The Devil’s Writing Dictionary, Part 2…

…has now made its appearance at Lynn Viehl’s site. A couple of more selections I like as I continue revisions to Terra Insegura:

Novel: a rambling, proportionally disorganized fictional prose narrative of considerable length (usually 60,000 words or more) that typically possesses some semblance of a plot (unless literary, see Literature) that is presented in between sequences of pointless actions, boring speeches, and unconnected thoughts of a cast of characters who bear a striking resemblance to those individuals in real life who have pissed off the author of the work.

POV: an abbreviation for “point of view”; the segment of the story told by the author while role-playing a character, hiding their sentiments behind them, or intruding through their characterization in order to grind a particular ax.

Proofreading: the skimming through of the work to admire one’s genius and find any typos or errors, not that there will be any.

And, of course:

Revisions: changes made or requested to be made of work that the editor claims 1) does not quite meet professional standards, 2) is riddled with grammatical and spelling errors, or 3) makes about as much sense as Bruce Wagner’s Wild Palms did; the jealousy-born sabotage of the work by an editor who obviously cannot deal with the author’s genius.