WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?



My Dad

 My dad was a stickler for proper speech. He said, and I believe rightfully so, that people judge you by your speech. If you’ve lived in one area most of your life, you can spot a newcomer not only by the sound of his or her voice, but also by the phrases and words used. In Texas, which is where I grew up and currently live, we have a lot of, um, I’ll say unusual phrases and words.

We never say “Forgetaboutit” unless we’ve been around someone from the Northeast—or watched one of the movies like “Mickey Blue Eyes” that use the phrase. Texas is part of the Southwest but also part of the South. We don’t use the F or S word as freely as those in some parts of the country—at least the people with whom I socialize don’t use them.

Friend

Texas, or tejas, is the Native American word (borrowed from the Spanish) for friendly, as in the now disappeared Tejas Indians. Guess it doesn't pay to be too friendly to Anglos if you have all that nice land. Like most Southerners, we Texans value smiles and good manners. Oh, we may stab you in the back, but we will do so graciously and with a polite smile. Note: You've been warned.

I digress. This weekend, I was reminded of some of our unusual words by another author critiquing my work. I’ll share that one and others with you now.

Helping my plate – taking a serving of food and placing it on my plate.


Fixin’ to – I will in a minute.


Fixin’ to get ready to start – I’m not feeling peppy, but I’ll get it done as soon as I can force myself out of this chair.

Bless Your Heart!


Bless your heart – usually means you are simply too stupid to live and I feel so sorry for you.

Bless you – means the literal bless your heart


Nothing but a barbed wire fence between here and the North Pole – that north wind is freezing me


Gonna – going to


Gotta – I have to


Hafta – same as gotta

Lookee yonder. That
fella's come a fur piece

Fur piece – a long way


Yonder – not a long way, you can probably see it from here

Those are only a few of our peculiar colloquialisms. For true western slang, see Marin Thomas’ post at http://sweetheartsofthewest.blogspot.com/2010/10/cowboy-slang.html


By the way, my November newsletter will be sent out on November 15th. One lucky subscriber will receive a $10.00 Amazon gift certificate. Others will receive a newsletter containing a FREE read, recipe, news, and miscellaneous information. The sign up form is at the right on my sidebar just under my photo.

Thanks for stopping by!

Body Language in Writing

The photo at left has nothing to do with this blog. I just love it and wanted to use it. Crazy, maybe. Monet is my favorite painter, so I find most of his work restful.

And no,  I don't mean the body language of the writer. I mean of the characters. Sometimes authors overlook a very good tool to use for identifying a character's mood--Body Language. Books have been written on the subject, one of which I have in my research books. Here are some good clues for a character's state of mind.

1. Crossing the arms--he's uncomfortable, especially defensive, angry.

Here's a passage that illustrates this:

"Jim, you know I only said that to help you."
Jim crossed his arms. "Yeah, right."

Do you think Jim was convinced?

2. Eyes won't meet those of the person to whom he's talking--watch out, he's not being honest.

"I can't take your gambling any longer, Joe."
 Joe looked at the window on his left. "I promise I'll quit if you just give me one more chance."

Do you believe Joe?

3. Leaning forward toward speaker--listening and eager to hear more.

4. Tapping foot-- impatient, nervous

5. Glancing at watch--eager to finish and move on

These are just a few of the many signals we give with our bodies whether we want to or not.

What are some examples of body language you use in your writing?