Forum: Author Hangout

In Wisconsin we either just use the number or I-X.

I never hear anyone say "I-80". Here (NJ) most commonly it's just the number for any highway or "Route X".

Where are you?

A three digit interstate is either a bypass, or a spur. Bypass if the first digit is even, spur if it is odd.

A search on Google maps for I-405 indicates that he is in the Seattle, Washington area, because that's where I-405 is.

In Houston, most of the freeways are commonly referred to geographically: 'Katy Freeway', 'North Freeway', 'Southwest Freeway', 'Gulf Freeway', etc. Using the number is less common but certainly happens.

Here in SoCal we also have names for freeways.
The 1, also known as the Pasific Coast Highway which goes along the coast.
The 101, also known as the Ventura highway which goes to Ventura.
The 110, also known as the Harbour freeway which ends at the harbor.
And then we have the 405, also known as the San Diego freeway which ends lone before it reaches San Diego.

And then we have the 405, also known as the San Diego freeway which ends lone before it reaches San Diego.

Interesting. I did a search on Google Maps for I405 and got Seattle, Washington.

And then we have the 405, also known as the San Diego freeway which ends lone before it reaches San Diego.

Interesting. I did a search on Google Maps for I405 and got Seattle, Washington.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Interstate 405 may refer to:

Interstate 405 (California), a bypass of Los Angeles, California
Interstate 405 (Oregon), a bypass of Portland, Oregon
Interstate 405 (Washington), a bypass of Seattle, Washington

Seems someone thought to reuse the same number in different states won't cause irritation.

HM.

Seems someone thought to reuse the same number

Apparently. I didn't even need to refer to Wikipedia to figure that out.

Odd though that Seattle was the only hit I got on a Google Maps search.

Must be a lot of bypasses on I-5 that they used the same bypass number three times.

Must be a lot of bypasses on I-5 that they used the same bypass number three times.

Yup. On primary N/S I-5 from MX to CAN borders in WA/OR/CA states has at least a dozen "auxiliary" connectors.
I-105 has segments in LA and in Eugene, OR.
I-205 - Central CA and around Portland, OR metro area.
I-305 - not officially used, but a section of US 50 near Sacramento CA get federal funds under that tag.
I-405, as was noted, 3 segments.
I-505, once in central CA.
I-605, once in LA urban area.
I-705, in Tacoma WA, also possibly the Hollywood Fwy ...
I-805, once in San Diego CA (alt access to/fm MX border)
I-905 not designated yet, but proposed for Otay Mesa Fwy.

I didn't even need to refer to Wikipedia to figure that out.

I needed Wikipedia to find out they used the same number not only twice (Washington and California) but three times (Oregon, too).

BTW, seeing only one result with Google Maps, could we assume Google Maps is even less reliable than Wikipedia? ;-)

HM.

BTW, seeing only one result with Google Maps, could we assume Google Maps is even less reliable than Wikipedia? ;-)

Not generally, no.

The naming convention for interstates and auxiliaries is actually pretty reasonable and communicates information. Even-number interstates run east-west, increasing in number as you go north (so I-90 is the northern-most east-west interstate and I-10 is the southernmost) and odd-number interstates run north-south, increasing in number from west to east (so I-5 is the western-most north-south interstate and I-95 is the easternmost). If the number is two digits, you know it's a true interstate.

Auxiliary interstates have three digits, taking the two from their host and the third (generally, there are exceptions) telling you how it connects to the host. Even numbers connect in two spots, odd numbers connect in one. So 405 is an auxiliary to I-5 that connects at two different points. We also know that I-5 runs north-south and is on the west coast, so it spans washington, oregon, and california. Auxiliaries don't repeat intrastate but do repeat interstate, just like exit numbers - there is an I-5 exit 1 in washington, oregon, and california.

You could argue that auxiliaries could have four digits and be unique across the country as opposed to just the state, but it's not clear what benefit that would give you - it's not like there's an expectation that interstate names (or city names, or street names) are unique nationally. If I told you that I lived on Center Street in Rochester and it sure was snowy, you'd still need to ask if I lived in New York or Minnesota.

Piggly Wiggly was all over the northwest twenty years ago, and was in Wisconsin less than ten years ago.

I'm in southeastern Wisconsin. There is a Piggly Wiggly with in a couple of miles of my house. I'm in my 50s. Piggly Wiggly has been in Wisconsin since I was a child.

California

Californicate

I'm kinda sorta trying to write a couple stories that are kinda sorta set in alternative universe of my native environment, and showcasing some quirks of that environment is partly a point, or other times I just use it as base for what may sound like almost high fantasy to foreigners, but be still very familiar to me personally, just intensified, taken a bit over the top.

And the specifics of the native language can make or break plot points unwittingly at times, but I don't want to go on long lectures why, or feature that language much at all, only providing general awareness that all dialogue is to be perceived as narrator's translation.

I'm also very aware that if I used local names I'm fond of, they could appear unpronounceable for anglophone people, because we adopted latin alphabet through German gothic, and then added our own quirks on top. Or should I attempt to spell Jānis as Yaaanis, or Līga as Leeghah, or mention Gundega is meant to be pronounced as gun+deg(ree)+ah and means roughly "fire that burns" (etymology: ugun-s -> 'gun-s = "fire" + deg-t = "to burn" + feminine ending, yes, it's a girl name, and also a name of small, nasty wild weed flower). I would likely fail at that because I don't spell or speak English at all and use that same Latvian phonetic alphabet for rendering of all texts in my internal usage.

Instead, I translate Jānis to John, because it is the same name (also Ivan and I think even Zak is derived from it, whatever the guy who baptized Jesus is called in the local translation) and try to mostly confine myself to girl names that has international spread and presence here as well.

Well, and in one project ostensibly set in 1995 (but never exactly specified) I deliberately use currency that went out of circulation in 1994, but visit a night club that I believe didn't open before 1996, at least not in that place/design, but I kinda sorta wanted the atmosphere. But I double checked any music I mentioned there was out before 1995.

Reading stories where characters from one country are talking in the slang of another country is jarring.

I don't mind if a person from a different country uses their 'native' jargon or slang. What does bother me is when a 'native' used the 'non-native' terms. Esample if somebody from Australia visiting the US uses petrol, no problem. But when a person native in say the US uses petrol (except when the author makes it clear that he has roots where that term is used) is jaring.

When I saw the title I thought it was about one of my pet peeves, going into to much detail.

I have the somewhat the opposite reaction. While yes, there are stories with too much detail, there are just as many with not enough detail. Little or no sense of scenery, of when or where the story takes place. Nothing to differentiate it from the next story.

It's the details as much as any action or drama that takes place that makes a story stand out from the crowd and makes it interesting and worth reading.

You should try reading "wheel of time" by Robert "too darn much detail" Jordan. I swear I've tried to read that first book at least half a dozen times and never get more than a chapter or two in from sheer exhaustion reading details that make you think the reader had never seen anything past a one block tenement in a concrete jungle where nothing bigger than a grain of rice was ever out of place. The detail is excessive to say the least.

However I feel that there are two schools of thought. time/location specificity and authenticity or generalisation. Going with the former may alienate people who have no first hand knowledge of the area if there is to be too many private/in jokes or on the other hand over generalisation may dilute the water so to speak to the extent that nothing has much meaning.

I've lived in a lot of countries and locations but I don't think I'd ever write a specific place for many reasons. Some of which have been attested to here. Just because you knew a place to be 'just so' doesn't mean many people either side of you by more than a couple of years would too.

I'll ask at another point in time when I'm further into a draft, but is it at all possible to be down the middle? no specific names but just enough detail that a good portion of people can relate and ascribe it to X town in Y year. There's a concept that people over estimate the changes 2 years will bring, whilst underestimate the same over 10.

Yes I realise the majority of members here are Americans but I think that majority may not be as large as suggested. The internet is international and so is English, mostly. Overly America centric content does not alway come off either as right or wrong, just more cultural imperialism. So much as to say, how dare you not know the difference between this or that state, or this or that decade there.

What I'm trying to say, and I hope this is the right way of putting it. Generalisation, generally wins out over specifics if only because it means more people can relate more intimately with something if it doesn't require in depth and local knowledge of everything within 100 Km of a point of interest in the story. But you can also say the opposite that 'small' inconsistencies do not matter as much as a lot of people think they do to the larger reader body as a whole.

Balance is the key, tempered yes by a little research. Just enough details that a 'local' can say I'm 'there' but not too many so as to confuse someone from 100 or 10,000 Km away. No, I've never been to the USA but I have hauled my arse around a good 1/3rd of the globe distance wise and maybe 1/8th location wise. I've seen countries that are trying to be the 51st state and other's that are running away as fast as they possibly can. neither is a statement for or against the actual US just that there are many points of view and there is a grand spectrum between 100% US Authentic and somewhere that doesn't even know how many 'states' there are.

I do plan on setting all of what I write outside of America but have of yet not come across a method of describing somewhere that is not somewhere specific other than not USA. If anyone has an idea for that particular tightrope I'd love to know as I'm walking without a pole and wearing a blindfold and it's a long way down.

Finally I think you will find that many of the readers would be struggling to know the difference between IHOP and Waffle house once you got past the menu headliners. My 'pet peeves' go both ways too much or too little. there's a reason most stories are either set in an instantly recognisable location or one generic enough to belong to a $2 store (inflation adjusted).

an instantly recognisable location or one generic enough to belong to a $2 store (inflation adjusted).

Here in the US we have a store named "99c Only" store where everything was only 99 cents or less. Due to inflation they had to raise their prices but all their signs on the buildings and their trucks had the old name and being how cheap they were known for they just pasted a blank sticker over just the cent symbol and now just goes by "99 Only" store.

and the author was to lazy to get the details correct

That's why I use fictitious places and sprinkle in real stuff to make it sound more rea

Do you ever make a note to readers telling
them said city does not exist? Or is obvious because of its fictional subject eg Superman?

Minors are under 21 years old.

In the US at least, minors are under 18 years old. If you are going to be pedantic, do it right.

minors are under 18 years old

"Is a minor a person who is at least 18 years old?
In the United States as of 1971, minor is generally legally defined as a person under the age of 18. However, in the context of alcohol or gambling laws, people under the age of 21 may also sometimes be referred to as minors. However, not all minors are considered juveniles in terms of criminal responsibility."

If you are 18 you are definitely under 21.

The British author had the couple embarking on a cruise from Orlando. Couldn't he have spent 10 seconds looking at a map?

Was the story set in the future where the rising seas turned Orlando into a coastal town? Just asking.

No. But it was interesting that they were in a hotel at the port in Orlando.
From my experience with Brits, the only places they know about in the US are NYC, San Francisco, LA and Disney, so I was surprised that the author did this.

No. But it was interesting that they were in a hotel at the port in Orlando.
From my experience with Brits, the only places they know about in the US are NYC, San Francisco, LA and Disney, so I was surprised that the author did this.

One thing about going on a cruise is how are you getting to the boat. The author being Brit would need to fly in and Orlando International Airport would be one of the entry points to the USA for them to connect up with getting to the boat.

Yes, but he repeatedly says he's in Orlando. He takes a "two mile walk" from their hotel at the port to the nearest shopping center.

Yes, but he repeatedly says he's in Orlando. He takes a "two mile walk" from their hotel at the port to the nearest shopping center.

He could be referring to the international airport in Orlando.

US Customs and Boarder Patrol considers our international airports to be ports of entry.

Here's an official list of the ports of entry for Florida. All three Orlando airports are listed.
https://www.cbp.gov/contact/ports/fl

You're not getting on a ship there - he did.

You're not getting on a ship there - he did.

The nearest ocean port to Orlando would be Port Canaveral(~50 miles from Orlando) on Cape Canaveral.

Another thing - nobody in the US (the characters are American) would walk two miles to a shopping center.

Yes, but he repeatedly says he's in Orlando. He takes a "two mile walk" from their hotel at the port to the nearest shopping center.

Going from Orlando to Port Canaveral where all the cruise ships pretty much anchor in that area is less than 60 miles (96.5 Km) around an hour drive time. As for the shopping center that would depend on which one they went to but 2 miles isn't bad.

I was just reading a story on Lit. The British author had the couple embarking on a cruise from Orlando. Couldn't he have spent 10 seconds looking at a map?

Yes Orlando is inland but you can take and have cruises out of Orlando and it is a very large industry. Just do a search of " cruise from Orlando" .

Three cruise lines offer cruises that leave out of Orlando in 2023 - Carnival (total of 150 sailings, among them 83 on Carnival Liberty, 42 on Mardi Gras and 9 on Carnival Freedom), Royal Caribbean (total of 106 sailings, among them 64 on Independence of the Seas and 20 on Mariner of the Seas) and Norwegian (NCL) (total of 11 sailings, all of them on Norwegian Escape).

Yes Orlando is inland but you can take and have cruises out of Orlando and it is a very large industry. Just do a search of " cruise from Orlando" .

I did the suggested search on Google. Then I checked some of the listings. They don't actually leave from Orlando. The cruises listed actually depart from Port Canaveral, Fl, 50 miles east of Orlando.

overly-descriptive travelogue

Overly-descriptive anything, really! (But what qualifies as o-d will depend on the reader.) Travelogue is certainly one area where many writers are o-d in my opinion; who but a native to the area is concerned about the exact route taken - and going into such details risks errors/anachronisms, as well as actually hiding info: is this a direct route? Often better to simplify - "we went to X avoiding the interstate(s) to avoid stress/speed cameras/whatever, even though it might have added an hour or so to or journey ". (Of course this does not apply if the journey is the story!)

I recieved a message from a reader saying that my global x,y coordinates from my second novel in "Make the Cut" did not show a temple in Sri-Lanka. I replied, "Look on the other side of the road." :-)

I recieved a message from a reader saying that my global x,y coordinates from my second novel in "Make the Cut" did not show a temple in Sri-Lanka. I replied, "Look on the other side of the road." :-)

Ok this is a great example of giving too much detail.

I also found no real information about 18-month life insurance for my MC's slutty ladies.

Life Insurance? That is a "simple" actuarial calculation. However, presuming they are younger than 55 years of age, she should be able to get each of them a Half-Million (USD) Life Insurance for $15 to $20 a month; perhaps less. Unless you are insuring them for something extraordinary.

If they were to be murdered, or die by "misadventure" in those 18 months, expect an investigation by the authorities and PIs hired by the insurance company! Life Insurance policies for only 18 months is Odd. Suicide is not covered in many policies; if added, it can significantly increase the cost.

I have shopped for Life Insurance policies for "Contractors" in Afghanistan, the Middle East, and other war zones... Life Insurance policies that cover acts of war, terrorism, etc., are significantly more than ordinary life insurance policies for most people under 70; but still quite reasonable. (Well, for Western Contractors. "Cannon Fodder" hired by Wagner Group is probably prohibitively expensive, if available at all.)

Now "health insurance" that would be considerably more expensive. Its all (or mostly) in the Actuarial Tables.