, however, as ________________ distinctions eventually caught up with them, and _________________ blissful marriage turned into instant turmoil.

One day, Maggie got into an accident with ______________ BMW. No one was hurt, but the car was totaled. She was so much in a daze that she hadn’t noticed the tow truck delivering _________________ automobile to the city impound. ____________ the vehicle sat until the arguing couple decided what to do. Not only were ______________ repair expenses high, but _____________ insurance company refused to pay the entire bill due to the fact that the accident had been Maggie’s fault. On top of that, the impound storage fees accrued daily.

“What’s the matter with you?” Jim exploded in anger. “That car cost plenty, and YOU had to go and wreck it! _______________________ is no excuse for that!”

“Hey, at least I didn’t get hurt,” Maggie came back defensively. “These things happen. ____________ is no need to get so uptight. We can afford the damages.”

Jim’s eye’s glared white. “That’s not the point!” he finally said. “You need to be more responsible. Money doesn’t grow on trees.”

Maggie didn’t respond, but she growled under her breath. How dare he show blatant disregard for her well being; he cared more about that stupid car than he did her. He always put money before the value of human life.

______________ attitudes became so divided at that point that they never agreed on anything again—except for one thing. . .

They eventually divorced and wound up living separate lives. She decided to join the Peace Corps and help the poor in a third-word country. He married his high school sweetheart and became an appellate judge for the state.

In the end, they both realized ________________ differences played a direct role in each of them finding ________________ own lives. ________________ far happier than they’ve ever been.

Lexical Redundancies: A Need for a Cleaner, Easy-to-Read Text

As an editor, I have come across a variety of redundancies. Beginning writers especially tend to harbor these ongoing no-nos when laying out their drafts.

Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against beginners—I was one once as well—but my experience as both a writer and an editor have honed my skill of observation. I am patient and extremely open to those who are just starting out in their careers. This is exciting for me, just as it is for them. For that reason, I always look forward to sharing my insights, as I am doing now through my blog.

One of the most common forms of repetition I find is, what I call, the lexical redundancy. This phenomenon denotes the overuse of words, especially in close proximity, as in the same sentence, passage or paragraph.

Take, for instance, the following example:

“Mary went to the convenience store and then from there went to the grocery store to buy groceries. The only store in town that sold the kind of groceries she wanted was Maverick’s Groceries.”

Okay, this passage includes more than one type of redundancy, but the one in question—the lexical redundancy—is quite clear. The reuse of the same words flattens the text and makes the writing uninteresting. Therein lies why this phenomenon is deemed a writing weakness.

Some writers (i.e. beginners) are likely to read this and say “Well, the passage is clear and makes sense, right? That’s all that should matter, so what’s the problem?”

On the level of intelligibility and coherency, that’s exactly right. However, when one is writing fiction, creativity is crucial, and that deals with language, among other things. The characters and worlds we conceive are dependent on how we write them, on the language we use to express descriptions, actions and dialogue within a story. In light of this, the words we use are extremely important.

A “policeman in uniform” is not as descriptive or as dynamic as “the blue knight,” the latter of which offers more than the merely description provided by the former. For that reason, variation brings forth color and depth that not only allow the characters and their worlds to stand out, but also makes for interesting reading.

So how do we improve the above example? Well, first off, determine which words are overused and why. Here, we have a few: “store” (3 times), “went” (2 times) and “grocery” (4 times). Their purpose is, evidently, to clarify, or ‘spell out,” the character’s actions. That’s noble enough, but that can be done through text-condensing and word change. The first technique alone might solve the redundancy problem by simply eliminating unnecessary words.

Okay, let’s take a look at that passage again. I will repost it here so you don’t have to scroll back up to read it:

“Mary went to the convenience store and then from there went to the grocery store to buy groceries. The only store in town that sold the kind of groceries she wanted was Maverick’s Groceries.”

Now, we can work on it. The first sentence has two “stores” and a reiteration of the action verb “went”. How can we cut that down? Well, the first “store” fits because it is part of reference (to say only “convenience” is an incomplete thought), so it stays, as does the initial verb “went” because it let’s us know right away about Mary’s action.

The second half if the sentence (i.e. the subordinate clause), however, can drop those words because they aren’t necessary. First, the second “went” is not required, and the two “grocery” references can be omitted altogether. “Market” replaces “grocery store,” which hits two birds with one stone by eliminating one “grocery” and one “store”. The phrase “to buy groceries” is a content redundancy because we already know what Mary is going to buy at the second stop.

So here we have a revised first sentence:

“Mary went to the convenience store and then to the market.”

As you see, not only do the word repetitions fall away, but the entire passage is economized with regard to word count. The sentence gets right to the point and reads better in a clear and simple form of expression.

How about the second part of that example?

Here it is:

“The only store in town that sold the kind of groceries she wanted was Maverick’s Groceries.”

What can be done here? Let’s see …

Well, the first form of “grocery” can be thrown out because we already know that this is a given with Mary. The instance in the market title can go, too. Although it is part of the business name, the first word can stand alone clearly. As for the “store” at the beginning of the sentence, what other word can we substitute to cancel out the redundancy and ensure that the sentence remains coherent and intelligible? How about the simple and everyday “place”? This will work. Take a look at the revised version of the sentence:

“The only place in town that sold what Mary wanted was Maverick’s.”

Yet, again, we have a simple statement that is right to the point. Now, let’s put the two sentences together and see how the new passage reads:

“Mary went to the convenience store and then to the market. The only place in town that sold what Mary wanted was Maverick’s.”

Does this example contain any further lexical redundancies? Is the passage clear and understood? Does it make sense?

With a bit of deductive reasoning and some careful and objective editing, a piece of writing can read easy and clean, and this will always impress editors and publishers.

The Reality of Public Perception

The closing statement in the previous section touches on an issue that continues in many debates between writers and editors. That issue serves as a universal contention for many reasons.

Public perception can either make or break a writer’s chance for success. This is an obvious reality. The ideal that a writer’s opinion of her/his own work being all that matters is a logical fallacy. Even though that notion does make sense (to a degree), it is not consistent with the way the writing and publishing industries really are.

Lexical redundancies can directly affect a writer’s level of vocabulary. A short range of terminology, as seen by the ongoing reuse of words, leaves writers appearing limited at best. That does not attract the confidence of either publishers or readers, both of whom seek wit and sophistication to stimulate their minds. Readers won’t buy materials exhibiting overwrought terms and expressions, and publishers won’t take a chance on them because they know such works appear dull and unprofessional and will likely not sell.

Does this sting?

If it does, that’s good.

This is why editing is so important and why a broad cache of words and expressions is necessary for writers to improve their work. As demonstrated above, the removal of all lexical redundancies rendered the example passage easy-to-read while maintaining proper grammar and syntax. Loquaciousness (a state of being long and wordy) quite often renders writing drawn out and confusing, and that turns off even the worst readers.

To come: Show, don’t Tell – Another common issue in writing.

Research: a Tribute to Titanic: a Century’s Struggle to Learn the Truth

This is Titanic Week, marking the ninety-ninth anniversary of the sinking, and so now the time is right to include a post about researching the Titanic. Flocks of enthusiasts and student researchers continuously seek information on that tragedy and the many people involved in it, so let’s hope that this post finds them drawn to read.

Whether rational or not, Titanic has attained the status of legend of sorts that stands out from many other ships and shipwrecks. The continuously growing community of experts and enthusiasts holds Titanic in its collective heart and keeps the stories as fresh and alive as they were nearly a century ago.

What more can be said about the ship and those on board her? Believe it or not, the stories haven’t yet finished unfolding. That’s the beauty of Titanic—it is limitless in her treasure trove of knowledge. Our long struggle to discover and learn more about her has continually brought forth a plethora of new insights not only with regard to the ship and her time period, but also how we conduct research. This process has not stopped.

When it comes to researching Titanic, the process has been life-long for me. As a boy, I found myself intrigued by the great ship and all the mysteries that abounded: How big/long was she? How many funnels did she have? What did she look like? Where, when and how did she sink? How many people were on her? Who were they and where were they from? Who died and who survived? Why did so few first-class perish compared to those in steerage? These and other questions drove me on.

The answers to these questions were at one time unknown, but continuing research has unearthed much of that information. Not surprising, such information has created a bit of controversy and debate among many: Was there a three-hundred-foot gash or was the damage nothing more than a series of tears and rivet pops? With regard to this damage, what developments caused the Titanic to sink within two hours and forty minutes? What efforts were employed to render safety to passengers and seek help? Why wasn’t that enough? What could have been done differently to change the outcome?

And the questions keep on mounting. Ironically enough, this happens when one conducts research; the deeper we look into the subject and discuss it, the more questions arise. This serves as the natural cycle of ascertaining and building knowledge. The more questions we have, the further we go. There is never an end and likely never will be. That’s what keeps researchers like me interested—the game is in a constant shift, but it persists, and the mystery and intrigue remain throughout. As long as there are questions, people will push to find the answers.

One place to start would be obtaining a library’s worth of essential documentation: the transcripts (there are two—American and the subsequent British Board of Trade), birth/death certificates, passenger/crew and cargo manifests, ticket purchase receipts, diaries, personal letters, and deck plans, all of which are primary sources; and eyewitness testimonies, books, documentaries and discussion boards fall in second place due to their subjective nature (even though researchers obtain their information from primary sources et al., personal biases are likely to affect their accounts, and quite often conjecture is made [remember the ongoing questions?]).

Field experience, which I have discussed in earlier posts, is extremely important in Titanic’s story. In order for us as researchers to determine where Titanic went down, what condition she was in and how she sank, we had to get to the wreck of the ship and study it up close. The problems were multiple: (1) we didn’t even know where the ship was (Fourth Officer Joseph Boxhall’s calculations put the sinking at 41/46N-50/14W, but that has since been proven false); (2) the wreck was at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, some two and a half miles down, which wasn’t easy to reach, much less to find in the first place; (3) the reliable technology needed to find and reach Titanic, wherever her location, was scarce, in its infant stages or untested; and (4) the costs required to develop the technology, let alone mount a mission to find Titanic, would be unbelievably and staggeringly high. Several attempts have been made over the years to find her, but all failed. One millionaire, Jack Grimm, invested large amounts of money, but the research just wasn’t there to assure success. This is/was the Catch-22 of field investigation: the research requires money, but the money requires research. Which one would have to come first—the chicken or the egg? This was the unsolvable conundrum.

In the meantime, all we could do was speculate. This stirred the imaginations, but it did little as far as finding the desired answers and facts. This failure and our limitations motivated us; ironically, both served as a benefit in the research. We assessed the situation and its complexities and strove about to rectify the issue.

One area on which we focused was the development of technology. Specialists in a variety of fields, from marine salvage to history to ship-building to naval architecture and oceanographic engineering, contributed their insight as to what would be necessary to safely find and reach the Titanic. Among the innovations that came about in this process were the use of sonar and the underwater submersible. Sonar was limited in its scope and detection capabilities, but it was enhanced to discern the differences in mass size and composition. The latter, submersibles, were already being used, but they never made a safe or successful descent to that extreme depth; these vehicles were able to go to a certain depth, but none had ever gone two and a half miles down. That was risky, not only with regards to air pressure, but also to equipment function (lights, gauges, camera and video), water pressure (at that depth, it was relentlessly strong and dense), and communication (would those at the bottom be able to communicate with those at the surface, etc.?). These technologies needed to be developed or enhanced further and tested as well before any attempts could be made. The cost would be in the millions.

See how important and involved and expensive field research can be?

During the summer of 1985, Dr. Robert Ballard and his team of the prestigious Woods Hole Institute in Massachusetts, grouped with French underwater exploration, headed by Jean Louis Michel, set out to find Titanic. The area was vast and comprised of a large triangle established by three coordinates (Boxhall’s calculation, the Mount Temple’s estimation of Titanic’s location and the Carpathia). This would take several days, if not weeks. In late September of that year, while the night shift scanned the ocean floor, a large mass of metal triggered the signals. On closer inspection, the hulk of a huge ship came into view. It was the Titanic’s bow! Finally, the behemoth was found. What shocked the crew and Ballard was the fact that the ship abruptly ended around the region of the third funnel; everything aft of that point was gone. This confirmed the ongoing query—the ship had indeed broken apart on the night she sank. They found the stern a half-mile away, lying in a debris field; its shattered remains a sad sight to behold (most of the people who died were either on or inside the stern. This fact has caused many onlookers to weep silently while gazing upon this heap of splayed and twisted metal). Other discoveries included: (1) a third middle “section” was missing, which showed that the ship did not simply crack in two, but crumbled away as it broke apart, top-down and in a twisting motion, at the point of the aft expansion joint situated just aft of the third funnel (the aft-grand staircase was completely gone, leaving an exposed first-class smoking room and a set of reciprocating engines); (2) the decks were compressed flat, suggesting that the stern slammed hard into the bottom; (five boilers from BR #1 rested nearby, confirming that the break went through that room); (3) the hull was splayed out on the starboard side and the poop-deck peeled back over the docking bridge, indicating that the stern section first imploded and then exploded on its way down (the trapped air inside burst outward through the third-class stairwell and cargo hold #4, obliterating the well deck and sending the poop-deck backwards); and (4) the presence of five more boilers at the end of the bow section substantiated the theory that the boilers, in fact, did NOT blow up that night and were still embedded on their moorings. These findings are/were valuable, and would not have been possible to know had we not traveled to the bottom of the ocean to take a look. Field research, as said, is not only essential, but crucial, to gaining knowledge that would be inaccessible through any other means.

Further advancements were also set in place with regard to marine protocol. International Ice Patrols (ICPs) now constantly monitor the north Atlantic for icebergs. Of course, modern-day ship communications operate via computer systems, so reporting dangers is quicker and much more efficient than at the time of the Titanic, so the vigils underway are a combine effort. Another innovation—or law, to be more precise—was that all passenger ships MUST have enough lifeboats for everyone on boat (Titanic had only enough for approximately 1,200 people, a little over half of the 2,200 people the ship carried on her maiden voyage. The owners of the White Star Line placed luxury over safety, figuring that any dangers or threat to human well being would likely be minimal or non-existent. She was the largest ship in the world at the time, after all, at 883 feet in length. What could possibly happen? No one at that time ever said that Titanic was “unsinkable,” but it was likely assumed by many). Her sister ship, the Britannic, would later be redesigned with bulkheads going up to B-deck (Titanic’s only extended as high as E-deck, but it wasn’t high enough—the incoming water spilled over each bulkhead in “ice tray” fashion until the imbalance of weight created an excess of stress that caused the break). Unfortunately, the Britannic sank in 1916, as a hospital ship during World War I, but the damage incurred there was severer than that inflicted on Titanic. Still, the raised bulkheads gave the crew time to disembark before the ship sank. Had the bulkheads not gone as high as B-deck, the death toll would likely have been greater than the 30 it was).

As far as research goes, the Titanic and her demise have spurred on new forms. The technological developments one could argue as added research capabilities, since the Titanic would not have been found without it. Indeed, what was achieved pushed research capabilities at that time of the ship’s discovery. Jacques Cousteau had found the Britannic wreck only nine years prior, but that wasn’t the same—the hospital ship lies nowhere near the extreme depth as that of the Titanic, so its access was easier and less costly. Even then, in 1985, the idea of looking for something that deep was considered as somewhat risky—only a desire, a hope and a dream that, with ongoing diligence and persistence, paid off. This shows that success in research is due just as much to human ambition and ingenuity as much as it is to capability. The drive creates the need(s), which, in turn, brings about research insight and the advancements that reflect it.

My research methodology has expanded as well. When I was younger, looking up info was considered the extent of broadening one’s knowledge, but I have always been the one to ask questions, generate queries, to think critically about things. Only this way can we increase the scope of learning. Don’t settle with what is told to you, even if it is based on current findings; think for yourself and form your own conclusions. Diversity adds to the research and the growing body of knowledge. This doesn’t mean one should disbelieve or disregard the knowledge that’s out there, but, don’t accept that as the “all and the end” of what can be learned. That serves as a necessary base, that’s it. Always go further, and what I have discovered as a Titanic researcher is that there IS no end.

Titanic Research and the Media

The media has contributed to Titanic’s legendary status. This is especially true in the industry of entertainment. No other ship has generated as many books, documentaries or movies as the Titanic. New authors emerge all the time with fresh insights. The number of Titanic experts is still growing, and that would include James Cameron, a filmmaker by trade, who researched, produced and directed the latest incarnation in 1998, which is merely the latest in a series of seven movies (eight, if one considers survivor Dorothy Gibson’s 20-minute reel from 1912. No copies are known to exist, but it was made). The film won eleven academy awards, including Best Picture. This reflects an unwavering interest in Titanic. Although most viewers weren’t concerned with details, they were curious and became inspired by the great ship and her story.

That said, these movies do not reflect one-hundred percent accuracy, nor are they meant to do so; instead, they are products that (1) showcase a filmmaker’s perspective or beliefs, and (2) entertain. No movie made is factual to the detail, but more commercialized than anything else; that is, the purpose is to garner high numbers, both in ratings and in dollars, than to teach history.

A couple of examples revolve around the suicide of First Officer Murdock and the Californian’s role in the tragedy. Several eyewitnesses from the Titanic recall hearing gunshots and seeing an officer slumped on the deck during the later hours when chaos reigned. Yes, a few named First Officer Murdock, but it has not been confirmed whether those individuals actually knew Murdock personally, and the limited lighting and excitement pounding at that point in time leave the question open as to the identity of the officer—or whether or not an officer actually shot himself. People have made mistakes before, and others have even mentioned Chief Officer Wilde in connection with this. No one knew for certain, except Murdock’s family who knew better than to believe he would commit suicide. His body was never found. We will never know. Still, the argument that he felt guilty over the Titanic’s collision with an iceberg during his shift is a compelling one, but it doesn’t confirm anything. Everything here is conjecture, and so the depiction of Murdock’s suicide in both Cameron’s film and the TV miniseries that preceded it a year before can only attest to the filmmakers’ respective beliefs, nothing more.

The Californian’s role in the story, too, is a continuous debate between those who believe this was the ship within visual distance during the sinking and those, called Lordites, who insist it wasn’t. The Californian never appeared in the “official” movie depiction, A Night to Remember, released in 1958 but Walter MacQuitty, who, as a boy, had actually witnessed the Titanic being launched back in 1912. That inspired him to no end. He knew better than to include such a controversial issue as that of the Californian’s questionable involvement in the sinking. Most other movies leave this account out as well and likely for similar reasons. Although many people believe it was the Californian there that night, no evidence exists to substantiate the claim one way or another. Stanley Lord’s log for that night places his ship at a set of coordinates considerably farther away from Titanic, so no one knows for sure. Yes, the nighttime crew saw a ship in the distance that shot rockets, but they couldn’t tell what ship it was and it could very well have been another. Again, nothing has been determined conclusively either way. As a researcher, I must remain objective and weigh all arguments evenly; without evidence, I cannot form any definite assessment. That would be irresponsible.

Art is a wonderful thing (I am an artist and creative writer myself), but the built-up drama and suspense for the sake of art cannot serve as a viable source for showcasing fact when expressing fact is not an objective of the movie. These movies, though, DO add a visual depiction of the Titanic and her story that inspires one to imagine what it was like being aboard her during her voyage and her sinking. That’s the extent of how far research goes.

The media has always sensationalized Titanic. But though the story warrants recognition, the hype it receives serves to excite readers for the wrong reasons. One must remember that magazines and other commercial publications are in the business to first sell. People are drawn out of interest, are intrigued, but they gain a superficial impression of the ship and her story that is based on little sensibility and is more legend than reality so that all, or most, credibility is either minimized or lost. The truth about Titanic is enough to give it strength; when that truth, whatever it might be, is approached with a sense of rationality and sensitivity, the legend stands up for what it actually is and acquires its rightful stance.

Conclusion

As the Titanic fades off into the past upon its centennial anniversary (coming up next year), its light remain strong and steady. The great ship won’t let us forget who she was and why she existed. So many stories ring continuously through our minds non-stop. . . The band playing “till the end” (which is true, depending on what one means by “the end.” If it refers to the point where the ship took a perilous slant and chaos reigned, then yes; if it refers to the point when the stern went under, then no); Molly Brown quipping about going out and retrieving ice on the deck for her late-night drink; Ida Straus refusing a seat in lifeboat #8 in order to stay behind with her husband, Isador (she was one of only five first-class females to perish that night); W.T. Stead reading his book in the first class smoking room all during the sinking; Benjamin Guggenheim casting his lifebelt aside and insisting on “going down like a gentleman,” along with his valet; P. Fletcher charging his bugle before every meal; John Phillips, the head wireless operator, persisting the calls, even after the captain released him and water began flooding the room; the battle between Molly Brown and Robert Hitchens (who had been at the wheel at the time of Titanic’s collision with the iceberg) in lifeboat #6 as they argued whether or not to go back and rescue people from the water; Fifth Officer Lowe forming a flotilla with lifeboats 4, 10, 12 and Collapsible D, then returning with a few volunteers in lifeboat 14 to rescue people in the water after the Titanic sank, only to find most dead (he saved a handful of people, including a first class man, an Asian man who had been strapped to a door, and a steward); the multitude of people who screamed into the night as they died horribly, among them several third-class families such as the Goodwins and Sages . . . There are countless stories, too many to mention here—many of them true, others skewered over the years—but the spirit of the Titanic shines through and penetrates us. We continue to reflect, yearn to know what really happened, long after every survivor has passed on. Its allure doesn’t weaken as long as her story is shared—her real story.

That’s where the research comes in . . . .

Revisions: the Key to Success

I recently submitted a short story to a local academic literary journal for publication this year. The editor thought the story was “excellent,” but he insisted that some revisions be conducted. Naturally, I didn’t object.

The most unexpected yet flattering offer he made, however, was that he would be willing to meet me for discussions on how to revise said piece. This is very unusual for an editor to do; especially when it comes to writers editors don’t even know. The story must have left an impression on him.

At any case, we met at a coffee shop and discussed the story backwards and forwards. I agreed with much of what he had said, but disagreed on other minor points. No impasse developed between us; he and I got along great.

“So, this is a matter of when and not if?” I asked, and he concurred. Of course, I knew that, but I wanted to confirm it anyway. He even said that if I refused to make certain changes, he would work with me. That told me he was determined to publish the piece.

The revisions took me a several hours over a week to do, which was expected because conducting revisions is always time-consuming when they involve story changes or rewrites. As aggravating as it was, I enjoyed it, and, I must say, the story turned out better in some ways. That was truly a learning experience for me—in more ways than one.

Revisions for the Academics (and Other Writers)

The above account should serve as reassurance for those submitting works into circulation (and many, many writers now are doing that on a regular basis), but this is also ideal for those in school—middle school, high school and college alike—especially now at a time when the semesters are winding down and final papers are due, whether they be research, essays or simply “what-I-did-last-summer” kind of presentations. All students should never underestimate the importance of revising their work–doing so or not doing so can mean the difference between failure and success.

With that in mind, how about a brief but challenging exercise? Below are a couple of text samples that require proofreading and revisions. This will not only be fun to do, but will also hone editing skills for those final papers due soon. Use not only the knowledge and tools you have acquired in school, but also your instincts. The latter will never fail you; if something doesn’t seem or sound right, chances are, it is not.

Sample 1:

Bagleys trip too the story for some mllk was going to be a simple one. Little did he know that when he left home, that trip would change his entire life.

Little did he no that when he got too the store, he never saw the gun the man had pointing at the clerk. After getting his milk, he walked rite into it. Bagley was quickly taken hostage with the gun pointed at his head. He sweated up a storm as he was forced into the truck waiting outside. Bagly thought he would never sea his family again.

” Whadda ya gonna do with me?” he asked wit a tremor in his voice.

“Shaddup!” the guy snapped, “or I’m gonna end it fer sure.”

Sample 2:

The Titannic sailed on April 11, 1912 from Southampton Engeland wit 2200 people on board. The captain was too retire soon, an he looked forward to his last trip at see. Little did he know upon sailing that it would be his last trip in more ways then one.

At 11 pm Sunday 16th after five days at sea, the titannic colided with an iceburg, puncturing a series of holes and popping rivets from her hull. The forward compartments we’re flooding really very quickly.

The captain went too the wirless room and instructed the operators to send out morse code in an attempt to contact other ships for help. No one was close—the titannic was doomed

In a matter of two an a half hours the titannic gradually sunk. breaking in too an falling to the ocean floor. Fifteen hundred people died that night, many of them children

The world will not forget the loss it was such a tradegy that changed the way men sail. Their are now lifboats for all so that all on board can bee saved.

The two samples above are distinctly different: the first is a piece of fiction, and the second a research account. Because of this, two separate approaches must be made. The obvious grammatical and spelling errors require attention, but both samples have other deeper considerations as well. For the second, a bit of research is warranted.

By the way, what other means can enhance the samples above? Can metaphors or additional foreshadows help? Are there any redundancies of any other nature? Can the text be condensed? In which way can vocabulary be used to enhance color and dynamic of each piece? Are elaborations necessary for either or both pieces? If so, how where and why?

Also, please keep in mind that these pieces, or excerpts, are more in the nature of drafts, so a lot of applied work, both seen and unseen, can improve them.

In any case, have at it. Feel free to share your thoughts on it if you would like. Any and all insight will help others.

NOTE: These samples are not meant to be condescending in the least. Many younger readers will find the grammatical, morphological, lexical and spelling issues a challenge. Please have some understanding and patience. Still, there are deeper issues that will appeal to both high-school students and college students. Thanks.

Research and Influence #1b: Echoes from the Past: Urban Legends Brought to Life

Urban Legends: Real or Unreal?

Urban legends, such as those created and maintained through stories of Lambertville High School, are always assumed to be just that, with no basis of reality, at least not in the major sense with all of the ghost stories prevalent throughout history and the various cultures of the world; most of these stories are believed to be figments of the imagination or tales conjured up through pranksters or hearsay or those weird inexplicable phenomena witnessed by people who find no logical source but that are, again, assumed to have a rational explanation.

Still, with all of the accounts that continue to emerge and be passed along throughout time and space by people from all walks of life—those of imaginative capacity and those who are “respectably level-headed,” as the learned and prominent in society—not all urban legends can all be untrue or non-factual, can they? What if some of these urban legends were based on some actual truth in reality? After all, many encounters have been investigated and still remain unexplained. Some even have scores of witnesses.

Such a case would be Columbine High School. The dreadful event took place on 20 April, 1999, almost eleven years ago. Two disturbed high school students burst into the school library and murdered several students in cold blood. Some bodies were even tossed out the windows for terrified onlookers to see. No one ever believed that such a situation could happen, until it did—more than once.

Virginia Tech, even more recently (17 April, 2007), echoed that long-ago scenario, and it occurred in another part of the country (the former in Colorado; the latter in Virginia, farther east). A troubled Asian student burst into a hall while classes were in session and open fired, killing many, this time including instructors.

Both events and others like them have left lingering nightmares in the minds of those who witnessed them or knew those involved—effects that will likely last a lifetime. The country, as a nation, will never forget these horrible scenes and the lives lost. Such indelible impressions have shaken a nation and scarred its conscious so deeply that no one will escape the damage incurred.

As far as haunts go, however, Columbine has already begun manifesting the paranormal residue of its own story based in reality. Accounts reported by both students and teachers attest to feelings of being watched, oppressing pain and apprehension, voices and screaming throughout the school (but especially near the library), orbs and even sightings of mysterious figures. Could this be a result of so many minds still under siege by a persistently lingering nightmare that many are unable to forget? That is entirely possible. Yet, how can one explain the uncanny similarities between accounts, especially with regards to students now attending the school who were too young to remember the actual event of eleven years ago? To those who have experienced these phenomena, the series of variable manifestations are certainly unwaveringly real.

Obsession or Destiny Fulfilled?

The protagonist of my novel, Hallowed Halls, encounters similar manifestations. Nothing so unusual about that, only that he is drawn by forces beyond his control to pursue them in a dire need to uncover answers and is uncertain as to what he might find, even as he is succumbed into what he senses as real. This is subjective, of course, until others from his clan, without knowing anything about his situation, become involved and experience the same overwhelming manifestations that purposefully interact with them as well.

This is a case exploring what it would be like if such urban legends were actually true or based on some fact. My protagonist (and later his comrades) conduct research on the haunted place and discover the horrible event that happened there so many years before, so long ago that it has been left forgotten, except by those who were there and have managed to survive. The answers reveal a story that is surprisingly not as much science fiction, fantasy or as supernatural as human. THIS is enough to weigh upon the heart and mind because it involves actual people. It is such a sad ordeal that no one can or would want ignore it. An obsession turns into a need to help others who are lost, and that attempt, the protagonist learns over time, is his destiny, whether he is ready for it or not.

Both Lambertville High School and Columbine play a part in this story’s development, mainly because these are real-life places with real-life stories. Although the legends of the first example are unproven and are assumed by lingering manifestations continually permeating the place eerily destroyed but still standing, the latter has a confirmed account that correlates to the phenomena experienced by those there.

Another chilling point testified by Columbine is the fact that such a possibility of an in-school massacre is, in fact, true, since it actually happened. Such a scenario, though one that no one wishes to imagine, is indeed not beyond the realm of feasibility. As ugly and as tormenting and as disconcerting as it is, such an occurrence forces us to keep an open-mind and never underestimate what is possible and what is not, and never to assume anything is considered too farfetched to be conceived or believed. The protagonist of Hallowed Halls learns this lesson all too well, as do all of those around him, including those who have died.

Another aspect that correlates between Lambertville and Hallowed Halls is the echoes that ring over time through several means to grip the minds of those in the present. Such signals take the form of visual manifestation, such as the mysterious artwork of students on the blackboard and other various images throughout the site to sounds vibrating in the inner conscious, such as calling voices and laughter of those from an earlier time to even the deeply embedded feelings of presences sensed. These are common, true, but they are nonetheless profound on those who experience them, whether young explores at the Lambertville ruins, attendees at Columbine or the protagonist in Hallowed Halls, who encounters is own array of inexplicable visuals and sounds directed specifically at him. They all share similar experiences that draw and tie them to the past where they learn more about their surroundings and themselves. This is the true nature of any haunting, and though it is skeptically contested by many, it is an experience prevalently shared by an even greater number of people than those who deny it. There is no concrete evidence to substantiate any of this, of course, but, then again, those who have experienced such phenomena do not need evidence—their own sensations and how they are affected by said phenomena are absolutely real enough. Perhaps that’s all that is necessary to create impressionable meaning in the human mind.

This is what gives the story of the novel its strength, persistence and solidity, as well as the assurance that so many people will be able to relate to it over time. This is an urban legend that is all too human, just as the readers are; the human factor is what makes the story as real to the reader as the ghostly experience does to the individual. If this is the case, as apparently it is, the story is well-justified, as it achieves its intended purpose.

Lessons on Writing

As writers, we all learn more about writing by actually writing. It’s not too out-of-line to say, then, that each writing project we complete as writers teaches us lessons on writing while simultaneously improving our skill in writing. The two, therefore, go hand-in-hand.

What have I learned about writing through Hallowed Halls?

First: that the characters themselves create the story, just by being the entities they are. If the writer knows and is confident in her/his characters, the story will flow out and write itself. Yes, I already knew this, but this experience has reminded me that such a notion is not merely an ideal, but indeed a truth in creative writing. The Characters are everything; they are the essence of the story. If a writer underestimates them, s/he is wasting time with the story. First thing a writer needs to do—regardless—is to get to know the characters. Before I even started writing on the story itself, I delineated pages upon pages of life story for each of the characters. That took hours, days, even weeks, but it was necessary, and by the time I was done, I knew exactly what the story would be from beginning to end. Yes, some details fluctuated, but the essence of the entire story was already there and out, so I felt confident when I started on the actual novel. All this came to be because I knew my characters well beforehand.

“But if it isn’t going into the novel, why waste your time writing it out?” Many of you might say.

The answer: It doesn’t matter. Not all of the details of a character’s background should go into the body of the novel. The important thing is that you, the writer, must know your characters well enough to write about them.

A fine example would be that which lies in a different field of writing—journalism. One does research on a given subject to familiarize oneself with the subject so that one can write about it, even if much of the information obtained remains unenclosed in the final product. The writer gains an in-depth understanding regarding the overall nature of the subject so that s/he can write about it confidently without the need to include everything.

A writer isn’t wasting time by developing character backgrounds. The principle described above applies to creative writing and the characters one creates. Writers need to know their characters, how they think and feel and what makes them tick, how they relate to others and what motivates them, their families, their childhood friends, their enemies, their issues and pathologies (we all have these). In doing this, the writer IS writing the novel because all of this serves as the basis for the story upon which the novel is founded.

Another important point I accomplished through writing Hallowed Halls relates to foreshadowing. This not only alludes to future developments in the novel’s story, it also ties together the many elements of the plot so that everything is unified. This is done through the employment of metaphors and similes, setting, dialogue, structure, even font. As I mentioned in earlier posts on this blog, modifiers are of the essence. Nouns themselves can and do serve as modifiers for themselves. If such elements are used correctly and innovatively, foreshadowing will be effective.

One should keep in mind, though, that the most efficacious foreshadowing is, believe it or not, the most subtle. Nothing destroys a storyline like foreshadowing that SCREAMS what will be to come. Never underestimate the intelligence of the reader; if they are paying attention, readers will pick them up quicker and easier than the “in-your-face” references, probably because the former are naturally and casually presented, as they are in life, and are therefore more profound.

An instance of the subtle foreshadow would be a conversation between two characters who are joking. An off-the-cuff slur is made that will come into play later on. Do NOT elaborate or explain this right then and there, as the foreshadow will lose its power and so the story will lose its strength. A writer should simply make the slur and move on. Unnecessary explanations and descriptions are not only redundant (please see post on “redundancies”), but also interferes with the flow of the story and bloats the content.

The overall irony about composing a novel is that despite all of the writing that goes into character developments, minimal referencing will make the final product.

A conscientious writer should never underestimate the power of a single word, as long as it is the RIGHT word.

As for Hallowed Halls, this is only the beginning; more writing development and lessons to learn will come with the revisions. That’s where the REAL writing takes place.

I am looking forward to it . . . .

Holiday Tidings

With the holidays approaching once again, we find whole new inspirations to carry us through our writing. What kinds of things do we write about this time of year, besides Christmas stories, that is? There must be an endless array of subject matter to cover. After all, the holiday period means something unique to everyone.

As for me, I tend to find inspiration in the fact that we, as a warring planet, have made it through yet another year. That in itself is a worthy subject about which to write: people who are down and out and have nothing and living on the street, others living it up on sunny beaches where the palm trees are strung with Christmas lights, boats floating through ice fields in the sea as they prepare for next year’s harvest, soldiers marching across battlefields far from home, the calmness of a quiet snow-fallen night, kids screaming raucously as they spin time and time again down a snowy hill, families and how they interact when they are together in the warmth of their homes . . . even death and destruction, unfortunately, play a significant role in creating or validating the holiday spirit.

Recently, a friend told me that her mother-in-law, who has cancer, is expected to live only a few more weeks. This is understandably depressing, of course, for those who are close to the woman, especially her husband, but for everyone, this experiences just reminds us how precious life really is and how we should embrace and enjoy it with all of the passion within us. THIS is why death during the holiday season is quite apropos. Nothing seems more meaningful than a holiday filled with death.

Except that of a new birth.

Yes, the birth of a new member of the family equally reminds us that life continues and reinforces more than ever the need for us to carry on, even after the death of our loved ones. So birth counters death.

Actually, the two balance each other; life cannot exist without either one, for when a person dies, another is born to take that person’s place.

Life and Death and Writing

Writing reflects life. That’s why the influences and ideas about which to write are endless. The holidays fuel those ideas regarding life and death because these are what the holidays celebrate. Therefore, the writing that the holiday period inspires should also celebrate, or at least discuss, the significance of both life and death.

What do you, as writers, contemplate during the holiday period? What moves you? Personal experiences? Articles you read in the newspaper? A class discussion (for those of you in school)? A movie or TV show?

In the end, it doesn’t really matter because every source is a valid one for inspiring one to writer; everything a person is touched and affected by her or his surroundings. All of these things serve as means to substantiate our existence and our need to write.

For me, I will sip the eggnog, kick back and relax while both reading and writing, reflecting on the holidays and the year that just past and everything that has happened during that time, as well as how I have changed and grown as a person as a result. This, too, will make next year even more memorable for me . . . .

The Essential Space: Creating Distance between Writer and Work

If editing is the responsibility of the writer, does that mean each writer needs to invest money into paying a professional editor? While it is a good practice to develop, you can certainly avoid the expense if you have a friend who can objectively review your manuscript. Having a second pair of eyes review your writing is always a good idea. Remember, you are too close to the writing and will have a tendency to read what you meant to type rather than what you actually typed. Another way to avoid hiring an editor is to put the piece down for a month or so and then reread it with fresh eyes. Certainly this will not work when you have a specific deadline, but if you are working on a book or short story, it will definitely work and is a good idea. In fact putting your story down for a while will also help you see any flaws in your storyline

A friend and colleague of mine, Brenda Coxe, has recently been writing a series of articles on the importance of the editor and editing in the processes of writing and submitting a manuscript for publication. The conclusion to this would seem like a no-brainer, but, believe it or not, the subject has taken on a debate. Some people actually believe that neither hiring an editor nor performing one’s own edits during the writing and submission processes is important.

Please read here and here.

The one point she made that really struck home for me, however, is the above paragraph: specifically the question as to the importance of setting one’s work aside before revisions and editing begin. Now, I am not going to restate her points (except where and how they relate to mine), but I will elaborate on them with insight derived from my own experiences writing.

First, the question that comes to mind is whether or not a writer should suspend some space between writing and the ensuing revisions and edits. This all depends on the writer and, equally as important, the piece being developed (not every piece is or should be done exactly the same way, although certain general steps are advisable to follow at all times). For me, the answer is a resounding yes, and I am pretty certain that most if not all writers put their work aside before they administer the necessary revisions and edits, as nine hundred and ninety-nine out of every one thousand manuscripts will need them.

Brenda was right when she said that writers are too close to their work. This is natural for every writer due to the time, interest and hard work invested into the writing. Writers know the content better than anyone else (or at least are more in tune with the ideas expressed and how those ideas are developed), so they trust what they write. Is this a good thing? Well, yes, to some extent, because self-confidence is important. However, after time, said writer loses a sense of objectivity necessary to assess the piece in order to review it honestly and with assurance. Objectivity is a good thing as well, and necessary if one is planning on submitting a manuscript for publication. Writers’ perspectives are essential, but so are the readers’, otherwise publishing a work would have no purpose.

Another question that comes to mind is: How much time should a writer wait before returning to the work? That depends as well. I was advised by my graduate professor once that the time span should be approximately or at least six months, Sensible, as writers need some distance from their work. This is especially true if the writer has had problems leading to migraines.

Diverting one’s attention away from a particular piece of writing will not only provide distance, but also allow new insights to emerge through other projects and activities. When I was writing on the draft to Hallowed Halls, I found myself conflicted by the ongoing direction regarding the protagonist’s mission in relation to the spirits who were calling to him. Which way should I go from here, and to which extent and why? What significance(s) would any particular solution have regarding character development and/or plot? In any case, I had a basic outline, but I found myself getting lost in the details and I became aggravated. I knew I had to get away from the story and the text, so I put it away for about a year and focused on other stories. One was Urban Legend, another ghost story about skepticism versus open-mindedness. When I constructed that plot-line, which was easier due to the story’s simpler structure, I gained a great sense of clarity that allowed me to progress with Hallowed Halls. I even changed some of what I had already written. The story flowed naturally and realistically, and all of the details bore significance to the characters and/or the plot.

Other forms of writing, such as articles, would sometimes only require a few days before revisions or editing takes place. These are relatively short, but they quite often need rewrites or even re-conceptualization. Magazine features and diminutive items of research fall into this category. My recent post on Lambertville High School, with its background and how it has served as a literary influence for both Hallowed Halls and Urban Legend, was one such article. That article was really involved and included various sources for which several links had to be provided and integrated into the text. Which angle should I have taken? Which information was relevant and to what extent? Which sources or links are most important and should thence be used? These questions and others were asked. The draft was redone several times, and I reviewed and edited it more than once—and each time I had to put it off for two or three days to gain a fresh perspective. Within a two-week period, I finished it and even appended a series of additional resource links for readers to explore. This post serves as the basis for an extended piece on the subject which will contain more information and elaboration on various points regarding the history and paranormal aspects of the site and how it has influenced my work.

Upon their submission, after they have been properly and thoroughly revised and edited, manuscripts have a better chance of being accepted for publication. Editors will be able to review them much more swiftly and easily, and with very few, if any, complications involved, which is ultimately what they prefer.

Research and Influence #1: Echoes from the Past

This is the first of many musings discussing research and how such influences have shaped and driven my works. Perhaps some of this insight will inspire other writers the same way such insight has inspired me.

Also, I must maintain an unbiased perspective, to consider all alternatives, ideas and other possible notions regardless of my personal views or beliefs, in order to develop intriguing, balanced, credible and realistic accounts. Ironically enough, opposing arguments contribute to the premise of my novel and other works as much as supporting arguments do.

In the end, I try not to over-think these points, but to remain laid-back about the whole thing. The well-developed and naturally flowing stories emerge easier that way.

Echoes from the Past

Recently, I found myself becoming absorbed in one intriguing find that serves as a major influence for a novel I am writing, not only because the site correlates in ambiance with a major setting in the story, but also because it speaks to me with distant voices reminiscent to the voices that speak to my story’s protagonist. These voices echo from the past, like those of some resonating entity penetrating me with such a force that pulls me to the site. Everything this place represents is covered in mystique that has captured my imagination.

‘What place is this?’ you may ask.

This is a place known as Lambertville. No, it’s not an abandoned military base or some obscure American Civil War battlefield—it is, of all places, an old high school.

Lambertville High School, in western New Jersey, has a long history filled with more than just a few inexplicable if not interesting stories. A once-lively place consisting of a small building and a bell tower, the school is now a decrepit hulk, resting under a veil of trees on a hill overlooking New Hope, Pennsylvania. The roof and third floor are gone, and the interior is a cold darkness screaming with a sense of foreboding.

This place has come to be what I consider the ‘Titanic’ of abandoned high schools, and for good reason—the mysteries behind this place are more than just imaginary.

A Legend Built on Mysteries . . .

According to a tribute stone erected at the site, the school was built in 1854—before the Civil War. That means Lambertville was open for classes during a time prior to that long-ago war serving as but a distant memory to us today. That’s how antiquated the school is. The stone rests in the ground near the center of the western wall, situated so that it may watch the sun set every day. Painted graffiti scrawled across its face reflects the vandalism it has endured over the years, but the stone refuses to falter. Truly inspirational and extraordinary indeed!

This is but the first mystery. The tribute was erected by the class of 1927, after a fire gutted most of the school back in the early-1920s (the date carved into the brick over both doors—‘1924’—provides some indication as to the time period). The fury that consumed Lambertville came about as a result of unknown causes, though some enthusiasts believe the culprit to have been a boiler explosion (common in many stories regarding school fires). The tribute is reminiscent of a tombstone, and what makes it eerie is that that representation was apparently intended.

The story goes that this fire took the lives of 150 students and some staff and that the stone is in memory of them. Other indications related to these deaths resonate here as well: the disturbing chalkboard drawings that depict praying and burning students, voices and laughter on the top level, steady footsteps, and messages scribbled along the walls here and there that allude to some horrible tragedy long ago . . .

Still, city officials, graduates of the high school (from the 1950s) and others who have studied the background of the place have attested that such an event never occurred, that the deaths are all hearsay and fiction created by someone’s imagination. Supposedly, the fire was at night when the school was empty, despite the inference through historical references that students used to live on the upper level during the school’s early years. When did this arrangement change? I don’t dispute any of this; these sources serve as more knowledgeable and reputable authorities on the subject than I, but I am curious.

I have to ask, though: Who would conceive such stories and why? Every story has a basis of reality somewhere. Whatever that reality is, this mystery has grabbed the attention of so many people, many of whom have visited the school from all over the United States. They have taken pictures as if the place were some vacation spot, and then subsequently posted those images on their own respective websites. Hell, the school even has a page on Wikipedia. No other abandoned high school can make that claim.

So I ask again: Who would conceive such stories and why?

The chalkboard theory, which leads into another mystery, seems to have been true; the website alluded to above actually features images of students drawn in elaborate detail.

Yet there are simple explanations behind this one. One woman who claimed to have graduated back in 1954 said in one personal account that she had known the art teacher who drew them on the boards before leaving the school. She never explained why the teacher had done or would do this, and I find it doubtful that a teacher would do such a thing. Also, even if a teacher from the 1950s created these images, it’s doubtful that said images would have lasted so long without fading, being erased, or marred in some way (though there are methods to freeze chalk on a blackboard) with vandals racing through the place on a regular basis. Furthermore, the photographer might simply have followed some artist thrill-seeker who had drawn the images on the boards to generate excitement. If this is what happened, apparently, this person succeeded.

Alas, all the chalkboards are gone now, likely absconded by souvenir-hunters who wish to hang them in their basements or perhaps sell them on eBay. Needless to say, the place is a smorgasbord; everyone is going there to get what s/he can before the building finally collapses. It’s not like the owner is protective of such items; if s/he wanted anything in there, s/he would have had it removed and stored away long ago. Before long, nothing will be left except the shell itself—and maybe the ghosts, if there are any.

As for ghosts, or spirits, there are other stories as well. Take, for example, the case of Buckeye Bill, probably the most famous mystery associated with Lambertville. This entity and the story on which he is based have become a unified legend.

The year was 1935: Lambertville and New Hope high schools engaged in their famous football game. During the game, one of the New Hope Buckeye quarterbacks caught the ball. A pile-up ended his attempt to make a touchdown. When the players rose, everyone was horrified to see that the quarterback was dead, with a broken neck. Even more grisly is the claim that the player’s head was twisted 180 degrees (his face was over his back). The parents of the New Hope student body subsequently insisted that the school no longer sponsor football. To this day, New Hope High School does not have a football team. This entire story is supposedly documented and true, although it doesn’t serve as evidence to substantiate the paranormal stories that were to follow.

As the legend goes, if one stands on the front landing to the main floor of the west wing and challenges Billy with “Billy, I challenge you to a game of football!” a football is said to fly from within the darkness and slam into the challenger’s face, breaking her/his neck. Another variation of this legend assumes that if one stands on the old football field (which lies up the hill, if anyone can ever find it) and cries “Billy, I challenge you to a race!” a breeze sweeps overhead and/or a pair of red eyes appears and a deep voice growls “run to the other end of the field or die!” If the challenger doesn’t run or runs and doesn’t make it to the other side, s/he dies.

This second variation derives from a questionable event that also occurred back in 1935 immediately following the game that had claimed the life of Buckeye Billy. Allegedly, five boys were on the football field. One jokingly challenged Billy. A pair of eyes appeared and said “run or die!” The boys jumped, startled, and four ran while the fifth didn’t. Three made it across the field, but the fourth stumbled and could not be found. The next day, the authorities found the last two boys at the field. They were dead and their heads were turned 180 degrees. The story is supposedly true, yet it was passed along as hearsay, perhaps by someone who might have wanted to scare his friends. Teenagers can be and frequently are this way. I am not saying the story is a fiction; only that it could be, so there is a reasonable doubt. I therefore am not one to assert a case of reality here.

By the way, this is the story around which the movie Only Go There at Night revolves. Five friends go on a thrill adventure to a supposedly haunted high school in New Jersey where two get killed and, upon investigation, the police come to realize that the killer might not be a living human being (i.e. a spirit, presumably based on Buckeye Billy). The simple difference here, however, is that the five boys live in present-day, not seventy-five years ago. I haven’t yet seen the movie, but the fact that these boys are going to a supposedly ‘haunted’ high school suggests that a significant amount of time has past since the school was in use for classes. The premise here seems to consider, among other things: What if the legends WERE true?

Let’s also keep in mind that several thrill-seekers have gone to the school at night and have challenged Buckeye Billy according to version #1 (the stair landing scenario) and nothing happened. Does Billy choose when to come out? Could something else explain why nothing happened? I don’t mean to mock this, because I do believe in spirits and a spirit realm, but if nothing happened, the story would be difficult to believe and/or accept. That’s not saying that there isn’t some aspect of reality on which the legend is based. After all, as said, every story has its origins in some basis of reality.

Still, how could a story like this be true? What could have possibly caused this? Why would Billy have red eyes and threaten the lives of those who ‘challenge’ him? And at a high school he didn’t even attend? The story seems farfetched, but that’s only because we don’t know the account on which it’s based, the story that inspired it, and there likely was one. What was it? Was it the experience the five boys had in 1935?

If these stories and legends are not true, where did they originate?

Yet, another fire broke out soon afterward, but the exact year is not known. This event resulted in no deaths or injuries, but significant damage still incurred and repairs initiated. Apparently, Lambertville was developing a pattern of attracting fire.

The school finally closed its doors somewhere between 1954 and 1959 (sources conflict on the date). The closing had nothing to do with the fire as commonly believed, but to zoning issues and the need for city expansion. The Lambertville community had outgrown it and the area consolidated all students into the larger South Hunterdon High School, which is still in operation today. Not only does this new structure easily house all the students in one place, but a single school cuts down on city expenses and minimizes taxes involved. The old high school was disregarded at that point, but it was not razed.

Also of special note is the strange fact that the school closed one century, perhaps to the year, from the time it was constructed and opened. The second fire occurred around this time, but, as said, the specific year is not known.

After sitting empty in excess of ten years, Lambertville High School reopened for business—literally. During the 1970s, a private machine press company occupied the basement and changed the area into workspace (the equipment is still there, though not operational) while families rented the upper level and had the total run of the building. It’s admirable that the high school, instead of being destroyed, took on the role of a shelter for homeless families who might have even worked downstairs. How convenient and surreal, considering the structure’s earlier past.

When the last fire broke out around 1992, the city decided not to rebuild. The families disappeared and the business apparently moved on without taking its machinery. That’s odd, isn’t it? I say that because the last fire supposedly destroyed only the upper floors, not the main floor or the basement (had the fire consumed those lower levels as well, nothing would have remained there; they would now be in the same condition as that of the upper floor), so there was no reason to leave this equipment.

The chaotic state which resulted from this final conflagration is the same in which the building is today, except that over the years the second floor collapsed in on the main floor in some areas, especially the east wing, which is essentially nothing more than four walls enclosing a great heap of rubble, although some classrooms and offices on the main floor there are still accessible. The upper-floor corridor in the central hub has caved in, exposing the hallway beneath to open air. Trees have sprouted in a rough terrain of dirt and grown throughout these upper levels, creating the appearance of some ancient ruins. Cracked doors are suspended or lie askew. Window panes are shattered and their frames wrenched or obliterated. The west wing windows are blown out and nothing more than a row of six large square holes. Rusted pipes twist around like weird sculptures. Sections of walls still stand amidst piles of scrap consisting of timber and bricks. Plaster, which was at one time shiny white and pristine, is now chipped or completely stripped away. Sooty tiles are among what little remains of the showers for a non-existent gymnasium. A few scorched girders dangle precariously around a chimney that, once stately, shoots up in the air like some aged sentinel attempting to continue standing guard over its charge.

When one realizes that this is a century-and-a-half-old high school with a unique and legendary background, not something typical of the inner-city ghetto, the feeling becomes quite surreal and sobering, indigenous to a history struggling to maintain itself, but in some morphed, dreamlike manner. The sight is unbelievable, but it’s real, though many people question whether or not some deeper aspects of it are a part of the physical world or something else only sensed.

This is possibly the ultimate mystery. We know how the devastation occurred, yet we have no evidence that the fire had a particular source, like a flame out of thin air, just as the previous fires. The effect on the mind when one views the chaos reflects on the mystique of deeper meaning resonating there, whatever that meaning may be. Amidst all of this incredible destruction, Lambertville High School continues to live on.

Final Thoughts . . .

Lambertville High School is indeed a spell attraction. Even I have found myself pondering about this place, although I wonder from time to time why. After all, it is only an abandoned building, dilapidated and crumbling; an empty shell that people who have attended it have claimed is or was nothing more than a regular high school.

Or, again, is it something more?

This place has not become a legend for nothing. Several high schools in the United States have ghost stories connected to them, yet THIS one inspired a movie, a plethora of websites and a wiki page. As said, droves of people from all over the United States have traveled to see and explore the site. As a matter of fact, some have scheduled vacations to the place, as if this abandoned building were an attraction that cannot be missed, like the haunted house at Disney World.

This, I guess, is the final mystery, the great irony.

Perhaps that is because THIS high school is real, actual, not fabricated or imaginary. That fact alone is more than enough to create a spell on the human mind. The paranormal legends associated with it make it even more magical, regardless of whether or not such phenomena are true or real. That is why visiting the school allows one to become a part of that legend, a part of the reality.

The mysteries of Lambertville are likely never to be resolved, and that’s fine. The longer the mysteries endure, the legends will as well; as long as these legends persist, Lambertville will never die.

Lambertville High School, as said, serves as one of the main inspirations for my novel Hallowed Halls, which is another story reflecting the possibilities of spiritual haunting and what it would be like if such haunts were real. Again, I believe in a spiritual realm, as I have had encountered some profound experiences. There is something to it, and I am thoroughly compelled to explore that conceptualization in light of human nature and how we’re driven to learn about the forces within and around us through life and death, just as the case is with Lambertville.

In the follow-up, I will discuss more about how Lambertville and another growing legend of death, based on truth—Columbine in Littleton, Colorado—relate to the novel with regard to similarities, differences, parallels and background development.

Those who are curious to know more please stay tuned . . . .
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I wish to thank Lostdestinations.com, Surrealnewjersey.com, WeirdNJ.com, The Goop blog and Randy Kline (a.k.a. StangGT), whose Lambertville High School photo-stream can be found at Flickr.com, for providing their photos. Great pictures, guys! Anyone interested in reading up on or seeing more images of Lambertville High School please feel free to visit their sites as well as those listed below . . .

Lambertville High School:

• Buckstore
• Experience Project: Get the Paranormal Report
• Forgotten USA
• Hub Pages: Haunted Places – Lambertville, New Jersey
• Lost in New Jersey
• Spectral Review: Lambertville High School
• STU of Doom
• The Lambertville High School Story

Other [Haunted] High School Stories:

• Forgotten Ohio
• Forgetten Ohio – Stivers Middle School
• Ghost Village
• Newsweek.com – Ghosts of Columbine High Schools
• OMA Haunted.com – Columbine High School
• Snopes.com – Discussion on Columbine
• StrangUSA – Discussion on Columbine
• Unexplainable.net – Article on Columbine
• Unexplainable.net – Haunted High Schools in the United States – Columbine
• Your Ghost Stories – Real Ghost Story – Columbine

Reminder: I do believe in spirits, but that doesn’t mean that I automatically believe these stories; I am fair and skeptical about everything without evidence, which is why I ask questions. I included ghost and haunt sites to show how prevalent in number these sources are with regard to Stivers Middle/High School, Lambertville High School, Columbine High School and others. That’s how one conducts ongoing research—by asking questions and following through with leads to form her/his own conclusions. I encourage everyone to do the same

Vocabulary #1: Easy Ways to Learn New Words

Vocabulary can be an overwhelming aspect of language to learn, mainly because words are those linguistic elements, along with grammar, that trip one up the most. Still, if one knows how to effectively integrate new words by easily acquiring their meanings, the apprehension one feels can be minimized or eliminated altogether.

There are a few points I have learned along the way that have helped me quickly and easily to increase my knowledge of a particular lexicon (whether English or other language), and these points include both study patterns and exercises.

Two methods serve as the primary means of learning new words. One is, of course, to open the dictionary. After all, this reference provides a language’s vocabulary. Not only does it offer a list of words, but each word’s definition, entomology, phonetic pronunciation, part of speech and collection of synonyms. In this way, one can learn every dimension of a particular word.

One common exercise that writers can perform to enhance lexical knowledge is to open the dictionary every day, choose a small set of unknown words (say five) and write out each word in a series of sentences to become familiar with using it. Merely reading a word in the dictionary and transferring its definition to a sheet of paper won’t guarantee actually learning a word; one has to use a word consistently in order to store it into the long-term memory. This practice works if continuously maintained.

The second way one can enhance vocabulary is to read. Yes, this does expose readers, and writers, to new and innovative ways of speaking and expressing thoughts and ideas. Each author has her or his own particular style. So the more one reads, the more one is introduced to a vaster, more eclectic and more diverse array of words and expressions.

Still, regardless of whether a reader/writer employs the use of a dictionary or reads any form of literature, s/he is bombarded constantly by a tempest of word strings, clauses, phrases, and other references that attempt to convey or expound lexical descriptions. Many people have found this to be tedious and cumbersome trying to learn the meanings of words by reading book loads of recorded data.

Is this necessary?

Well, one will definitely be exposed to ongoing forms of expressions, but this can likewise be an overload that will cause migraine headaches for certain. How aggravating!

There is a more facilitative way to increase vocabulary. This is also why thesauruses are tightly associated with dictionaries. This practice not only allows one to learn any number of new definitions, but also to accumulate groups of synonyms and, in like fashion, learn the simple meanings to those words as well.

What is this process?

Simple: When copying or expressing a word’s definition, a reader/writer should only write a single keyword, such as a common synonym. Writing out convoluted and verbose definitions makes it harder for one to either [clearly] understand or memorize. Remember: less is more; start out basic, then expand and go deeper.

Let’s take the word punctilious. The ‘elaborate’ or drawn out definition is conveyed as thus: “to be extremely observant or attentive to specifics and/or detail.” The surefire way to get that meaning down is to extract one or two keywords from that expression that sums up what the word means. In this case: “observant” and “attentive.” These two words are easier to remember. If one references punctilious in a thesaurus, another word found under it would be meticulous. Since both words are similar in meaning, one would then surmise that both mean “observant” and/or “attentive [to detail].” Now, not only has one learned the meaning of the word punctilious, but also meticulous, and one has formed an association between the two. One has also facilitated the learning of all of this through two simple reference terms: “observant” and “attentive.” Of course, these two words as well are likely to fall in a list of various other synonyms, which is a never-ending process. Readers/writers create and incorporate into their learning blocks ongoing networks of lexical relationships.

Thus: one’s vocabulary grows.

This is the best way for me, and that’s because I make associations and cross-references with only a single word or two. The phrase “One can say more by saying less” suggests this as well since points and meanings are clearer when expressed tersely or succinctly.

I chose the word punctilious here for a reason: When trying to determine the simple definition of a word by reviewing long and quite often complex elaborations that attempt to serve a hermeneutic role in the passage, readers/writers have to be able to discern which lexical or linguistic element(s), if given, offer themselves as keywords that can stand alone as points of meaning for the words they are trying to define. A thesaurus can make this process easy, as only words are given. Yet each synonym in a thesaurus is distinctly different than the other related terms on a given list and depends on its particular context to clarify its uniqueness. One should therefore be careful when employing a thesaurus over a dictionary for that reason.

Putting Theory into practice . . .

Below are two sections. The first provides a group of words and their ‘elaborate’ definitions with their keywords emboldened, followed by their simple definitions. This shows how the process works. The second section offers another list of words for you, the readers (and writers) to define in like fashion. All one has to do is determine the keywords in each ‘elaborate’ definition and establish, in one or two words, each word’s simple meaning.

This will get you to enhance your vocabularies and learn new methods of studying language acquisition. Anyone preparing for the GRE and SAT exams for college will find this particularly useful.

Section I

1) Amalgamate: to combine several elements into a whole

Simple definition: to combine

2) Buttress: stationary structure whose primary purpose is to support a wall

Simple definition: support

3) Dearth: smallness or depletion of quantity or number

Simple definition: small in number

4) Divestiture: taking away of something that was formerly possessed, such as in repossession

Simple definition: repossess

5) Grandiloquence: pompous speech or expression

Simple definition: pompousness;pomposity

6) Impecunious: the state denoting possessing low or non-existent financial resources

Simple definition: poor

7) Magnanimity: the quality of being generously noble in mind and heart, especially in forgiving

Simple definition: generous, noble

8 ) Proliferate: to grow or increase swiftly and abundantly

Simple definition: to grow, increase

9) Quixotic: marked by lofty, romantic or dreamlike ideals

Simple definition: lofty, dreamlike

10) Stultify: to make ineffective, weak, or futile, especially as a result of tedious routine

Simple definition: to make ineffective, hinder

Section II

Below is a list of words accompanied by their ‘elaborate’ definitions. What are their respective simple definitions?

1) Approbation: an expression of excessive approval or praise, especially as a sense of religious or congressional adulation.

2) Centripetal: moving, or tending to move, toward the center of rotation

3) Digression: deviation or departure from the main subject in speech or writing

4) Evanescent: tending to disappear instantaneously like vapor

5) Hackneyed: rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage

6) Impresario: organizer of public entertainment, especially theatrical

7) Oscillation: the act or state of swinging back and forth with a steady, uninterrupted rhythm, like a pendulum

8 ) Pungent: characterized by a strong, sharp smell or taste, such as bitterness

9) Relegate: to forcibly assign, especially to a lower place or position

10) Vacillate: to waver indecisively between one course of action or opinion and another; to remain undetermined in a stance.

Next: Research and Influence #1: Echoes from the Past . . .