...thought you might be interested in this thread. Warning: strong language.
I have a friend in Germany, J, who is helping me parse some German swear words uttered by a very crotchety grandmother who has seen too much, including her granddaughter-in-law bringing home a strange man in the middle of the night. The question is, in the heat of the moment, what would said crotchety old lady call this strange man as she's kicking him out of her apartment? Read on.
Me: "Hurensohn—a good word to use in a fight? (As in: "get out of my house, you son of a bitch" )"
J: "Yes, "Hurensohn" is right in General ;) - but I am not sure if they would have said this around 1961 - Wikipedia says it is known as a curse word since 1710 - but youth culture just started using it in the 1990s. So it feels to me too modern for your book - I asked my Grandma - she said she'd have used "Hornochse" (ox with horns - the option that convinces me the most ;)) or "Trottel" (stupid person - but this does not feel the same strongness then Hurensohn has ;)) - a word I thought might also work - eventhough my Grandma says she does not know it as curse word ;) - is "Ratte" (rat)"
J, after further consultation: "hey I asked a befriended artist who worked a lot around DDR-history about curse words for your 'son of a bitch' - an she said that this word was started being used in west-Germany within the guest worker community - so it might not fit in your context and would be better to use a more general word like "Idiot" (idiot) - "Arschloch" (asshole) or "Blödmann" (stupid guy=)"
Me: "SO I see in your email "Hornochse" is what your grandma recommends. I'm torn between that and "Arseloch." If it's the great-grandmother kicking a strange man out of the house (the boyfriend of the mom), what other strong words would come to mind (or which of these would you prefer)?"
J: I might use Hornochse. Arschloch might be a younger person using (that's my gut feeling right now) - but I think about it tomorrow again and let you know if I have any other idea in this context ;) but maybe good to know: is this situation in the East or the West of Berlin?
So, lovely Vesperites...I'll let you argue it out amongst yourself which cuss you prefer. But you'll have to pre-order Berliners to find out which one we choose! ...and...this, too, is the life of a writer. 😂
This was honestly one of my favorite pieces of the year to work on. If you'd like to get your hands on this special illustrated edition of Nicholas Kotar's novella Son of the Deathless, you can get it through our Kickstarter here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1402845448/jolabokaflod-christmas-book-flood-in-a-box
We're so grateful that we were fully funded in about 4 hours, so there are new perks opening up for everyone! We're almost at our 3rd stretch goal, which is very exciting. Go on over and choose your level!
My husband Ben is creating a series of short book trailers for BERLINERS, and I swear, each one is better than the last! Here's the first! Feel free to share on your social media!
This isn't the official trailer, but I wanted to talk about how the idea for Berliners came to me. You can pre-order at https://bookshop.org/books/berliners-9780593428375/9780593428368 and, you know, that other place that starts with an "A".
Hi all,
Since I haven't been as active on here as in the past, I'm going to officially disband this Locals community. If you'd like to stay tuned with my work, the best way to do that is via my email newsletter. Just go to https://vesperillustration.com and at the bottom of every single page there is a newsletter signup. I don't send a ton of mail, just important updates like appearances and new projects. Let's see if I come back in the future, but for now, if you've been a supporter, feel free to end your support and stay in touch via the newsletter or Instagram (@vesperillustration). Thanks to all of you—nothing's over, just paused!
Vesperisms Community, dears:
I'm so excited to announce today that I am doing a collaboration with fantasy author Nicholas Kotar (the Raven Son series, and the fabulous fairy tale/fantasy podcasts In a Certain Kingdom and Fantasy for Our Time).
The dead will rise. The living will fall. The Deathless will reign...
This collaboration is a very special edition of Kotar's novella, Son of the Deathless, available in hardcover with illustrations by none other than Yours Truly—just in time for the Holidays! Here's an illustration in progress to whet your appetite.
With book design by Graphic and Surface Designer for film and television, Heather Pollington (Harry Potter, Malificent, Marvel, and more.), this is going to be a beautiful, gift-worthy edition that will be perfect for yourself or for your holiday giving. Son of the Deathless is one of those cozy winter reads that you want to pair with a warm beverage, a blanket and a crackling fire.
So how does one obtain this ...
