Dohkkiu: try to think of a solutionKiu was opera jargon in former times and referred to humorous plays. Dohk means to measure or to consider. Dohkkiu refers to working out a scenario in a play; nowadays, it means to find a solution.I recently participated in a webinar by Guy Kawasaki, author of APE, a guide for writers interested in self-publishing. One of the interesting points in his talk involved crowdsourcing. He actually sent out an outline of his manuscript to his online followers. Later … [Read more...]
Crowdsourcing for Fiction Authors?
March 25, 2013 Leave a Comment
Filed Under: APE, Cantonese, Chinese, Chinese sayings, crowdsourcing, fiction, Guy Kawasaki, nonfiction, writing
How NOT to Crochet
March 18, 2013 6 Comments
Chesin: to be a matchmaker or broker (lit. pull thread) Instead of Cupid, the Chinese have Yuht Louh ("the old man in the moon") acting as a matchmaker. The old man carries around a book and a bag with him wherever he travels. The book records the names of the destined couples. The bag contains red threads, which he uses to tie together the feet of the boy and girl who are to marry. Happy Crochet Week! Yes, National Crochet Week occurs March 16-22.Recently, I tried my hand at crocheting. I … [Read more...]
Filed Under: Cantonese, Chinese, Chinese sayings, crochet, Cupid, Etsy, hobby, man in the moon, thread, writing
Lunar New Year Feasting
February 12, 2013 4 Comments
Sihk Gau Daaih Gwai: to have a rich meal like a kingIn Ancient China, the number of dishes served to a person during a meal signified their social ranking. The emperor received nine, while feudal kings got seven dishes. A nobleman ate five dishes, officials three, and ordinary people only two. In those days, people also used vessels called gwai to hold their food; most of these containers were made of wood, although some were created from bronze or bamboo. Happy lunar new year! Yesterday was … [Read more...]
Filed Under: ancient China, Cantonese, Chinese New Year, Chinese sayings, dim sum, egg tart, food, Gus Lee. China Boy, lunar new year, Malaysia, reader, The Writer, writer, writing
Space(s) After Periods
December 24, 2012 5 Comments
Yauh Mouh Yauh Yihk: adult children no longer listen to their parents (lit. have feathers and wings)Baahk Geui Yih (A.D. 772-846), a famous poet of the Tang dynasty, heard about a son who abandoned his parents. Saddened, he wrote the following poem entitled Swallow: A pair of swallows built a nest under the eaves, And the mother swallow bore four babies. The babies grew bigger day by day, They always demanded food as if they never got enough to eat. Although the two swallows were already … [Read more...]
Filed Under: Cantonese, Chinese, Chinese sayings, periods, poem, poetry, sentences, spaces, swallows, Tang dynasty, typewriter, writing
A Little Help from my Friends
December 10, 2012 4 Comments
Seuipeih: poor in knowledge or skill; sloppyA famous politician named Wohng Ngon Sehk (A.D. 1021-1086) wrote a dictionary. In it, he split the character "wave" into its basic literal strokes, breaking the word down into "skin of water." His contemporary, Sou Sik, a man of letters, disagreed with him. According to Wohng's rules, Sou argued, the character "slippery" would then be viewed as "bone of water." Sou believed that Wohng had been sloppy in his etymology.A writer can be sloppy after … [Read more...]
Filed Under: Chinese sayings, copy editing, critique, developmental editing, edit, help, line editing, synopsis, writers' group
Author Headshots
September 24, 2012 4 Comments
Jaidakgwo: worth doingIn ancient times, people considered it a great event to cross a river. Imagine a person at the bank of a rapid river, with very simple tools at his disposal. He would cross over only if he believed it worthwhile.I decided to get my author headshots done last week, because I thought it was jaidakgwo. These photographs are used by an author on his or her website, blog, or published novel (pretty please). My decision to go in front of the camera was because of a … [Read more...]
Filed Under: Asian, author, cheongsam, Chinese sayings, headshots, Julie Daniels, photo tips, photography, qipao
