Tiny Grammar Cheatsheet: When to Use Hyphens for Compounds
Compound: two words used together
‣ terms can move between the form of compound, usually reflecting frequency of usage: base ball (open compound) ➛ base-ball (hyphenated compound) ➛ baseball (closed compound)
There is no set answer for when to use hyphens. The Merriam Webster Dictionary reports that they often only have one variation in their database, but that does not mean others aren't used or are wrong.
‣ Examples of formerly hyphenated compounds: shoelace, postcard, rattlesnake, doorknob...
‣ But even constructs related to each other can differ: backyard ⭤ front yard
➛ Remember that language is a fluid construct!
There still are some loose rules you can follow to get a general grasp on what will probably be accepted. A compound is (typically) hyphenated when:
‣ a noun is being modified with a compound adjective ending in a participle: a sun-bleached roof
(Hyphens are not used for the adverbial -ly ending: lightly salted peanuts)
‣ a usually open compound modifies another noun: He loves science fiction, he is actually is going to a science-fiction convention soon.
(Exceptions possible if terms are common enough: real estate agent)
‣ listen to your gut and see what feels and looks right. Maybe if it is a term specific to a field, see how others in said field use it.
‣ Note that using or not using a hyphen may reveal how (un)familiar you are with a term, which may carry connotations you did not intend for
Near-death experience (NDE) - a psychological event that may occur when a person nearly dies but is then resuscitated.
While no two NDEs are identical, those who have had them reported experiencing similar sensations, such as seeing a bright light or floating above one's body.
Scientists have proposed theories to attempt to explain what causes an NDE, but none of these theories fully explain the phenomenon.
This has led many lay persons—and even some physicians—to conclude that NDEs are a glimpse into the afterlife and possibly proof that the mind, or soul, can exist without the body.
Researchers estimate that about 5% of the US population—about 10 million people—has had an NDE, and as cardiac-resuscitation techniques continue to improve, this percentage is expected to rise.
Common Sensations
Most people who have had a near-death experience (NDE) were on the brink of death. While NDEs vary somewhat, those who have experienced them reported having had some or all of these sensations:
hearing oneself declared dead
feeling unconditionally loved
feeling a sense of leaving the body and floating above it, sometimes observing the surroundings
traveling through a tunnel toward a bright, peaceful light
reviewing one's life
crossing a border
meeting spiritual beings or spiritual versions of deceased relatives and friends
being reluctant to return to the body
However, it is important to note that not all NDEs are pleasurable:
Some individuals reported being in complete darkness and
having the horrible feeling of hanging over a cliff.
The spiritual beings they encountered were demonic, not loving.
These "hellish" NDEs seem to occur much less often than "heavenly" NDEs.
In veridical NDEs,
people have out-of-body experiences in which they:
see and hear things that others later verify as being true. EXAMPLES:
In one famous case in 1991, a medical team chilled the body of Pam Reynolds, a singer and songwriter, to 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
They were trying to keep an enormous aneurysm at the base of her skull from rupturing.
They stopped her heart, drained the blood from her head, and determined that her brain was inactive—Reynolds was clinically dead.
Reynolds later reported having a vivid NDE and also remembered details of her surgery as if she had watched it taking place over the surgeon's shoulder.
She recalled the conversation between the nurses and the doctor and accurately described the saw the surgeon had used on her skull.
In another account, a 57-year-old man claimed to have risen out of his body and up to a corner of the room, where he watched the staff trying to resuscitate him.
He described the way his hair looked and how the doctors cut off his clothes.
He also recounted the way the physician used the defibrillator, which caused him to be sucked back into his body.
The medical staff confirmed the accuracy of the man's recollections.
Research and Biological Theories
Written accounts of near-death experiences (NDEs) go back to the Middle Ages.
However, research into what causes them did not begin until 1975 when Raymond A. Moody, Jr., a psychologist who was once a philosopher, published the book Life After Life. Moody based his book on fifty interviews he conducted with people who had had NDEs. The book was enormously popular and sparked debate as to whether the soul leaves the body after death and travels to another world. In 1981, the International Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS) formed to further investigate NDEs.
Early researchers theorized that drugs administered to dying patients were responsible for NDEs. This theory was shelved, however, when individuals who were not given medications—such as those who had fallen from mountains—experienced NDEs.
After decades of research, scientists still do not know what causes NDEs.
At best, they have theories to explain the physical changes that may be responsible for some of the sensations people experience during an NDE.
For example, a loss of oxygen to the brain may be responsible for the tunnels people see.
A massive dose of the drug Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) released from the pineal gland before death may cause other sensations, such as seeing a bright light.
In 2006, Richard Kinseher proposed a new theory to explain NDEs in his book Near-Death Experiences: completely explained. According to Kinseher, approaching death is strange and frightening.
This causes a surge in electrical activity in the brain that triggers the start of the NDE.
Then the individual's brain searches through all its memories to try to find a comparable memory that may help them get out of the situation and avoid death.
The brain searching through these memories causes the life review that some people experience.
Critics of Kinseher's theory point out that it cannot be applied to all situations.
For example, it does not explain how and why people have veridical perceptions during NDEs. It also does not indicate why individuals with no brain function at the time experience NDEs.
Eben Alexander, a neurosurgeon, reported having an NDE in 2008 after being in a deep coma for seven days, when his neo-cortex, the part of the brain responsible for thought and emotion, was completely shut down.
Alexander had contracted a rare type of bacterial meningitis in which E. Colibacteria had penetrated his cerebrospinal fluid and made their way into his brain.
He recounted being transported to a beautiful world where he met a girl riding on a butterfly's wing. She took him on an amazing journey through this world and sent him the message—without speaking words—that he is loved unconditionally. He believes that his experience is proof that the consciousness can exist without the body.
Implications of an NDE
While the cause of NDEs may not yet be known, people who experience them appear to be forever changed:
They become more patient,
more forgiving, and
less materialistic.
They may change careers and
seek out work that helps others.
Skeptics are quick to point out, however, that people often undergo such lifestyle changes after any major crisis, so almost dying, rather than an NDE, may be the reason for the new outlook on life.
The fastest way to accomplish The Project is to cease being afraid of The Project. The Project cannot maim you. The Project cannot kill you. The Project is more afraid of you than you are of it. It is okay if The Project turns out differently from how it was in your head, and it is okay if it has flaws. You are capable of engaging with The Project.
“Never Forget” until the new target is those that they disagree with.
Edit: please watch this video essay by Jacob Geller. It speaks on really important points as to how “bad art” is a weapon of fascism and how it reflects the Degenerate Art Exhibition(s)
Your character cannot be “cold and unreadable” for the whole book. Unreadable to who? because i’m the reader and i paid to read. Open the emotional fridge.
Sometimes I want to release my novel for free just for the sake of getting feedback since if I ever get it published I’ll be doing a heavy rewrite on it before I begin pitching but I’m 99% sure people only read free books online if they’re fanfic of some kind. Lauren suggested repackaging it as a Looney Tunes fanfic and that wouldn’t be the HARDEST sell in the world but I still don’t know if that would actually pan out
Well, you see, it would be easy to incorporate Looney Tunes into my book given that I did a normal thing and wrote a novel inspired by Looney Tunes to the point that I even marathoned old episodes for research. Other inspirations I can cite include The Dresden Files, Welcome to Night Vale, and Rude Tales of Magic.
It’s an urban fantasy comedy about three mid-20s freelancers in the supernatural troubleshooting world. They pick up what they think is going to be an easy case only to find themselves facing off with a chaos god with a penchant for Saturday morning television who curses the main character with cartoon physics. The relatively amateur paranormal gumshoes must now learn how to stop a deity before it plunges their world into never-ending mayhem, all while one of their own is being flattened by falling anvils on the daily.
It’s a short novel, about 53k words, and was written for NaNoWriMo the year our first child was born, so it was largely written under duress on my phone from a rocking chair in the night. It’s the beginning of a planned five-book series that I’ve been working on for five years now and is full of queer and disability representation.
It’s a project I’m incredibly proud of and passionate about, I just haven’t had the time and mental capacity to get back to it and do the rewrites I need to justify beginning the querying process again
The book is now available through Itch and Gumroad
Both are free so pick whichever site is more convenient for you but there are pay what you can options and Itch’s minimum payout is $5 and Gumroad’s is $100 so if you feel like buying me a coffee for the read I’d suggest Itch or I’ll almost certainly never see it
Anyway I’m doing this because I think this version of the book has reached its end and before I move forward with it I’ll be rewriting the majority of it so I feel fine sharing this BUT the core of the book will be the same, same general plot, same concepts, a lot of the same goofs and gags, so if you do take a look and have any thoughts on like if the idea of an urban fantasy meets Looney Tunes book actually works I would love to know!
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