Monday, September 25, 2006

Joining the Linguists

I was surfing the writer's info highway and came across this awesome e-book by Holly Lisle. It's the Create A Language Clinic. It shows you in really simple steps how to build your own language and even creat the alphabet.

I've always been really impressed by people like George Lucas, J.R.R. Tolkien and Gene Roddenberry, because they not only came up with ONE functioning language, but several. Fans can still learn Klingon, Elvish (multiple tribes) and, well take your pick with Star Wars. I mean, how do you even start? I've wanted to create a secret language that only me and my friends could understand ever since I was a kid.

Now I get to do it!

I'm so excited. I bought the clinic under the auspices of 'writing research', because honestly ANYTHING can be writer's research. I do have a SciFi novel in the works, so this language building will be helpful. But if I'm really honest, I'm just psyched to make up a secret language.

I told Angel about it and she's just as psyched, so I don't feel too nerdy. I set up my workbook tonight and it really doesn't look like it's going to be complicated. Well, a little effort will be involved, but it's not brain surgery. It's probably not even splinter removal surgery.

So, if you are interested in creating YOUR own language, whether you term it "writer's research" or not. Go check out Holly Lisles's Language Clinic.




Holly Lisle's Create A Language Clinic

Namarie (That's Farewell in Sindarin Elvish),

A.

P.S. If you want to learn some Elvish and other fictional languages, check out these links.

Tolkein's Elvish

Star Trek's Klingon

Star Wars' Ewokese

3 comments:

April Erwin said...

Moi? Talk about you behind your back? Never!!! :) I'll probably teach it to you too so you can be part of the 'in' crowd. :)

April Erwin said...

what is that from? seems familiar...

April Erwin said...

Aahhh, I knew I'd heard it somewhere before. Leave it to you to quote Pee Wee Herman. Got any Alf quotes? :)

The best I can give you is "Nanoo Nanoo"... Mork was my hero.