Quire – Wordplay Wednesday™ 06/24/2020

Useless Is as Useless Does …  

Thumbing through the dictionary, I often wonder if all those words are truly necessary. Just think of how much paper we’d save (or digital space and hassle) if duplicate meanings and superfluous syntax were deleted …

QUIRE (kwīr) n. – a set of 24 or 25 sheets of paper of the same size and stock, the twentieth part of a ream. [WW #274]

Now, this likely is a word you will never use in prose or casual conversation. In fact, maybe I’m shortsighted, but I don’t see why anyone would care about a quire portion of a ream of paper. Except, perhaps, someone in the publishing or paper manufacturing industries. So if that’s where your novel is set, have at it!  

Beyond that, besides being the archaic spelling of choir, quire is particularly popular in Scrabble and Words With Friends—great points! Just thought you might be curious as to how it might fit into your life in a more … ahem … cerebral manner.

I finally broke down and bought the current—Eleventh Edition—of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, just so I can be on top of things for you! The paper is thinner (more quires to count), which rather makes it difficult to read, as you can almost see through to words on the other side of the page. (Thank goodness it came with a one-year subscription to their online unabridged tome.) Nevertheless, it holds my world of words.

Word Challenge: QUIRE. A great word to know if you’re planning to print company stationery or your character is a publisher! Get creative with quire as you consider its usefulness in your week of definitive writings.

Learning knows no prejudices or boundaries, and it isn’t fattening! Expanding your mind is a no-cost, simple joy. Do you feel that way too? What’s your inspiration? Share your creative genius and Wordplay Wednesday comments below.

Write first for yourself … only then can you write for others. (L.Rochelle) 

Cheers to learning a new word today!

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

[LinDee Rochelle is a writer and editor by trade, and an author by way of Rock & Roll. She has published two books in her Blast from Your Past series (of three) about pioneering R&R Radio DJs. True behind-the-mic tales make GREAT Holiday and anytime Gifts available on Amazon (eBook and print): Book 1 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The First Five Years 1954-1959; and Book 2 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The Swinging Sixties. Coming soon … The Psychedelic Seventies!]

*Note: 1) Dictionary definitions are quoted from Webster’s New World College Dictionary. Yes, we sometimes present them out of “official” context—but that’s half the fun! Think of it as “creative context.” 2) Neither I (LinDee Rochelle) nor Penchant for Penning are responsible for how you use information found here, that may result in legal action.

E-N-Dzzzzzzzz  

Wordplay Wednesday™ January 18, 2017 – Cento

Are You One of a Kind? Write Like It.

There is often a fine line between plagiarism and tribute … medley and mad music … words of intellect and words of nonsense …  

CENTO (senʹtō) n. – 1) a literary or musical work made up of passages from other works; 2) anything made up of badly matched parts. [WW #95] 

I once knew an investor who bought into a small press publishing company. As president/CEO, he purportedly desired to learn the business—of which he knew nothing—from the inside out. In an effort to impress the staff and a stable of authors, he “wrote” and published a book.

It was at first thought a good sign that his interest in the company was genuine and its future secure. You feel a “but” coming on here don’t you? Yep …

But, he gathered quotes from others’ works, stuck his name on it, and gave it a title. Lack of real effort foretold the ultimate result of his faux sincerity with a cento, and the company’s dubious future.

Don’t get me wrong—please don’t start a Twitter storm about my perceived deplorable POV 😉—I applaud anyone who spends the time to cull inventive writings to share.

Time is our most important asset. Creating a cento to make a point and honor those creative, wise, and often humorous folks, who conceived them, is certainly time-consuming.

Kudos also to anyone who goes through the publishing process, traditional, independent, or self-publishing. It is not for the faint of heart.

There is no question, however, that writing a book, either fiction or nonfiction, in your words, is a long and laborious project, far removed from a cento arranged in an attractive format.

This person’s effort to impress in a company of authors, was the proverbial slap in the face at worst, and a feeble attempt, at best. He may have meant well at the outset—and again, there is a place for a collective book—but a cento did not bode well in this context.

Moral of the story: As an author—know your readers—since you obviously feel you have something important or enjoyable to share with them, do it in your words.

If you discover incredible quotes, lines, or passages that simply deserve a book assemblage, set them off with your narrative, comments, or exploration that are relevant to your reader. (Mindful of fair use and copyright laws, of course.)

Readers are waiting for your sparkling wit and charming inspiration—give it to them!

Word Challenge: CENTO. Mashups may be funny, interesting, or exciting in images and music, but in writing, originality is usually best. Enjoy the inspiration of your own muse as you fit cento into your week of imaginative writings.

'Til next time ... cheers to a wonderful "wordful" week …

                       

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

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Wordplay Wednesday™ November 04, 2015 – Chaos into Peace

Oops! Missed Wednesday – Plan B

This week, since I missed Wordplay “Wednesday” we’re gonna switch it up to “Wayback Wordplay.” 

Nostalgic thoughts breed abstract, sometimes chaotic, reminiscing. 

http://lampshadeguy.tumblr.com/

In the 1960s and ‘70s things were volatile one day, giving way to Peace, Love, and Rock & Roll the next, much the same as today.

Just as jumbled in our jargon, we coined new words and mashed some together for a unique blend of slang. Traveling down California’s coast this week, I’m reminiscing and …

CHILLAXIN' – in the mid-1960s and early ‘70s to “chill” meant to relax – at some point, someone really wanted emphasis and squished the two words together for slang that lasted much of the latter decade. Cool, man …