Feature writers who cannot write smooth proze

Discussion Open Forum
21

From the pen of Nancy T. (for titillating) Lu:

quote[quote]Wu keeps a petite concubine named Yen Po-hsi, who is supposed to have been literally thrust upon him out of gratitude[/quote]Man, I just love it when I get concubines "literally thrust upon me" - especially when it's in rapid up-and-down motions.... [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] It beats the heck out of when they are only metaphorically thrust upon me. [img]images/smiles/icon_wink.gif[/img] [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img] [url=http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/detail.asp?ID=27834&GRP=B]Click here for the whole story...[/url] [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]
22

I, who write in now, agree, wholeheartedly, with you, who have commented, briefly, on the question of commas, stating, in a nutshell, that it, that is, the overuse of commas, can, upon occasion, cause confusion, leading to irritation, in the minds of readers, who regret having paid, however willingly, the NT$15 price for the paper.

BUT – I wish I could write Chinese to her level of English writing!! Really!

She is basically a good, interesting writer who could easily be edited were a competent editor given a chance to do his thing without non-native postediting!

Terry

23

Terry:

You, having taken my breath away, not only in a literal sense, but, also, in the true sense of the word, have made my day! FUNNY POST! Thanks.

And yes, you are right: if only we could write Chinese to her level of English. So all this is just in light-hearted jest, since if I was writing in Chinese, it would be all Greek to you!

,

(those were, um, commas. By the way, why do we, who come from distant lands with our concubines and concuboys, say COMMA in English for this particular mark? Anyone know?}

24

I thought the subtext here was that Nancy T. Lu, whatever her level of English writing, does not allow her text to be touched by anyone.
As someone who has seen a great deal of news reports written in English by Chinese, I can say that if what is published is Ms. Lu’s raw text, then her ability is not bad at all.
But this still begs the question. True or false (and not, "I heard that…): Does this woman not allow anyone to edit her writing?

(btw: Someone who knows Ms. Lu told me that she believes that Ms. Lu lived many years in the Philippines and that that is where her English ability stems from.)

25

I can answer all questions.

Nancy T. Lu has been the Arts & Leisure section of The China Post for the past 15 years. She has sole control over what goes on that page, and as far as I know no one really minds. She is a Philipines-born Chinese and has that Tagalog accent when she speaks. No one edits Nancy T. Lu.
There is no reason though I suspect that it is because she dawdles so much with her page every night that there isn’t any time. If you saw the bunker of newspapers that is her end of the office you would undersand all that you need to know about Nancy. She is a nice lady and her life is other people’s lives.
I think she would find it a compliment to have so much written about her here.
She brings her own coffee to work.

26

Cheers for that.
Is that the mountain of newpapers that is holding up that side of the building?

Being slow on deadline is no excuse for not having her work edited. It shows the lack of concern for quality at the paper.

27

She’s at it again!

In this hilarious story called “Chefs show Kinmen, Matsu cuisines” on

2002/6/26

Nancy T. Lu, of The China Post writes:

KEY WORD: DRUMBEATING – “While most chefs in Taiwan have been putting their creativity to work in preparation for the food festival, the culinary experts in Kinmen and Matsu have been drumbeating the idea of going back to the classic ways of cooking.”

KEY WORDS: GALORE, PRIVILEGED CROWD – “Seafood galore could be seen on every table at the Grand Hotel where the gourmet event unfolded with a privileged crowd eager to taste the dishes.”

NO COMMENT: – “One extraordinary shellfish …”

REALLY? DID THEY? – “The two top officials of the two featured counties literally reached out for the crispy fish delight with their bare hands.”

KEY WORDS: PUBLIC EYE, TROTTED OUT, SOMETHING SPECIAL – “Cakes and buns found only in the offshore islands caught the public eye, too. For example, the Matsu team trotted out seaweed pancake with radish. The traditional Kinmen wedding cake made from high-gluten flour, butter and mixed nuts appeared as something rather special yesterday.”

The Lady is a Hoot. But it’s funny, now with this friendly discussion here, I have changed my opinion of her writing from @##&&@&&@@! to “actually, it’s kinda nice to have this amusing and comical writer gracing the papers every day here” … I now read her in a different light (not lite), thanks to comments and background info here.

She is a delight, in her own unique way … I hope she never changes her style …

[Oh God, did I really say that?!] No, she still needs an editor. Does she have a real one, or just a copy boy or girl for commas and periods?

28
quote:
Originally posted by mergatroid: Although I am also not a native speaker of English, and often make mistakes of grammar and spelling, I just don't get it when she writes: "SHE, COMMA, DRESSED ALWAYS LIKE A CHINESE DOLL, COMMA, FILLS ......."

Is it correct in English to begin a sentence with a pronoun and then immediately go into a comma and a descriptive phrase, and then re-enter the story? This is the most common idiotsyncrisy she, who loves the comma, makes always.

I am sure I am wrong…(bla bla bla)…It’s just the poople proze she sometimes signs her name above.

My God, Mergatroid, you don’t half go on. Yes, you are wrong. There is nothing wrong with the grammar of the sentence you quote from Nancy Lu. On the other hand, your sentence should read “It’s just the purple prose above which she sometimes signs her name.” There are two spelling mistakes and one grammar error in just that one sentence you wrote. Also, it is “always makes,” not “makes always,” and “idiosyncrasy,” not “idiotsyncrisy” - or was that spelling another joke on your part?

Nancy Liu’s English sure beats that of a lot of the native English speakers who post here on Oriented. Since your own grasp of the English language is less than perfect, Mergatroid, I suggest you reserve your linguistic criticisms for whatever language it that you do speak as a native.

29

Juba: Merci …

30

Let’s be clear here: Grammar and style for publication and payment versus what a person might post here on a public, free forum is not comparable.
I try to be reasonably careful, but this is not my job (in spite of what some may think ) so I don’t have incentive beyond what springs out of my fingers to the keyboard.
This is not to say that shit copy here means a person is a wordsmith, either.

31

Thank you, Wolf. Yes, Juba, I was just joking in that post, it was obvious, no? I was intentionally writing Lu-ese for fun. I am sure your knew it, even though you wrote:

with ed notes

"On the other hand, your sentence should read “It’s just the purple prose above which she sometimes signs her name.” [THANK YOU, SIR!] There are two spelling mistakes and one grammar error in just that one sentence you wrote. [Intentional jokey] Also, it is “always makes,” not “makes always,” and “idiosyncrasy,” not “idiotsyncrisy” - or was that spelling another joke on your part? {What do you think?]

Juba, Wolf is right.

32
quote:
Originally posted by mergatroid: I was just joking in that post, it was obvious, no?
No.
33

Hi Maoman. Well, I guess it was not so obvious. In which case, I do apologize for the misunderstandings that resulted. Guess my sense of humor needs a tuning. Shoot happens.

Anyway, back to the topic: maybe it’s time to retire this thread since everyone’s had their say and we now know more about Ms Lu than we did before. Onward, Oriented soldiers!

I did have one further question though: I never noticed that Ms Lu had a middle initial in her name? Is that a new thing or has she always used the name NANCY T. LU for her full 15 years at that newspaper? When I first got here two years ago, I just remember seeing NANCY LU, two names.

Does anyone know? [Not that it’s important… not that any of this is important… more interesting stuff on the Senegal futbol thread…]

34

I hadn’t know mergatroid wasn’t a native speaker of English. Had I known, I would not have been so harsh in my criticism. Sorry dude.

After reading more samples of Ms. Lu’s essays, the best way I can describe it is that it’s a comical caricature of Victorian writing. Not that I’m prejudiced or anything, but imagining the articles being read with a Filipino accent just adds to the comedy.

35

Yes, BAH, her stories on tape would be even better.

The thing is she is very creative, and now that she has come back from her VACATION in Hong Kong, she’s back in style again.

Yesterday she wrote about Le Corbusier’s new show here, and in one of the last paragraphs, she wrote that Le Corbusier had written love letter “to a dame in New York” as part of his philandering ways. Dame? Does this word still exist, dear Nancy? You are even more hardboiled a detective writer than I had imagined, but more power to you, as you amuse us, as you inform us, and that’s worth the NT$15 as far as I am concerned.

36

I remember her stories being genuinely hilarious, with long-forgotten cliches lovingly resurrected for an appreciative public (or “pubic” as she would put it). Well worth NT$15.

37

I love reading Nancy T Lu’s stuff every Friday, i’ve even collected a few of my favourites because i enjoy them so much. I often find myself laughing out loud with Nancy and hope she keeps going for a long time.

Mergatroid’s postings, however, just make my toes curl.

38

I also like to clip out her columns on Fridays, and have quite a few now. Despite her detractors, she’s informative and quirky. I am glad the Post has decided to retain her.

39
quote:
Originally posted by Typo Tymes: Sounds like you know ol Nancy more than you let on.

I agree. I think we’ve been had by a back-stabbing enemy of poor Nancy.

I met her once @ the Far Eastern, btw.

40

I find Nancy T. Lu unreadable. Yes, her writing is funny in a way – the same way you might laugh at a mental patient, a person with MS, or the actions of a person with Down Syndrome.
I don’t think she’s funny; I think she’s pathetic.