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Writer's pictureHeather Moll

Nerdy writer details: fun with words and n-grams

Ever wonder how I decide if a word or phrase is appropriate for 1812? Watch the video to see one of the ways I check.


P.S. There's a sneak peak at my WIP 👀

What do you think about this peek behind the curtain? Is there anything about the writing and research process that you'd like to know more about? Tell me in the comments below!

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12 Comments


hmcid
Mar 01

Thank you for sharing this tool...quite fascinating! It must take some discipline not to go down rabbit trails while you are researching. I appreciate the time and effort you give to researching the Regency period. There are few things more annoying than reading Regency novels with anachronisms...dialogue especially!

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Heather Moll
Heather Moll
Mar 01
Replying to

I do tumble down a few rabbit holes! But then I find fascinating things to add to future books. I agree it can really take you out of the story when the details are glaringly wrong.

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Ann Crowley
Ann Crowley
Jul 30, 2023

Love the Ngram. It is amazing to see what comes naturally to us is very modern and not right for 1812. I appreciate your careful research which avoids asynchronous references. It is jarring in an otherwise decent period book when someone "puts his feet up on the coffee table." That sent me down a rabbit hole. In Europe, the first tables specifically designed as and called coffee tables, appear to have been made in Britain during the late Victorian era. Early coffee tables made for the coffeehouses did not resemble the coffee tables we know and recognize today. They were tall, often reaching upwards of 27 inches high. It is a natural thought for an author that a piece…

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Heather Moll
Heather Moll
Jul 30, 2023
Replying to

Isn’t n-gram a great tool? So helpful. And I didn’t know when coffee tables as we use them now came into being. Regency folk weren’t lounging with their coffee at home in quite the same way we do!

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jengooch
Feb 21, 2023

I didn’t know this tool existed. Thank you for taking us through your process.

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Heather Moll
Heather Moll
Feb 21, 2023
Replying to

Thanks for watching through my nerdy attempts at authenticity and accuracy.

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mrsmarway
Aug 15, 2022

Great tool. Thanks for the inside look. I really enjoyed this.

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Heather Moll
Heather Moll
Aug 15, 2022
Replying to

Thank you for watching it 😊

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wendym215
wendym215
Aug 11, 2022

Awsome love this

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Heather Moll
Heather Moll
Aug 11, 2022
Replying to

I’m glad you liked my nerdiness!

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