My buddy Thom, who happens to be an alum from Punahou in Honolulu, brought in his 2008 Punahou School Alumni Directory. In there are a few special people, namely on Page 7. You’ll also notice somebody familiar on Page 392. [click to continue…]

Attribution is the addition of he said, John asked, she wrote, or some similar construction to a direct or indirect quotation to indicate the source. Attributions such as as he said indicate that the writer agrees with the quotation.

Verbs such as smile and frown have been used with attributions for generations: “You’re a penny short,” he frowned. This practice permits writers to vary their verbs of attribution and to express very compactly the manner in which something is said, but it is absurd, from the strictest point of view, and many readers are annoyed by it. There are many verbs that are not objectionable in attributions but still connote manner, such as agree, beg, complain, hint, insist, propose, and scold. Even these should not be used just to vary the common said and asked. A writer may feel that there are too many repetitions of said and asked, but in fact these verbs of attribution are almost invisible to the reader, and their repetition is not annoying. Dialogue sometimes can, of course, run for quite a few exchanges without any attributions and still be clear to the reader, though the writer, who always knows who’s talking, may sometimes overestimate the reader’s ability to follow.

Colorful verbs such as grunt and hiss are acceptable when they are appropriate–“Hunh?” he grunted; “Just taste this, my sweet,” he hissed–but grunt and hiss are ludicrous when the quotation could not actually be grunted or hissed: “I suppose you consider this an adequate periphrasis,” he grunted (difficult to grunt); “You will enjoy the cocktail,” he hissed (impossible to hiss).

Source: The Handbook of Good English by Edward D. Johnson.

“I don’t necessarily start with the beginning of the book. I just start with the part of the story that’s most vivid in my imagination and work forward and backward from there.”
— Beverly Cleary

The Dolphin’s Secret
by Jace Daniel (b. 1969)

Once upon a time in the bluest blue sea there lived a dolphin with a secret. This secret was very wonderful, and the dolphin wanted very much to share it with others.

So the dolphin swam as fast as he could, deep into the sea, searching for somebody to share his secret with. As the sea began to get dark and cold, the dolphin met an octopus.

“Hello,” said the dolphin. “I have a secret that is very wonderful, and I want very much to share it with you. Come with me!”

“I don’t have time for you,” said the octopus. “I’m too busy counting my arms. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.”

“But it’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen,” said the dolphin.

“It can’t be more wonderful than my eight arms,” said the octopus. “You have way too much time on your fins. Now swim along, and leave me alone.”

So the dolphin swam as fast as he could, deeper into the sea, searching for somebody to share his secret with. As the sea began to get very dark, and very cold, the dolphin met a shark.

“Hello,” said the dolphin. “I have a secret that is very wonderful, and I want very much to share it with you. Come with me!”

“I don’t have time for you,” said the shark, gnashing his big sharp teeth. “I’m too busy looking for food.”

“But it’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen,” said the dolphin.

“It can’t be more wonderful than food,” said the shark. “You need to get a life. Now swim along, and leave me alone before I eat you up!”

So the dolphin swam as fast as he could, deeper and deeper into the sea, searching for somebody to share his secret with. As the sea began to get very very dark, and very very cold, the dolphin met an old sea turtle.

“Hello,” said the dolphin. “I have a secret that is very wonderful, and I want very much to share it with you. Come with me!”

“I don’t have time for you,” said the old sea turtle, sticking his head out of his shell. “I’m too busy living in my shell and getting very old.”

“But it’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen,” said the dolphin.

“Look around you,” scoffed the old sea turtle. “There is no such thing as a wonderful thing in this dark cold sea. Now swim along and leave me alone, little dolphin dreamer.”

So the dolphin swam as fast as he could, deeper and deeper and deeper into the sea, searching for somebody to share his secret with. As the sea began to get very very dark, and very very cold, the dolphin reached the bottom, and could swim no deeper. There on the floor, in the darkest, coldest part of the sea, he met a starfish.

“Hello,” said the dolphin, almost out of breath. “I have a secret that is very wonderful, and I want very much to share it with you.”

“What is it?” asked the starfish.

“It’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen,” said the dolphin. “Come with me!”

“I’d like to come with you,” said the starfish. “But I cannot swim.”

“That’s okay,” said the dolphin, resting his belly on the sand next to the starfish. “I’ll take you. Climb up on my back.”

So the starfish climbed atop the dolphin’s back, clinging to his fin.

“You ready?” asked the dolphin.

“Ready!” said the starfish.

“Okay then,” said the dolphin. “Hang on!”

So the dolphin swam as fast as he could towards the top of the sea, with the starfish on his back. The sea got less dark and less cold as they zoomed like a silver streak past the old sea turtle.

“Wait until you see this!” exclaimed the dolphin to the starfish. “It’s like a dream!”

The dolphin swam even faster towards the top of the sea, with the starfish on his back. The sea got even less dark and even less cold as they zoomed like a silver streak past the shark.

“Hang on!” exclaimed the dolphin to the starfish. “For dear life!”

The dolphin swam even faster and faster towards the top of the sea, with the starfish on his back. The sea got brighter and warmer as they zoomed like a silver streak past the octopus.

“Get ready!” exclaimed the dolphin to the starfish. “It’s almost time!”

The dolphin swam even faster and faster and faster towards the top of the sea, with the starfish on his back. The sea got even brighter and even warmer as they zoomed like a silver streak, and they began to shine.

“It’s so beautiful up here!” exclaimed the starfish.

“That’s nothing!” yelled the dolphin. “Watch this!”

The dolphin swam faster than ever with the starfish on his back, reaching the top of the sea, and could swim no further. Yet he did not slow down.

“Look out!” screamed the starfish. “Stop!”

“Watch this!” exclaimed the dolphin, swimming faster than a shiny silver speeding bullet. “And hang on!”

The dolphin swam with all his might with the starfish on his back, crashing through the top of the sea, entering another world. A world that the starfish had never seen. Blowing water out of the top of his head, the dolphin screamed in delight, and laughed.

“There it is!” the dolphin exclaimed to the starfish.

“Wow!” said the starfish. “That is the most wonderful thing I have ever seen. What is it?”

The dolphin smiled.

“It’s called a rainbow.”

– – – – – –

For Estella.