Things you've always done but only recently stopped to consider why...

[ShelbyDawn57]

I just finished writing a father/daughter scene(no, not incest) in a new story I'm working on, and consciously noticed something I've always known. the word 'dad'(mom, too) is both a common and a proper noun. As such, depending on context, it can either be capitalized or not. "You'll need to ask Dad." versus "You'll need to ask my dad."

Like I said, I've always know this. I just never thought about it until now. Sometimes I capitalize it. Sometimes I don't. The whole why, the proper versus common noun thing, just hit me.

Anyway, I'm wondering what moments of clarity like this you might have encountered in your writing.

 

[mrs_mackenzie]

I've just finished a son/mum story (yes, incest) and had to do a lot of checking the capitalisation.

I get the occasional one when I'm writing, like why isn't 'shallow' a verb or 'rock' an adjective. Not sure if it's clarity or just more confusion, really. English isn't a language known for its clear and unambiguous rules.

 

[Erozetta]

I was talking to another writer recently on when to end a paragraph with both action and dialogue in it. I basically said I end a paragraph when there needs to be a pause between one action and another, especially if the actions are by the same person. Ending a paragraph with one action then starting a new action forces a reader into a flow of events. Speech, action, separate action after a short pause. I'd never really thought about it before, and I don't know if it's right or wrong, but it's what I do and what feels natural to me.

Gloria laughed. "Doesn't take much to amuse me these days, Johnny." She lifted her gaze to the stars and let out a sigh.

Her hand swept at an imaginary annoyance as she brought her gaze back to him. "Don't get me wrong, the laugh is genuine and earned, it's just easy."


(Note to self: wear my glasses when making posts.)

 

[iwatchus]

As such, depending on context, it can either be capitalized or not. "You'll need to ask Dad." versus "You'll need to ask my dad."

In my nude day story, I had a lot of mother/son scenes (also not incest) and I remembered the rule. When he talks about his mother, it is usually 'my mom'. But when he talks to her it is as 'Mom'

Similar issue with academic titles, such as Dean. Dean Fernandez is a significant supporting character in my novel, but the Dean is also a dean.

 

[gunhilltrain]

In my nude day story, I had a lot of mother/son scenes (also not incest) and I remembered the rule. When he talks about his mother, it is usually 'my mom'. But when he talks to her it is as 'Mom'

Similar issue with academic titles, such as Dean. Dean Fernandez is a significant supporting character in my novel, but the Dean is also a dean.

That reminds me of Major Major Major in Catch-22. The humor is a bit strained there.

Sort of on topic, I think: In the one taboo/incest story I did, the young man in question calls his stepmom by her first name. (I just can't do "real" incest.) He met her when he was about twelve maybe and his real mom is floating around somewhere in another state. The woman narrates, and she finds it difficult to define her role, but it's not as a mother. She compares herself to being an aunt, teacher, or neighbor but she says those are approximations at best.

 

[WaxPhilosophic]

And here's me muttering, "Why, yes! Waking up each morning to labor under a capitalist system that values not me as a creative individual, but rather a cog in the machine."

I guess it wasn't that kind of question.