The Writing Pages

French, Latin or even Russian words used in English Literature have often confused and troubled me, thus compelling me to research and find their meanings. For you convenience here is a list of ten most commonly used foreign words:

1. au fait (French): having a good or detailed knowledge

2. bona fide (Latin): genuine; real

3. carte blanche (French): complete freedom to act as one wishes

4. de facto (Latin): in fact, whether by right or not

5. déjà vu (French): the sense of having experienced the present situation before

6. prima facie (Latin): accepted as so until proved otherwise

7. faux pas (French): an embarrassing blunder or indiscretion

8. joie de vivre (French): exuberant enjoyment of life

9. haute couture ((French): the designing and making of clothes by leading fashion houses

10. grande dame (French): a woman who is influential within a particular sphere

There has always been a dispute over which is the longest novel in English Literature. Different researchers and critics have always taken different names. However, today I bring before you an easy access to whoever is intrigued by the mystery of the longest novel in literature!!

After a lot of research, my work bore fruit for I found a fabulous guide to all the longest novels from around the world.

Who hasn’t heard of Wikipedia? Every internet user, avid or immature, certainly knows what Wikipedia is. And if you do not (:gasp:), please click HERE.

So, as I was telling you, Wikipedia came to my help again. It is there where I found a list of all the longest novels in the world.

Did you know Wikipedia had a whole page dedicated to it? I’m sure you did not so here’s why I am sharing it with you!

Here is an extract from the page:

Like determining the list of tallest buildings, figuring the list of longest novels would yield different results depending on what criteria are used.

While word and character figures are common standard, word and character become interchangeable depending on the language used. In alphabetic writing, several letters are combined to make a syllable, which are combined to make a word. In the Korean language, each letter expresses one syllable, significantly reducing the number of letters needed to express one word. Japanese, borrowing its word roots in part from Chinese, uses a combination of ideographs combined with syllabic symbols for inflection.

To read the complete text please visit- List of longest novels

And for your convenience, here is the list:

1. Madeleine and Georges de Scudéry, Artamène
2. Marcel Proust, À la recherche du temps perdu
3. L. Ron Hubbard, Mission Earth
4. Madison Cooper, Sironia, Texas
5. Anthony Powell, A Dance to the Music of Time
6. Samuel Richardson, Clarissa
7. Xavier Herbert, Poor Fellow My Country
8. Marguerite Young, Miss MacIntosh, My Darling
9. Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
10. Alexandre Dumas, père, Le Vicomte de Bragelonne, ou Dix ans plus tard
11. Vikram Seth, A Suitable Boy
12. Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
13. Carl Sandburg, Remembrance Rock
14. Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
15. Marija Jurić Zagorka, Gordana
16. Robert Musil, The Man Without Qualities



I hope this was a help….and hey!! Do you not recognize some names out there? Please share your views and I would love to know which one out of them, you’ve read, without even knowing it to be one of the longest texts in history!!

I am not such a big lover of classics but after my friend’s suggestion, I decided to give PG Wodehouse a try and oh boy, it was certainly worth it!

I read Big Money by PG Wodehousee and would suggest it to all those who love the taste of humor in writing.

The story is about two friends Lord Biskerton or Biscuit and Berry Conway and their financial troubles. The twists and turns in the story make it difficult to keep down. The love life tangles of the two friends, the covetousness of their family, the knowledge of bogus shares not being so and so many other tiny parts of the plot make it an awesome read!

Patterson Frisby is the miserly boss of Berry Conway, who is interested in a copper mine held by Conway. He employs his abettor, more of a bawling man who performs any duty a rich man will ask him to perform to be in the rich man’s good books. But Hoke gets a brain wave and spots the money making opportunity of a lifetime in the mine.

And Big Money is not all about money, but equally balanced with a humorous love tale of two friends engaged to the same lady and then one deciding on other.

By the summary I give you, I am certain you find he book interesting. The style of writing is quite modern and well enough for a modern day fiction lover.

The intricacies of the plot have you in splits at quite a few times throughout the book.

A prudent read for all so go……..hurry and catch a copy!!

Related Posts:

1. Three Men In A Boat by Jerome K. Jerome
   
2. David Copperfiel- by Charles Dickens
   
3. Murder Of Roger Ackroyd- by Agatha Christie
   
4. Marker- by Robin Cook
5. Twilight- by Stephenie Meyer

The main aim of an author is to please the reader. And the most successful writers are the people who succeed.

You know why? Because they keep in touch with the audience but do not write only for them. They write for themselves too and so do not loose their individuality.

Most amateur writers are too obsessed with the idea of pleasing the reader. But they seldom remember to please themselves!

Maybe you do get satisfaction after writing a post, maybe you enjoy the compliments of your readers, but before you decide, just read the post and think- DO I REALLY LIKE IT MYSELF?

The first objective of pleasing a reader is to please yourself because remember that, you yourself are your biggest critic.

There are people I know, who like writing long emotional articles but keeping an internet reader in mind, they cut down their posts to 10 lines just so the reader doesn’t flip away. More often than not, it reduces the quality of their work.

I do not say it is wrong. Practicing new stuff is never wrong, but forgetting your first love and almost abandoning it, is not good either.

So remember, while writing; first keep in mind YOURSELF and then the reader.

Just try it once and then tell me if it helps!!

Recently, I read an astonishing news which almost made me jump off my chair in surprise!

70 pounds and not an inch taller than 4 feet, but hey! don’t go by Adora Svitak’s size my friends…..for she stood proudly atop the stage addressing students of one of the best public high school at Chicago, which also counts Michelle Obama as one of the prestigious alumina, giving them advises on how to publish their books!

Yes!!! Can you believe it?

She stood lively in her pink pompom boots and sweat pants in a cherubic blue. It is supposed that almost 135 students listened with rapt attention to her words and most were encouraged and aspired to reach her level.

She told the students to become much more serious about their writing if their dream is to publish a book, and to limit their television time.

Just 11 years of age, and already the happy author of two published books, Adora from Redmond, Wash, was on cloud nine as she shared her experience as a writer with the students. She has already penned down more than 400 short stories and more than a dozen poems. She says that by the ripe age of 4, she conquered the art of reading chapter books and started writing soon enough. She has her own blog which you can visit by clicking here.


In a patent voice and gesticulations that contradict her age, Adora used prudent literary vocabulary like “protagonist,” “conflict” and “plot” as easily as girls her age use words for their favorite pop stars and television shows.

Adora, prefers watching nightly newscasts and reading fantasy, historical fiction and biographies than sitting in front of the idiot-box.

I just wish I was as smart as her. All I can do now is look up to her as an inspiration!