Alright, All Right, Alrite...

It feels like forever since I did a regular blog post, so it's time to post something with some sort of value, eh?

Before jumping into the post, Beneath the Waves is now available for purchase at Amazon, and includes my short story A Cold and Carnal Hunger.

When I was editing the WIP I currently have on submission to agents, I found I had some confusion about a lot of "A" words. For example alright vs. all right. I ended up jotting down the words that were giving me issues, so that I could do a pass through during editing specifically to ensure I was using the right words.

It seems we've smooshed some words together that shouldn't actually be one word, and in other cases, whether it's one word or two depends upon the usage, so I figured I'd compile what I learned into a series of posts, partially for me to reference in the future.

I'm starting with alright vs. all right. In case that wasn't clear from the title. (I was channeling Matthew McConaughey, what can I say? And in order to fully channel him, I threw in a truly fake version of the word: alrite.)

As it turns out, McConaughey must be saying, "All right, all right, all right." While in usage, all right is often used to mean all of something are correct, and alright has been used to mean it's okay, it turns out alright is NOT a word at all. Not in American English. Apparently, it's more questionable on whether it is accepted in British English, though it's considered to not be a word in both.

So whether you're saying something is okay or something is correct, all right is the way to go in formal writing. Of course, you can choose to do it the wrong way, and most people probably won't blink.

But...the more you know, right?

Okay, link time. Bear in mind I'm not endorsing any of these, merely passing them along. Always do your own due diligence before submitting.

Accepting Submissions:

Bennington Review is seeking fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and more. Pays $20 to $200. Deadline May 15.

Gehenna and Hinnom is seeking dark short fiction that falls under weird fiction and cosmic horror. Up to 5000 words. Pays $30 to $55. Deadline May 15.

Spider is seeking children's stories with the theme Inventions for ages 6-9. Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, crafts, etc. 300 to 1000 words. Pays up to $.25/word. Deadline May 15.

Wizards in Space is seeking speculative fiction with serious themes close to the heart. Up to 5000 words. Pays $30. Deadline May 26.

The Weekly Humorist is seeking comedy writers to do pieces up to 1500 words. Pays $20.

Don't forget to email me your publication news and announcements for the IWSG newsletter! You can use the Contact Me form here on the main page.

My horror short story collection, Blue Sludge Blues & Other Abominations is available in print and e-book. Check it out on the Publications tab!

Have you been using "all right" all right? If not, will you still use alright? Any of these links of interest? Anything to share? Have you been submitting or querying?

May you find your Muse.