We have a line in THE LIAR SOCIETY
that reads as follows:"Liam shook his head back and forth, and Seth looked like he might poop his pants."
Our copyeditor helpfully pointed out that, gramatically speaking, it should read:
"Liam shook his head back and forth, and Seth looked like he might poop in his pants."
But, um, that's not funny. At. All.
Isn't it amazing how one two letter word can transform a sentence from a snarky observation to a Depends commercial?
For the record we ended up accepting almost every single change our copyeditor proposed (we're pretty sure she's some kind of genius), except that one. What can we say? We take the whole pants pooping thing very seriously.
29 comments:
Hah! I've done that. I can't remember the exact sentence, but I know I wrote that my character 'up-chucked his tongue'. Um...not exactly what I was going for. Fresh eyes are great, aren't they?
Well the editor is technically right, of course, but I'm a bit surprised they didn't notice the intentional bad grammar. Oh well, at least you ladies stood your ground over some very important juvenile humor!
LOL.
Glad you kept that one! :)
hahaha-- who would've thunk!
Hmmm ... I think someone must have pooped IN the CE's Captain Crunch as a child. I bet he/she is a riot at Scrabble parties.
It's their job, I suppose. Then again, it's someone's job to throw puppies and kittens in jail, and I don't have to like them either.
I was reading them thinking, "But the first one is so much better."
Glad you kept it!
Ewe dear. I'm pretty sure a copy editor would have a field day with my MS. But I agree it's important to stick to the 'voice' and humor and yes, one word can change it all!
Pat yourselves on the back. I think you two are the geniuses.
Looks like a voice issue to me. :shrug: Go figger. I'm glad you gals stuck to your guns. =o)
LMAO! I can't wait to read your book. Pants pooping is hilarious, whichever way you write it
Hahahaha! Ok, that's hilarious.
You said poop in your story. Love. It.
ha! amazing what one little word will do :) glad you stuck to your poop..er, guns ;-)
Wow, it did make a difference. Awesome editor!
Ha ha, that's too funny. Who would have thought "in" could make such a big difference? You guys are comedic genuises. ;)
Heeheehee. Can't wait to read this book! Stasia
Ah, VOICE and its importance. Sometimes you gotta screw the grammar. :D
ROTFL! I admit, it took me a second to find what the difference was. Those pesky two-letter words. And you accepted everything?? Oh, crap. My copyeditor probably hates me...
As self-proclaimed poop expert, I can confirm this was the right choice.
You chose your battle wisely. Well done. ;)
It is a fine line - and even more so when it comes to poop.
LOL. Only you guys could make a valid literary point all while using the word "poop." *bows to the masters*
I tend to think grammar books have very little todo with how people actually talk. Unless you're going for literary, your book is probably full on grammatically incorrect things. But if they work and are understable, I say keep em.
Cuz grammar was originally all about making sure everyone was on the same page.
You guys are something special...Can't wait to read The Liar Society!
LOL Glad you kept the original!
If you're going to draw the line anywhere, it has to be at protecting your poop jokes. Nice work, ladies.
Depends...
Do you get it?
Bahahahaha. Depends.
haha, love it! That's really cool you had the ability to say no to the edit.
So true. Popping in your pants is a totally different thing from pooping your pants. Everyone knows that. I mean, geez louise pooping in your pants is not funny at all.
ITA with you guys! "Pooped his pants" is waaaay funnier than "pooped in his pants", which is just gross.
Yup - it's the little tings. *sigh*
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