The Writers Network News - April 2012 issue http://ezezine.com
The Writers Network News, April 2012 Issue
In This Issue
One: From the editor's desk-- The Decline and Fall of the English
Language
Two: Ask the Book Doctor--About Perplexing Apostrophes
Three: This Month's Easy Editing Tip from Bobbie Christmas--Hopefully
Four: Subjects of Interest to Writers
Five: Contests, Agents, and Markets
Six: Got Muse?--Poop or Pony?
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The Writers Network News
No Rules; Just Write!
Editor: Bobbie Christmas
Contents copyright 2011, Bobbie Christmas
No portion of this newsletter can be used without permission; however,
you may forward the newsletter in its entirety to anyone who may be
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Writer's quote of the day
"Listen, there were creative writing teachers long before there were
creative writing courses, and they were called and continue to be
called editors." --Kurt Vonnegut
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One: From the editor's desk--The Decline and Fall of the English
Language
Dear Readers:
Editors and grammarians have bemoaned the decay of the English language
for decades, if not centuries, so my lament is nothing new. Our
language is dynamic, always changing, I realize, but instead of
improving, it declines in accuracy. We misuse a word so often and so
long that the misuse becomes acceptable in even the highest circles.
What a shame!
I hopelessly still expect people in authority, people with influence,
people who should know better, to get their words right and not follow
the downward trend. Alas, it is not to be so. Last night I heard a news
announcer say, "Just like that, speculation that former governor Jeb
Bush is running for president is squashed." Squashed? Someone smashed
it? Squash means to crush something with pressure or to force something
into a small space. The correct word is quashed, my friends. To quash
something is to stifle, suppress, or declare it null and void. I beg
you, don't quash correct English. News announcers and television
journalists who write the scripts for announcers should know better.
Speaking of people who should know better, a few years back, I sat
slack-jawed at an interchange on Celebrity Apprentice. In the
boardroom, Cyndi Lauper said, "I feel bad about what happened."
The famous (or, depending upon your opinion, infamous) Donald Trump
chastised Cyndi and said, "You feel badly, Cyndi. It's badly."
Cyndi, having been incorrectly dressed down, responded, "Sorry. I feel
badly."
What? Donald, you made a bad mistake for badly misleading Cyndi. She
was correct in saying she felt bad. For her to feel badly, her fingers
would have to be numb.
Do you also feel bad about the deterioration of our language? Go forth,
then, and quash all those incorrectly use words!
I was shocked and saddened to hear of the sudden passing of one of my
favorite people, Dahris Clair, a member of the Florida Writers
Association as well as past conference coordinator and member of the
Pasco Regional Writers in New Port Ritchie, Florida. For many years she
produced The Infinite Writer e-zine, too. She was a lovely, highly
accomplished woman and a gracious host when I spoke at one of the
conferences she coordinated. I know her family will miss her, as will
I.
My book Write In Style has been helping writers since 2004; however, I
have very few copies left. If you haven't yet gotten your copy, don't
pay the used-copy prices of $75 and up. Buy one of the remaining new
copies from me for only $12.95. To purchase, go to
http://zebraeditor.com/book_write_in_style.shtml, but hurry!
Yours in writing,
Bobbie Christmas (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com )
Author of Write In Style (Union Square Publishing), owner of Zebra
Communications, and director of The Writers Network
If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, please sign up to get your
own copy. Simply go to www.zebraeditor.com, click on "Free Newsletter,"
and follow the prompts. I never share your address or send out spam.
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Two: Ask the Book Doctor: About Perplexing Apostrophes
Q: Which of these is correct?
The Magicians' council decided against it.
The Magician's council decided against it.
The Magicians council decided against it.
Note: The council has ten members.
A: I cannot answer the question until I know why the word "Magicians"
or any of its variants would be capitalized. If it is not the title of
an official body, it should not be capitalized. If it is the name of an
official body, then "council" should also be capitalized. In addition,
if it is the name of an official body, the punctuation and other
treatment would depend upon the official title of the council.
If it not an official title and one magician actually owns the council
(doubtful, but I'm making a point), then it would the magician's
council. If two or more magicians own the council, it would be
magicians' council. It's more likely, however, that no magician
actually owns the council; it is a council made up of magicians, in
which case the correct use would be this: The magicians council decided
against it.
If you are writing fiction and made up the entire concept of the
council, you also have the choice to use the word "magician" as an
adjective. In such a case the correct use would be this: The magician
council decided against it.
Q: I've looked and I've looked, but I can't find the answer, so I knew
you would have the correct one. Which is correct, in keeping with The
Chicago Manual of Style, 1920's bungalow or 1920s bungalow?
A: CMOS does not cover all grammar issues, only style issues, and your
question poses a grammar issue. In the use you cite, the date covers
several years, so it is plural, but not possessive. Most plurals do not
call for apostrophes, so the correct form is 1920s bungalow.
Q: Lately my critique group has indulged in much discussion about
writing dialogue to show sounds of the characters' actual speech. Some
say it adds flavo' to the novel; some say it slows down the reading and
should be used sparingly, if at all. How do you feel about it?
A: When you show the sounds of a character's speech by dropping letters
and adding apostrophes to indicate dropped letters, it is called
dialect, and most editors distain the use of dialect. It slows down
reading and makes readers work too hard to comprehend the dialogue. It
annoys many readers, and authors should do nothing to annoy readers.
The following is the kind of dialect editors do not like:
"He ben goin' ta dat sto' ever' day since thin."
It is much better to write in the vernacular--the lingo--of a
character's speech, spelling words correctly, but using the character's
word, as in this rewrite:
"He been going to that store ever day since then."
Readers still get a feel for how the character speaks, yet no
apostrophes are necessary. Writing in vernacular rather than dialect
allows readers to get a sense of how the character sounds without
making readers struggle to understand the wording.
For an excellent example of writing in black vernacular without delving
into dialect, bad spelling, or abusive apostrophes, read The Help by
Kathryn Stockett.
Q: If I use a word like huntin' at end of a quote, I'm not sure where
to put the ending period or question mark. Here's my example: "Let's go
huntin'." Is this correct?
A: The punctuation is correct; however, I have to address the issue of
replacing letters with apostrophes. It is best done with accepted
contractions, such as "can't," "won't," "hasn't," or "isn't," etc.
Otherwise, dropping letters and using apostrophes means you are writing
in dialect. Dialect is a slippery slope that often bore readers and
makes dialogue difficult to read. Most people drop the g when they
speak naturally, anyway. If a writer insists on dropping a letter and
replacing it with an apostrophe, disregarding conventional wisdom, the
correct punctuation would be this: apostrophe, period, end quotation
marks, just as you have written in your example.
Bobbie Christmas, book editor, author of Write In Style (Union Square
Publishing), and owner of Zebra Communications, will answer your
questions, too. Send them to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com. Read more "Ask the
Book Doctor" questions and answers at www.zebraeditor.com.
Bobbie Christmas will answer your questions, too. Send them to
Bobbie@zebraeditor.com. Read more "Ask the Book Doctor" questions and
answers at www.zebraeditor.com or www.zebracommunications.com.
Would you like to read, save, or share the Ask the Book Doctor column
as a PDF file? At http://zebraeditor.com/files/ask_the_book_doctor.pdf,
the newest column is posted around the first of each month.
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Three: This Month's Easy Editing Tip from Bobbie Christmas--Hopefully
I hope you will remember how to use "hopefully" correctly, because I
see and hear it used incorrectly far too often. Hopefully means a
feeling or showing hope. Example: Grace hopefully walked to the
mailbox, eager to see if her brother had sent a letter.
The use of hopefully to mean "I hope" or "it is hoped" is incorrect.
(Incorrect: Hopefully the company will stay in business, so I won't
lose my job.) Such errors can be resolved by rephrasing. (I hope the
company will stay in business, so I won't lose my job.)
Use my trademarked Find and Refine Method to locate every use of the
word "hopefully." Check each use to be sure that it is used correctly.
Go to the Find function on your computer (Control + F on a PC or
Command + F on a Mac) and under Find What, type the word "hopefully."
When you hit Find Next, your computer will find the word, and you can
check to see if it is used correctly to mean "full of hope." If it is
incorrectly used to mean "I hope," recast the sentence or use the
Replace function to change the wording to "I hope," instead of
"hopefully." Repeat the process to the end of the manuscript.
For more opportunities for improving your manuscripts, buy one of the
few remaining copies of Write In Style at
http://zebraeditor.com/book_write_in_style.shtml.
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Four: Subjects of interest to writers
I want to share my good news with you and the subscribers to The
Writers Network News. I just finished proofreading Quick and Easy
Low-Cal Vegan Comfort Foods by Alicia C. Simpson for independent
publisher The Experiment, New York, NY. I did a cold proofing of the
text following the copyeditor's style sheet and house style guide and
inserted page numbers in the table of contents and numerous cross
references. I verified the figures for nutritional information compiled
from individual recipes for sixteen menu and proofed the type and
design specs to ensure they were consistent throughout the book. Since
I am a freelance proofreader, this was done from the comfort of my own
home!
Thanks for your wonderful newsletter. --Dotti Hydue, proofreader
Wow! Good job, Dotti. Many people don't know the difference between an
editor and a proofreader. Obviously proofreaders have an intense job,
even after the editor is finished. To learn the differences between
editing and proofreading, go to http://zebraeditor.com/pricing.shtml
and scroll down.
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Write In Style Soon to be Unavailable; Do NOT pay $146 for a copy!
Write In Style by Bobbie Christmas is the first book to teach you how
to write tighter, stronger, and more creatively, PLUS you will learn
how to speed through your editing phase. Write In Style won the Royal
Palm Literary Award for education, Best in Division (Georgia Author of
the Year Awards), and was a finalist in USABookNews Best Books 2005.
Hurry! I have fewer than fifteen copies left of Write In Style, my
award-winning book that teaches writers my Find and Refine Method ™
and gives you specific words and phrases you can delete, upgrade, or
rewrite to power up your prose.
After I sell all my copies, you will have to pay the prices on Amazon,
up to $146 per book. Prices will rise even more, when I run out of
copies. To pay the high prices, see http://tinyurl.com/4hc2bxu, but to
pay only the original cover price of $12.95 plus shipping, go to
http://zebraeditor.com/book_write_in_style.shtml. I will even autograph
the book.
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Fifteenth Annual Blue Ridge Writers Conference March 30 & 31
Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association
(The Art Center-Galleries on West Main)
420 W. Main Street
Blue Ridge, Georgia 30513
706-632-2144
www.blueridgearts.net
Registration Fee: $70
Writers will learn to hone their skills and expand their markets at the
2012 Blue Ridge Writers Conference the weekend of March 30-31, 2012 in
Blue Ridge, Georgia, at the Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association. A
reception on Friday, March 30, 2012, will be open to the public.
Acclaimed novelist Amy Greene will kick off the conference with a
keynote address about her work and her novel, Bloodroot. Other speakers
include Nancy Knight, a literary agent with the Sullivan Maxx Agency;
Jessica Handler, nationally known author of Invisible Sisters; Quinlan
Lee, an agent with the Adams Literary Agency; Poet Robert Kimsey,
author of Paths from the Shawnee Spring and Air Swimmer; Robert King,
poet and editor of FutureCycle.com; and poet and editor Stellasue Lee
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Good Sites for Scene Setting Information
Suppose the character in your novel is sitting in his car outside a
bank, a gun in his pocket, and waiting for the Wells Fargo truck to
arrive. What is in the newspaper by his side? What is playing on his
radio? If he has a book with him, what might it be? Details such as
popular song titles, hot topics, and newspaper headlines help writers
set their novels in time. If your novel takes place in early March
1953, then, that guy might see a newspaper headline that says Stalin
died (March 5). If it is August, he might read that Moscow exploded a
hydrogen bomb. Maybe he hears a news report that a new magazine has
launched called Playboy, and Marilyn Monroe is on the cover of the
first issue. Maybe he reads that Queen Mary had died. Maybe he is
glimpsing at passages in Henry Miller's latest book, Plexus.
Your characters' preference in music of the era can flesh out
characters and ground the scene in time. Your character might listen to
Frankie Laine singing “I Believe,” Hank Williams singing “Your Cheatin'
Heart,” or Bill Haley & His Comets performing “Crazy Man Crazy.”
Where do you find vital information to ground your scenes in time and
expand your characters' personalities? Check out www.popularsong.org,
which lists song titles and performers by year, or see
www.infoplease.com/yearbyyear.html, which lists each year's highlights
in science, politics, entertainment, and more.
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Purge Your Prose of Problems
A Book Doctor's Desk Reference, Fifth Edition
Save thousands of dollars and edit your own book! Order my proprietary
book-doctor desk reference book online at http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr.
In alphabetical order and in easy-to-understand language, Purge Your
Prose of Problems covers all you need to know to revise and edit
fiction and nonfiction books, including grammar, punctuation, word
choices, creative writing, plot, pace, characterization, point of view,
dialogue, Chicago style, format, and much more. The spiral binder lets
the book lie flat in front of your computer, for easy use. Available
printed or as a PDF e-book that allows you to keep all this vital
information on your computer for ready reference.
To save thousands of dollars by editing your own book, order Purge Your
Prose of Problems today at http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr .
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From The Chicago Manual of Style Website Q & A This Month
Q. In response to a question about the use of serial commas, you
responded in favor of the extraneous comma with the example "With
gratitude to my parents, Mother Teresa and the pope"—which you claimed
created confusion. But doesn't the same confusion arise in some cases
if the serial comma is added: "With gratitude to my mom, Mother Teresa,
and the pope"? Why wouldn't you recommend rewriting the sentence in
either case to avoid the ambiguity: "With gratitude to Mother Teresa,
the pope and my parents"?
A. Excellent point! Although CMOS recommends the serial comma as
default punctuation, writers and editors still have to think before
deploying it. (Of course, we would rewrite it "With gratitude to Mother
Teresa, the pope, and my parents.")
Q. Does the sentence "The historian has several sources at their
disposal" make a proper use of the word their? Can it not be argued
that the use of their in this sentence is acceptable to maintain gender
neutrality?
A. Although many language writers and linguists accept the use of their
as a gender-neutral singular, conservative editors will reword,
especially when it's so easy: Historians have several sources at their
disposal. (Or better: Several sources are available to historians.)
The Chicago Manual of Style is the reference that book editors use. For
more CMOS Q & A, see http://tinyurl.com/2xscwn.
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When a Thesaurus Comes in Handy
According to SPELL Vice President Charlie Elster in his article "Some
Fascinating Facts About Our Language in the SPELL/Binder newsletter,
the simple word "set" has more meanings than any other word in the
language. Random House Dictionary has 119 definitions for the word, and
the Oxford English Dictionary devotes twenty-five three-column pages to
the word. Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words claims that "set"
has 126 meanings as a verb, fifty-eight as a noun, and ten as a
participial adjective.
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Free Tools for Writers from Bobbie Christmas and Zebra Communications
Order PDF reports on writing-related subjects, including correct
manuscript format, how to form and run a critique circle, how to
identify weak writing and repair it, self-publishing versus traditional
publishing, and much more. Go to
http://zebraeditor.com/free_reports.shtml. Newest report: Genre: A
Slippery Subject Essential to Fiction: Learn about genre fiction
categories and the benefits of complying with genre specifications.
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Terminology Writers Should Know
Unsolicited Manuscript
Many writers have asked me how to send their manuscripts to publishers
that do not accept unsolicited manuscripts. Let me explain. An
unsolicited manuscript is a book, article, story, or poem that a writer
submits to a publisher before the publisher requests it. If a publisher
does not accept unsolicited manuscripts, the writer must then find a
way to get the publisher to request it. One way is to write a book
proposal, for a nonfiction book, and send it, along with a cover letter
that asks if the publisher would like to see more. You may also send a
query letter that gives a brief synopsis of a novel, perhaps with a
sample chapter, and asks if the publisher would like to see the whole
manuscript. If you write books, the ultimate way to approach a
publisher is to find an agent first. Landing an agent is no easy task,
but if you are fortunate enough to find one who will represent your
manuscript, the agent will contact publishers and submit the manuscript
to the publishers that request it.
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Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing
answers many of the questions you wish you could ask an editing expert.
Whether you write books, short stories, articles, reports, or anything
else, learn more about how to write, edit, and sell your work.
Paperback: $14.95 plus $4.99 S & H (total: $19.94 US) E-book: $8.95, no
S & H, with almost instant delivery. You'll save almost $10 by buying
the e-book! To order either, go to http://tinyurl.com/lexp7n.
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On March 8, the National Book Critics Circle Awards for the publishing
year 2011 went to Binocular Vision by Edith Pearlman (fiction),
Liberty's Exiles by Maya Jasanoff (nonfiction), George F. Kennan: An
American Life by John Lewis Gaddis (biography), The Memory Palace by
Mira Bartok (autobiography), Otherwise Known as the Human Condition by
Geoff Dyer (criticism), and Space, in Chains by Laura Kasischke
(poetry).
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Keep up with Bobbie's activities on Twitter:
http:twitter.com/BookDoctor4u
Become Bobbie's friend on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/bobbie.christmas
New! Zebra Communications on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Zebra-Communications/133481530079088
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Five: Contests, Agents, and Markets
Wisdom of Woodstock Anthology
Call for Personal Experience Essays
Were you living at the time the world came together in peace, love, and
harmony for the infamous Woodstock concert? If so, you have spent
enough years on earth to have learned some valuable lessons and
experienced unique, pleasant, or even unpleasant events that resulted
in wisdom. It is time to share that wisdom in the Wisdom of Woodstock
anthology. We are looking for original personal experience essays that
reveal an incident that resulted in wisdom, revelation, or comfort. For
details, see http://zebraeditor.com/writing_competition.shtml.
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Chicken Soup for the Soul
We've all seen the books, and more are on their way. Chicken Soup is
looking for stories to fill the following books:
Independent Woman
Whether you are single or married, widowed, or divorced, you are in
charge of your life and the lives of many other people. Tell us your
story about running your independent life, achieving independence, and
being a complete person. We are referring to all kinds of independence,
not just financial or emotional. Share your story of empowerment and
independence to help women of all ages feel stronger, more capable, and
more confident. The deadline date for story and poem submissions is
July 31, 2012
New Friends
Throughout our lives we meet new people and social circles change.
Sometimes we have to say goodbye to friends and make new connections.
We are looking for stories about men and women making new friends.
Whether it was a move, a divorce, or a friendship that failed, share
your stories about finding new friends. What led you to form new
relationships? How did you go about it? This book will encourage and
support other adults who are looking to expand their circle of friends.
Funny stories are great too. We are not looking for teen or preteen
stories for this book, just stories from people over 18. The deadline
date for story and poem submissions is March 31, 2012.
Parenthood
They always say it's the best job and the worst job. But basically it's
the best! We are looking for your stories about parenting - the hard
work, the joy, the unconditional love, the funny times and the
occasional sad ones too. Whether you're a new parent of one or an
"experienced" parent of several, by birth, by marriage, by adoption, or
by fostering, tell us your stories about parenthood. Funny stories,
stories that will make us tear up, stories with nuggets of great advice
- all your anecdotes are welcome. The deadline date for story and poem
submissions is June 30, 2012.
The Power of Positive
Everyone knows about the power of positive thinking. After the success
of our book, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Think Positive, we are ready to
make another book full of stories about how you changed your life,
solved a problem, or overcame a challenge through a positive attitude,
counting your blessings, or an epiphany of some kind. Tell us your
success story about using the power of positive! The deadline date for
story and poem submissions is April 30, 2012
To read the guidelines for stories and submit your stories, go to
http://www.chickensoup.com/form.asp?cid=submit_story.
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Dan Poynter's second annual Global Ebook Awards deadline is being
extended to April 30, 2012
According to Poynter, founder of the awards, "We discovered that
judging e-books is different from evaluating paper books. With paper
books, the books are usually shipped to the judges all at the same time
in one large carton. With e-books, judges download them one at a time.
When they finish reading and evaluating one, they select another e-book
to judge." Poynter said, "What is unique about these awards is that
they are for the e-book edition of current titles, and there are more
than one hundred categories. Some book award programs have a single
category for all e-books."
Judges are experts in their favorite category of book. They are
bloggers, book reviewers, authors, publishers, publicists, and other
book people. They love to read, talk about, and write about just one
genre or category. Once a book is entered into nomination, they read
the book and often tell others about their new read.
The revised filing deadline is Monday, April 30 at midnight, Pacific
Time.
The Global Ebook Awards are the brainchild of Dan Poynter, who has been
a publisher since 1969. He is the author of 127 books, many of them on
book writing and publishing. Poynter both publishes and reads ebooks.
Questions, contact: Barbara Gaughen ("gone"), Barbara@Rain.org
+1-805-968-8567 For more information and to enter, go to
http://globalebookawards.com/?a_aid=4ec704ec01a9d&a_bid=2fa59a1e
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Collier's Magazine looks for articles, essays, short stories, and
novels
Collier's has relaunched as a bi-monthly print and online magazine that
accepts articles, essays, short stories, and more, with some articles
published online ahead of print.
Colliers accepts
1) Informative articles and reports
2) Original critical essays
3) Fiction (short stories or novels in serialized form)
4) Poetry
5) Cartoons or comic strips
6) Art
7) Letters to the editor
9) Photo Essays
See http://colliersmagazine.com/submission for full submission
guidelines
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Six: Got Muse?--Poop or Pony?
Alberta Flanders once said, "Sometimes only a change of viewpoint is
needed to convert a tiresome duty into an interesting opportunity."
What does that saying mean to you?
I'm reminded of the story about two boys who were told to clean out a
barn full of manure. One of the boys refused to do the work and stormed
off to brood. The other child enthusiastically grabbed a shovel and
began shoveling, full of excitement. When asked why he was so eager to
do the work, the child responded, "Because with all this pony poop,
there must be a pony in here somewhere."
For this exercise, create two characters and present them with the same
chore, challenge, or tiresome duty. Show how their different viewpoints
convert the same situation into two separate outcomes.
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Do YOU have news for The Writers Network News? Please send it in the
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Send a copy of this newsletter to all your writing friends. Tell them
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research all information and study every stipulation before you accept
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