Workshop: Titles - complete 10/29/07

1. Do you use non-English titles?

Not really... But I've used once a few verses in Portuguese and made the English translation pass as Alderaanian poetry

2. If you use non-English titles, how much research do you do to know it's the right translation for what you want?

If that were the case, I guess I'd do a LOT of research before risking saying something funny/ridiculous/unapplyable. I know that was my darkest fear when I started writing (and posting) in English, beyond the titles. A 3-pound English dictionary (not a translation one, an English-English one) was my best friend for almost a year, then I moved on to Merriam-Webster's on-line site. It has an excellent English/Spanish translation engine too. I know for sure that I did a lot of mistakes anyway, and still do. A good native beta-reader is an invaluable resource for those issues the dictionary can't solve.

In the case of the Portuguese verses since that is a language I've never learnt (but I'm kind of familiar with it because of geographical proximity) I looked on the net for a professional translation (they were from a well-known poet and I was familiar with the Spanish translation, but I hesitated when it came to retranslating them to English)

3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?

I would, if I understood the meaning of the title, at least on a basic level.


Exercise #4

a) Take one of your stories, write a one-sentence summary and then create 5 new titles for it.


Story: The Best I Can Do
Summary: How Han and Leia's relationship developed during their 76 days sublight flight from Hoth to Bespin in ESB.

New Titles (from the more straightforward to the more cryptic)
The Voyage
More Than Friends
Somewhere In The Middle
Fidelity
Jealous Stars


b) Then take those titles and translate them into a foreign language (it doesn't have to be the same language for each title). List both the original and the translation.

Translations
The Voyage - El Viaje (Spanish)
More Than Friends - Más Que Amigos (Spanish)
Somewhere In The Middle - En Algún Lugar Intermedio (Spanish)
Fidelity - Fidelidade (Portuguese)*
Jealous Stars - Estrellas Celosas (Spanish)**

* The verses in Portuguese mentioned above were used in this fic and were part of the sonet Sonet On Fidelity - Soneto Da Fidelidade by Brazilian poet Vinicius De Moraes and the lines I used expressed very accurately (IMHO) Leia's feelings during this period

E assim, quando mais tarde me procure - And thus, when afterward comes looking for me
Quem sabe a morte, angústia de quem vive - Who knows what death, anxiety of the living,
Quem sabe a solidão, fim de quem ama - Who knows what loneliness, end of the loving

Eu possa me dizer do amor (que tive): - I could say to myself of the love (I had):
Que não seja imortal, pôsto que é chama - Let it not be immortal, since it is flame
Mas que seja infinito enquanto dure. - But let it be infinite while it lasts.

** Jealous Stars is a reference to an extremely famous tango lyrics in Spanish by Gardel&Lepera (allow me a little national pride here!) which always makes me think of Han and Leia, the complete reference would be:

La noche que me quieras - The night you'd love me
Desde el azul del cielo - from the blue sky above
Las estrellas celosas - Jealous stars
Nos mirarán pasar... - will watch us go by...


c) Ask yourself which one works best for you. Do the sound and the look give you what you want?

I think Somewhere In The Middle could work pretty well (it has more than one meaning in the context of this story) but the Spanish translation sounds plain horrible. I like how Estrellas Celosas sound (and the reference is not THAT obscure for native people) I think that one works in both languages. I like how Fidelidade sounds much more than Fidelity - the word is too sharp in English, the accentuation is different too.

 

lol, diane, I have to second raisedbywolves there ^^
"Für geben Sie acht was Sie wünschen" ( you would rather say "Sei vorsichtig in deinen Wünschen" ) and "Einfahrt der Hölle" was pretty funny, though I shouldn't laugh- I got the same problems in English instead.


1. Do you use non-English titles?
Since English isn't my first language, I sometimes use German ones in English stories. Don't know if that counts though.

2. If you use non-English titles, how much research do you do to know it's the right translation for what you want?
Again, I use German ones and I don't have to do any research for them

3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?

I do, because they sound often interesting- but, I don't know why I expect it- but I think, when I read such a title, taht teh story belonging to it is one with many complicated expressions, but well-written.

Exercise
My choice of story- Nothing romantic about war
That's a shorter stories- featuring Hobbie Klivian, who ponders his life in general and how the war has influenced it.

1. Valid reasons to be a pessimist
2. Merely Life's puppet
3. The silent thunderstorm- a combat pilot's life
4. Dreams of freedom
5. Justifying his opponent's empty eyes


1. Des raisons solides pour être un pessimiste
2. Justement la marionette de la vie
3. Der stille Wirbelsturm- das Leben eines Kampfpilotens
4. Rêves de la liberté
5. Sich für die Leere in den Augen seines Gegners rechtfertigen

I am not too sure if the French translations are right^^...

 

1. Do you use non-English titles?
I have not. I just don't think of using them when I'm trying to think of a title.

2. If you use non-English titles, how much research do you do to know it's the right translation for what you want?
Well, if I did use a non-English title, I would research it, though I would likely keep it short. Probably one word to avoid bablefishy-ness. One reason for using a non-English title is if there wasn't an English word that quite fit, or if the non-English word or phrase were special to me.

3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?
Yes, but usually not because of the non-English title.



Story: The Moment
Qui-Gon and Dooku on the mission where Padawan Qui-Gon breaks his nose.

Whack!
Jedi Moments
Living Force
What's in a nose?
Who Nose?


Hmmmmm, I wanted to try translating them into Japanese, but the translation web pages want to give the answer in Japanese characters but my browser isn't set for those. So, I'll try Shyriiwook instead (Star Wars Galactic Phrase Book & Travel Guide - Ben Burtt)

Wooma!
Urohwa Yehah
Ooga Hyoh
Wuahh Gawaa Hao?
Muaahh Mah?

Since there is a Wookiee in the story, I suppose they could work.

 

Ah yes, the non-english titles. This should be interesting... ardavenport, I just love the Shyriiwook titles, and I actually think it's a brilliant idea to use them! A wookiee-language title would be such an eyecatcher, and it would make perfect sense for a story with Wookiees in it.

1. Do you use non-English titles?

I haven't, no. And I think I would only use them in a context where an English word absolutely wouldn't work. A couple examples I could imagine:

Freitod - A story about Vader giving up his life for his son in ROTJ. It's a German word for suicide, but implies that death as completely self-chosen and, well, a kind of freedom.

L'Amour Fou - A romance story. Because "Crazy Love" is a Van Morrison song, not a reference to troubadours or romanticism or anything.

It's all about the context.

2. If you use non-English titles, how much research do you do to know it's the right translation for what you want?

ohhhhh boy. I do translation work on the side, and I've experienced some TEETH GNASHING EYE SPORKING German-to-English translation attempts from people who have doctorates and have spent plenty of time in English-speaking countries. There is absolutely no way I'd use a foreign translation unless I know exactly what it meant - otherwise I'd be running a very large risk of mangling somebody's native language. And that's just no good, although it can be giggle-worthy.

Advice for monolingual people who want to use non-English titles:

- babelfish =/= translation. Even if it is one word, it can totally kriff you over!

- PM somebody who is fluent in the language. (I'll take care of your German for you, happily!)

Sorry for the rant, but I've been scarred for life by careless translations. They make me weep tears of blood. And stuff.

3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?

I have, yes - the one that comes to mind is a vignette by JediNemesis. It was named after an old norse word for prophecy or something similar. The title was great because it totally made sense for the mythic feel of the piece, and it was explained in the intro notes. That's a great way to use a foreign title.


Exercise:

Story: What She Saw. A barkeeper witnesses a meeting that leads to a tragic conclusion. It's narrated by the OC barkeeper in first-person, and it's deliberately oblique about a lot of things.


New Titles:

Strange Night

The Witness

Listening

Case Closed

And I Don't Know Why


Foreign Titles Just for the heck of it, each one of these is in a different language. I only speak one of them.

Nuit Étrange (French)

Il Testamone (Italian)

Lauschen (German)

Gesloten geval (Dutch)

Y No sé Por qué (Spanish)

EDIT: I originally had a Russian one. But the Cyrillic didn't show up correctly. That's just sad


Well, that was fun to try. I do like the look and sound of the French, the Spanish, and especially the Dutch which is just such a lovely, earthy language to my ear. I also ended up really enjoying the German title, "Lauschen", much more than "Listening" - it's more atmospheric and I believe it also has a slightly more nuanced meaning and context. But I wouldn't pick it if almost nobody knew what I meant.

Essentially, I'm just not a fan of using a foreign language just to add a sense of mystery to the story.

 

1. Do you use non-English titles?

No, I never use non-English titles. See my examples above. I don't know any language well enough to use it and I feel that if I can't think of a good English title, then I certainly won't find one in another language. I really appreciate other people who write in English when their first language is not ? very much admired! But I just don't.

2. If you use non-English titles, how much research do you do to know it's the right translation for what you want?

If someone were to use non-English titles, they really, really should know what they are doing. Otherwise, it could be a bad thing. Or a funny thing.

3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?

Unless I know the writer or if I know that the person writing does not speak English as their first language, I avoid them. I don't want to have to work that hard to figure out the title. It's easier to skip to another story.

---

[b]Golden_Jedi[/b] ? As a reader, I liked [i] Más Que Amigos[/i] and [i]Fidelidade[/i] the best of the titles, mainly because I could kind of figure out what they meant. I agree with you on [i]Fidelidade [/i] on the sound. Makes it seem richer somehow.


[b]Abeja[/b] ? Yes, you should laugh. It was inadvertently funny but it certainly showed that the writer should know the language or get someone who does. LOL. [face_blush]

The French translations look good. I took French a long, long time ago. I liked [i]Rêves de la liberté [/i] the best, again mainly because I could almost understand it and it sounded lovely to say.

I assume [i]Wirbelsturm [/i] means thunderstorm. I liked that word ? had a real rumbling sound to it. I could see that as a one word title.


[b]ardavenport[/b] ? I had no idea that you could get a translation into Shyriiwook. I liked this one [i]Wuahh Gawaa Hao?[/i] the best. Sounds almost mysterious. LOL. How long did it take you to translate the titles? Do you know if there is an online translator for Shyriiwook or even Mandelorian? Might be good to know.


[b]raisedbywolves[/b] ? LOL on the eye sporking of translations. At work we have these instrument manuals that have been translated into English (badly) and it's hard to figure out what they mean at times. Sometimes, the wording is just plain humorous.[face_grin]

I also liked [i]Lauschen[/i]. It has a great sound to it and since I didn't know it was a German word, I might assume it's something made up and exotic.


Great job, everyone!

 

#4 Quotes ? Literary, Movie titles or Movie Quotes, Song lyrics

Quotes carry their own baggage, both good and bad. Literary quotes will evoke memories of the book from which it is taken. This can work well if the reader has read the book but if they haven't, some of the emotional vibrancy that comes from the book will be lost. Just make sure that the title works on its own.

Movie titles or movie quotes have the same pluses and minuses that Literary quotes do but they are more likely to have entered into the mainstream consciousness so they might be more accessible to readers.

Song lyrics have probably the best chance of being recognized since they are wide-spread in the public domain. Plus if you are writing a songfic, it might make sense to use one of the lines in the title.


Examples of Book quotes

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. - Jane Austin, Pride and Prejudice
The play's the thing Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king. ? Shakespeare, Hamlet
Now is the winter of our discontent - Shakespeare, King Richard III
Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble. ? Shakespeare, MacBeth
Slow and steady wins the race. ? Aesop

Examples of Poetry quotes

"Traveler in the dark" - Nursery rhyme
"Diamond in the sky" - Nursery rhyme
"Sounds of a whispering sea" - Hope
"On this wondrous sea" ? Emily Dickinson
"Storm-wind of the equinox" ? Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
"Limits and imaginary lines" ? Walt Whitman

Examples of Non-Star Wars Movie quotes

"Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine." - Casablanca
"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn!" ? Gone with the Wind
"I could've been a contender." ? Rocky
"Then close your eyes and tap your heels together three times. And think to yourself, 'There's no place like home'." ? Wizard of Oz
"Well, a boy's best friend is his mother." ? Pyscho
"I see dead people." ? Sixth Sense

Examples of Star Wars Movie Quotes

"You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought."
"No blasters! No blasters!"
"Sorry about the mess."
"I can't get involved."

Examples of Song quotes

"All you need is love, love. Love is all you need." - The Beatles, The End
"I don't need no money, fortune, or fame. I got all the riches baby, one man can claim." - The Temptations, My Girl
"And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance I hope you dance" ? Lee Ann Womack

I'm sure you could come up with many more.

Questions:

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?
2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?
3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?
4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?

Exercise:

I hope this will be an easy one! Take five of your favorite Non-Star Wars quotes or parts of quotes and turn them into Star Wars titles. Be sure to list the original quote and where it is from.

Example:

Die Harder 2B or how I killed a droid and lived to tell the tale ? Die Hard movie title
For the want of a Jedi Master - It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife ? Pride and Prejudice - book
Blaster XK-42: A boy's best friend - "Well, a boy's best friend is his mother." ? Psycho movie
Surely there is a better way. ? "Don't call me Shirley" ? Airplane movie
The Adventures of Han Solo or Never tell me the odds! ? The Adventures of Robin Hood movie title

 

1. Do you use non-English titles?

I never have and most likely never will. I don't know any languages well enough not to totally embarrass myself.

2. N/A

3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?

If it looks or sounds interesting, I may bite.

I haven't done the excercise yet... I'm having a hard time choosing which of my titles I want to play with... and what languages I want to massacre.

 

Well, since I've already massacred German, fire away on any of them. I look forward to it.

 

If you want to try Spanish, I could help you with that. I'll be online most of the day today.

 

This is a great thread! Are we allowed to jump in and participate? Well, here goes...

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?

My favorite quotes usually come from songs I hear, because most songs have very beautifully quoteable lines. In addition, I find many useful quote come from those little quote-a-day calendars or websites. Though they can be incredibly cheesy, they are also very inspiring. Lastly, some of the best quotes originate from movies.

2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?

Not every often. I am very finicky about keeping quotes the same as they were said, as not to misquote someone. If I am going to change the quote, I would only shorten the quote, editing out what is not necissary to make my point.

3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?

Use the song titles as the fic title? I have done that before, but now that I look back, I wish I hadn't. I belive that while I may use the song as a basis for the fic, it should take on a life of its own, without the song title. However, it does catch a potential reader's eye while browsing fics.

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?

In a way, yes. Upon discovering a fic that spotlights a particular idea or theme, I admire the author's creativity and eagerness for their fic. Finding a great quote for a story shows both high quality research, and great inspiration.


I'll probably be back to do the excersises later, when I'm feeling more creative.

 

Yes, just jump in! No waiting. LOL. If you want, you can do the exercises before this or not. Some of them have been great fun!

 

Sorry I didn't reply sooner to the foreign title questions. I have used foreign titles (and partially foreign titles) in a variety of languages. Most of the time, I've used words or phrases that most English speakers would already know ("En Fuego" or "Caveat Emptor") or easily deduce. [I'm not sure I used the right adjective for "Il Maestro Falso." ] Now, I once did a haiku in Klingon, so its title was also in that language; that one might not have been so easy for a nonspeaker.

Since my resources aren't to hand, I'll skip this exercise to avoid any fishy smell.

On to the titles and quotes, literary and otherwise. I absolutely, positively, and wholeheartedly have used and will use (or parody) them, though it's not usually to evoke the original, or at least not much of it; rather, it's simply that the bit I've taken out of context or the bit right next to it seems to fit. [For an example of the latter, I called a drabble "It's Not Easy" because the punchline involved a Green Party candidate.]

Most of the time, there's little or no research involved. An exception comes when I'm having trouble thinking of a title, and I think, "Hmm, maybe I can go literary!" Usually, that's followed by a stop at bartleby.com and a few keyword searches. It's helped a few times.

Here are some quotes that could work (without change) as SW titles:

"The Untamed Element" (from the fire alarm in Gremlins 2 -- other bits from the alarm that could work include "Giver of Warmth, Destroyer of Forests" and "The Age-Old Drama of Self-Preservation")
"Trust Me, I Know What I'm Doing" (from Sledge Hammer!)
"I'll Swallow Your Soul!" (from Army of Darkness)
"Who's That Little Old Man?" (from A Hard Day's Night)
"And Whom She Kills" (from the end of a line in To Be or Not to Be (1942) that I once paraphrased for a SW drabble)
"'I Drank What?'" (from Real Genius)

EDIT: Doctor Who also has a lot of lines that could work wonderfully as SW titles.

 

If you use quotes, where do you get them from?
I use quotes some times, but not systematically. The quote usually finds me. Most of them seem to come from Queen songs, though.

Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?
I haven?t so far.

Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story? Yes, I?ve done that. It depends. Sometimes it?s the only thing that fits.

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?
Usually it doesn?t, but if there are too many quotes at the start of every chapter, etc, I?ll probably start skipping over them and going straight to the chapter.


Exercise:

Take five of your favorite Non-Star Wars quotes or parts of quotes and turn them into Star Wars titles. Be sure to list the original quote and where it is from.

Crash Landing - This isn't flying. This is falling, with style! (Movie/Toy Story)
The Needs of the Many - The needs of the many, out weigh the needs of the few. (Movie/ Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan)
Playing God - When someone asks you "if you're a god?" you say, "Yes!" (Movie/Ghostbusters)
Encounter at Mos Espa - I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy (Song/Bohemian Rapsody ? Queen)
The Education of Wedge Antilles - The average man don't like trouble and danger (Book/The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn- Mark Twain)

 

diane: LOL on the badly-translated instruction manuals. My roommates and I have an Italian ravioli-making machine with an English manual that's actually more like surrealist poetry at times. We quote it to each other!

Drabba: I like the idea of using foreign phrases that everyone knows!

And I love this exercise. I haven't even started it, but I love it already, because I get to see everyone's favorite quotes. Yay!

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?

I actually tend to stay away from them for some reason. Actually inspiration through quotes might be a bit of an untapped resource for me!

2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?

Actually, I don't see a problem with chopping a quote beyond recognition, as long as it's served its purpose of inspiring me. Think of it as a remix..

3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?

I've never actually gotten up the courage to post my songfics. I think if the title is a bit obscure, and if it really does make sense as the title of precisely that story (some of them don't in my opinion) I would use it. I have one named "You Pay For What You Get" after the DMB song, and it's named that because that just *is* the story. Probably I'd stay away from extremely well-known songs as a title though, particularly because it's very possible that someone else has already used it.

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?

I don't really know. If I realized someone was using a quote from one of my absolute favorite works of literature, songs, etc, then I would definitely click. And I always appreciate seeing what inspires other people, so I really enjoy seeing, say, a song that the author listened to while writing as the title of a chapter.

OK, here goes:
"As you go along your way, you will come to a great chasm. Jump. It is not as far as you think." - Joseph Campbell

Not As Far As You Think: Luke decides to take a chance on trying to redeem Vader.


"If he (the gardener) is an artist, then he's like a sculptor whose stone responds to the strike of the chisel by growing a new appendage, or melting." - Michael Pollan, in Second Nature (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)

Ooh, this is a toughie, but I decided it could also apply to teaching. So...

Sculpting an Apprentice: An OC story about a Jedi master who's overly worried that she's not teaching her apprentice how to be a good Jedi, until he interprets a simple lesson for himself in a way she never would have considered.


"Confusion, but carefree confusion: an indifferent Babel." - Jean Attali

Indifferent Babel: A massive, sweeping OC epic about the seedier side of Coruscant. (Dang, I want to write that now!)


"See how it was with those that came before. How it will be with those who are living./ Like corn mortals ripen and fall; like corn/they come up again." - Katha Upanishad, Part I

Ripen and Fall: An aging Sith Master in the time before the Rule of Two knows that one of his apprentices will soon be able to kill him. But who will it be, and how?



Wonderful exercise! It's the one that has given me the most rabid plot bunnies, that's for sure.

 

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?

I mainly use quotes for silly stories, not anything too fancy, I don't know why.

2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?

I usually leave the quote intact, but sometimes I use only a part of it, which is still recognizable, like "To be or not to be..."

3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?

I've used a few song titles in my songfics. I think that certain songs do help the story alot. Obviously, not every song can be made into a songfic, or could they all?

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?

I don't think that it influences what I read at all.

Take five of your favorite Non-Star Wars quotes or parts of quotes and turn them into Star Wars titles. Be sure to list the original quote and where it is from.

Here are my subtle attempts:

"To be or not to be... Damn, that Obi-Wan left me no choice" - Shakespeare, "Hamlet"

"Just Do It... Reveal all the secrets already, Lucas!" - Nike slogan

"I've Fallen... and now I'm a Sith" - Life Call commercial

"It's the mirrors... Or How Palpatine's Face Changed" - DLP Technology slogan

"Sometimes you feel like a nut... Sometimes a Clone" - Hershey's Almond Joy commercial

And here are five song titles just for fun:

"Material Girl - The Real Princess Leia Story" - Madonna
"Slither - Palpatine's Backstory" - Velvet Revolver
"Fall to Pieces - Darth Maul's Backstory" - Velvet Revolver
"Livin' On the Edge - Lando's Bespin Acquisition" - Aerosmith
"Superstitious - Tarkin's Belief in Religions" - Stevie Wonder

 

OK, here is the previous excercise:

Dropping In/Cayendo de Sorpresa

Summary: This is the background story on how Beru Whitesun and Owen Lars met and fell in love.

Falling for You/Enamorándome de Ti
From the Heavens/Desde el Paraiso
Water/Aqua
Within Her Smile/En Su Sonrisa
Love Takes Root/El Amor Echa Raices

Thanks goes to Golden_Jedi for help in the Spanish translations. Muchos gracias, Jedi de Oro.

And now for the current questions and excercise:

Questions:

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?

Usually when I take part of challenges, I?ll get quotes from a literary source or song to use as inspiration for a story and I?ll use at least part of the quote for the title, such as ?Relish it With Good Observance?. On that one, it was part of the quote given me for the Shakespeare Roulette Challenge. I?ve never used quotes otherwise.

2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?

Yes, only slightly. One of the quotes I used was from a Bob Dylan song called ?Masters of War?, and I just dropped the ?s? in masters to fit the storyline better. Otherwise I don?t alter the quote.

3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?

I have only written two songfics? one I?m ashamed to say I did wrong and technically is not a songfic. The second, which I just wrote today, I didn?t use the song title because it was to Earthy. The song is called ?Amazon?, which is a RL place. I just took the last line from the song, ?A Voice of No Regret?, as the title, because that was the definitive feeling to the story.

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?

As with anything, if it peeks my curiosity, I?ll click on it.


Exercise:

I hope this will be an easy one! Take five of your favorite Non-Star Wars quotes or parts of quotes and turn them into Star Wars titles. Be sure to list the original quote and where it is from.

Quotes:

?To sail on a dream on a crystal clear ocean, to ride on the crest of a wild raging storm? ~~Calypso by John Denver

?That green-blooded son of a ***ch, this is his revenge for all the arguments he?s lost.? ~~Dr. McCoy, Star Trek IV: TVH

?We?re going to need a bigger boat.? ~~Richard Dreyfuss? character in Jaws

?Don?t get too friendly with him, Rosie. Granddad Weasely would never forgive you if you married a pureblood.? ~~Ron, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

?It?s not unlike crawling out of mother?s womb. Dear God, what a memory!? ~~Phillipe the Mouse, Ladyhawk

Titles:

Riding the Crest

Revenge of the Lost

We?re Going to Need a Bigger Ship

Granddad Would Never Forgive You if You Married a Skywalker

Force, What a Memory!

(I'm not sure if I did this right...)

 

I have to catch up on this, since I've been ill, but to answer your question, my mystery character was Ki-Adi Mundi. The sex god title was the giveaway to anyone who is familiar with a very long-standing joke in the Provo Fanforce.

 

I don't know of any place you can get anything translated into Shyriiwook on the web. I was just using the Galactic phrase book as a reference. 'Who' and 'What' were the only words that I could use directly from the book. Otherwise I made the words up using what looked like the right type and number of vowels and consonants were in the book.
Thanks raisedbywolves. A Shyriiwook title would be eye catching, but I would definitely only use it for something that has lots of Wookiees in it.


1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?

It will almost always a quote from the story itself. Generally, the only other quotes I'll use are ones that are in the mass media consciousness so well that most people will recognize them but not know where they come from.

2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?

If it's a quote from something not in the story, then yes, I'll change them. Usually just one or two words will get changed so that the rhythm of the quote is still recognizable.

3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?

Not until I write a song-fic. I think it would help a songfic, since the fic is taking inspiration from the song.

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?

If it's a quote I like, or something funny, I suppose it will attract my attention more.


Exercise: Take five of your favorite Non-Star Wars quotes or parts of quotes and turn them into Star Wars titles. Be sure to list the original quote and where it is from.


Against the Assault of Laughter, the Sith Cannot Stand
Source: 'Against the assault of laughter, nothing can stand' - Mark Twain.

A Temple Divided Cannot Stand
Source: 'A house divided cannot stand' - Abraham Lincoln

One Word: Plastics
Source: 'The Graduate' - movie

Xpeli Armus
Source: 'Expelliarmus' - Harry Potter

But I Don't Know; I've Never Died
Source: Voldermort - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire


Yes. I've been re-reading Harry Potter this weekend -- yet another thing that gets between me and writing.

 

I should answer my own questions.

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?
I've never used quotes but after seeing some of the quotes others have used, I really should.

2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?
If I did, I would certainly change them a bit to make them more Star Warsy.

3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?
I've only written one songfic and I didn't use the song title at all. I thought it would give it all away.

4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?
If the quote is something I'm familiar with, I'm much more likely to read the story. If the quote is obscure or not from a show/movie/book that I know, I won't get any extra vibes from it and will treat it like any other title.

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[b]Leona [/b] ? It was fine. After all, people use quotes directly all the time. I really liked the [i]You had me at Hello[/i] one. Very cute. I could see a story there!


[b]Drabbo[/b] ? See, there are tons of titles that could work as fic titles. Chosing those can be just as difficult as coming up with your own. I really liked [i]"Trust me. I know what I'm doing."[/i]


[b]Golden_Jedi[/b] ? I liked how you played with the quotes. My favorite was [i]Encounter at Mos Espa[/i].


[b]raisedbywolves[/b] ? Yes, we made jokes about the badly-translated manuals. Whenever work gets to be too much, we just quote from the books. LOL.

Oh, I really liked [i]Not as Far as you think[/i] as the title for the Luke story. Would love to see that one!


[b]RX_Sith[/b] ? I really liked some of your titles, heck most of them but these were my favorites.
[i]"To be or not to be... Damn, that Obi-Wan left me no choice"[/i] for the non-song titles and [i]"Material Girl - The Real Princess Leia Story"[/i] for the song titles. I could see the first as a drama and the second as a comedy. Good job.


[b]Alexis_Wingstar[/b] ? For the language one, I liked this one the best [i]Dropping In/Cayendo de Sorpresa[/i] Sounds wonderful even if I didn?t know what it was.

For the quotes, I liked these two [i]We?re Going to Need a Bigger Ship [/i] and [i]Granddad Would Never Forgive You if You Married a Skywalker[/i]. And yes, you did that very right!


[b]Ishtar[/b] ? thanks for letting us know.


[b]ardavenport [/b] ? I liked this one the best. [i]Against the Assault of Laughter, the Sith Cannot Stand[/i] Sounds like a comedy/drama. I love the HP books!

 

Just a reminder that you can tell people if you like one or more of their titles. Spread the love!

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[color=blue][b]#5 Inside Jokes[/b][/color]

Get two or more friends together and there will be mayhem and fun, usually not in that order. Seriously, though, when you get a group of individuals that hang out on the boards or in real life, part of their language will begin to include inside jokes. These might include changes in word meaning or phrases that can send the participants into gales of laughter or spawn stories.

A word of caution, though. Inside jokes will work with the original group but anyone else might not get it. Sometimes the extra meaning is lost. So it might be well to make sure that the title works with or without the joke.

[color=blue][b]Questions:[/b][/color][blockquote]1. If you use inside jokes, do you get readers who may not understand the 'inside' part? Do you explain it?
2. As a reader, do you feel that the title loses some of its punch when you find out it's an inside joke? Do you care that it's an inside joke?[/blockquote]
[color=blue][b]Exercise:[/b][/color]

Take one of the inside jokes that your group had and then write at least three titles based on the joke. You can explain the joke or not. It's up to you.

Or ? if you don't have an inside joke or don't want to use any of the inside jokes for the titles, there was a whole day set aside for pirate stories. That was sort of an inside joke. You can use that. Write at least three titles.


[b]Inside joke Example:[/b]

One day we were discussing how Jedi would use Jello? so Jello became my friends' inside joke.
[blockquote]Bacta, Jello - they're both red, right?
Saving the galaxy or romancing a Princess ? there's always time for Jello
Flying buckets of Jello or how I saved the day using fishing line, a jiggling dessert and Gungans
Today on Cooking with a Sith Lord ? Hutt guts, Jello and a lightsaber ? essential ingredients for your next great party[/blockquote]
[b]Pirates Example:[/b][blockquote]Arrgh, I'm makin' this 'ere Gungan walk the plank. Me good deed for the day!
Understand this pirate talk, I do not.
Dance of the Pirate King
The Princess and the Pirate ? A tale of Romance and Betrayal and a really great Sword-fight[/blockquote]

 

Questions:

1.If you use inside jokes, do you get readers who may not understand the 'inside' part? Do you explain it?

I?ve never used inside jokes yet.

2. As a reader, do you feel that the title loses some of its punch when you find out it's an inside joke? Do you care that it's an inside joke?

I think explanations can actually enhance the appreciation.

Exercise:

Take one of the inside jokes that your group had and then write at least three titles based on the joke. You can explain the joke or not. It's up to you.

I Can?t Get No Satisfaction

Frustrated

I Need a Hug

Hehe, those are the only ones I can come up on the spur of the moment with that won?t violate TOS. A friend from work responded to my ?Dropping In? story after Owen and Beru kept getting interrupted with, ?You poor frustrated thing you!? I'm afraid we can get rather unprofessionally giggly when talking about such things.

 

Finally I drop in on this thread. I would have loved to have this when I first started writing~
I'll get to all the other questions later.

1. If you use quotes, where do you get them from?
I like quotes from Shakespeare, poetry, songs, and Traitor.
2. Do you change the quotes sometimes? If so, how do you keep them recognizable?
Not really- sometimes it's an allusion rather than the actual quote.
3. Do you use song titles in your songfics? Do you think it helps or hinders the story?
I haven't really written songfics, but I did write one poemfic in which the poem did greatly infulence the wording of the fic and the title.
4. As a reader, how do quotes influence whether you will read the story or not?
It really adds a nice dimension to songfics, especially when I'm not familiar with the song. If it's well-done, that's great.

1. Do you use non-English titles?
Not yet. That's probably because I can read more in foreign languages than write. But I have had a plot bunny for a songfic based off of a French opera, and for that I would use a French title.
2. If you use non-English titles, how much research do you do to know it's the right translation for what you want?
Actually, I do not trust online translators for anything serious. The most I use it for is to get a general idea of what a passage says, especially if it's in a non-romance language. I like to translate bassed on my knowledge, and if that isn't enough, then I go to print dictionaries or consult a native speaker of the language.
3. As a reader, do you read non-English titles? Why or why not?
I have seen very few non-English titles, but it certainly gets my attention. It's very out-of-the-ordinary, and if I see anything in Latin, I am definitely interested. Latin especially feels right to the SW universe.

I'll do more questions and exercizes later to help me procrastinate. The translation exersice looks good...

 

You know I'll use in-jokes. I'll use in-jokes for groups that have zero overlap with the readership (besides myself, of course).


For the exercise, here are titles from quiz bowl terms and references. [Sadly, I wouldn't be able to work "Sumerian Love Poetry" into a SW context without diluting the in-joke too much. ]

"The Negative Five"
"The Book of Three"
"You Gotta Know"
"Curved and Yellow"
"It's the Judge"
"The Vulture Swoops!"
"The Circle of Death"
"Buzzer Race"
"That's Power"

 

Oh, sorry that I didn't reply to the quotes exercise. School is eating my social life- I get home and I am sometimes only like this:
But okay...so now to the exercise...


1.If you use inside jokes, do you get readers who may not understand the 'inside' part? Do you explain it?
I haven't used inside jokes yet.

2. As a reader, do you feel that the title loses some of its punch when you find out it's an inside joke? Do you care that it's an inside joke?
Not neccessarily- I guess it depends on the inside joke. It may get better when it's explained though.

The exercise

Street signs can be trip hazards and endanger the people- a reclamation letter from Hobbie Klivian

Invisible pretzels- or did that Gamorrean just eat my breakfast?!


You're so wessy- a new term for all annoying Starfighter pilots- or those who want to become one

Uhu- the street sign- let's just say it involves me and me not looking where I was going- so the street sign got hugged- whether it wanted or not to prevent poor Abejas from falling