I'm curious

[serai]

Why do so many hobbit fic writers insist on using the Scottish word bairn, when Tolkien himself said that hobbit babies and children are called fauntlings or faunts? I can see digging up a word if he had never addressed the issue. (Though I'd try to find an English word, or at least one derived from the same sources, rather than something Scots. From what I understand, Tolkien didn't like Scots or Gaelic, just like he didn't like French, and took great care not even to use words that English had appropriated from them.) But in this case, he actually had a word, told us what it was, and people still don't use it.

Can someone explain this? Because it makes no sense to me at all.

Comments

[serai1.livejournal.com]

Well, you've always been more tolerant than I in that respect. When a writer does something like use "mathom" incorrectly, it really takes her down in my estimation. Just like all the rampant grammatical butchering that goes on in English these days - folks might be happy doing it, but they still come off either lazy or unintelligent to me.

[serai1.livejournal.com]

Ain't he cute? *pinches his little hobbit cheeks*

You know, I love editing, I really do. Examining words and judging their weights and rhythms, working to tweak and arrange and clean them up just fascinates me. But I find being a beta too damn frustrating, frankly. To do all that work and then have someone basically say "Thanks but I'm gonna keep it wrong" - I can't take it. If I'm going to be an editor, then I want my work and/or expertise (what little I've got) to be accepted as it is. Otherwise, what's the bloody point of asking me to do the corrections? It's a waste of my time, and I don't have that much left, thanks.