Re: Conlanging skills? (was Re: Myers-Briggs Types and stuff.)

Laurie Gerholz wrote:

>For the rest of you, which parts of conlanging are easy and which are
>difficult? How does that influence the conlangs you create, or how you
>document them?
I'm not good at memorizing vocabulary, and indeed I don't try to learn to speak
any of my languages (natlangs taught with an immersion method are a different
thing). I try to make conlangs readable, in such a way that the transliteration
doesn't make it impossible to figure out the real sounds. This is difficult
sometimes, so I guess transliteration is a difficult part for me.

I find it easy to combine ideas about grammar in a coherent whole, once I've
familiarized with them.  --"Originality is the art of hiding your sources"--
The same for phonology. The real problem is when I have to decide what to
leave out --cool features of a language that are impossible to combine with
others, for example.

And finally, the interface between grammar and phonology. I tend to make them
separatedly and then I find it complicated to show some grammar distinctions
without violating the phonetic system and rules I just created. (For example, I
tried to use lenition in a language, but the complete lenition rules, if followed,
would have created a new series of consonants.)

The main influence of these problems on my conlangs is probably the transliteration.
I makes me feel uneasy to use a sound with an outrageous transliteration. Then also
the phonology is a bit difficult -- I can pronounce sounds if I hear them or they're
described in detail, but not fluently, and I like to read my conlangs aloud at a
reasonably normal speed, to check if they sound right.


--Pablo Flores

begin 600 WINMAIL.DAT
M>)\^(@03`0:0" `$```````!``$``0>0!@`(````Y 0```````#H``$-@ 0`
M`@````(``@`!!) &`#P!```!````# ````,``# #````"P`/#@`````"`?\/
M`0```%(`````````@2L?I+ZC$!F=;@#=`0]4`@````!#;VYS=')U8W1E9"!,
M86YG=6%G97,@3&ES= !33510`$-/3DQ!3D= 0E)/5TY632Y"4D]73BY%1%4`
M```>``(P`0````4```!33510`````!X``S !````&@```$-/3DQ!3D= 0E)/
M5TY632Y"4D]73BY%1%4````#`!4,`0````,`_@\&````'@`!, $````=````
M)T-O;G-T<G5C=&5D($QA;F=U86=E<R!,:7-T)P`````"`0LP`0```!\```!3
M3510.D-/3DQ!3D= 0E)/5TY632Y"4D]73BY%1%4```,``#D`````"P! .@$`
M```"`?8/`0````0````````#DSD!"( '`!@```!)4$TN36EC<F]S;V9T($UA
M:6PN3F]T90`Q" $$@ $`/P```%)%.B!#;VYL86YG:6YG('-K:6QL<S\@*'=A
M<R!293H@37EE<G,M0G)I9V=S(%1Y<&5S(&%N9"!S='5F9BXI`&@5`06 `P`.
M````S@<)`!L`$ `2`"(````]`0$@@ ,`#@```,X'"0`;`! `!0`&````% $!
M"8 !`"$```!#1CDV.#4W,C(R-39$,C$Q.4,R.30T-#4U,S4T,# P, "^!@$#
MD 8`V 8``!(````+`",```````,`)@``````"P`I```````#`#8``````$ `
M.0# Y[Z>2^J]`1X`< `!````/P```%)%.B!#;VYL86YG:6YG('-K:6QL<S\@
M*'=A<R!293H@37EE<G,M0G)I9V=S(%1Y<&5S(&%N9"!S='5F9BXI```"`7$`
M`0```!8````!O>I+GK=RA9;05B(1TIPI1$535 `````>`!X,`0````4```!3
M3510`````!X`'PP!````&P```&9F;&]R97- =&%U+G=A;6%N:2YA<&,N;W)G
M```#``80^<%<``,`!Q!&!0``'@`($ $```!E````3$%54DE%1T522$],6E=2
M3U1%.D9/4E1(15)%4U1/1EE/52Q72$E#2%!!4E133T9#3TY,04Y'24Y'05)%
M14%364%.1%=(24-(05)%1$E&1DE#54Q4/TA/5T1/15-42$%424Y&3 `````"
M`0D0`0```"X%```J!0``O0@``$Q:1G6D;^>&_P`*`0\"%0*D`^0%ZP*#`% 3
M`U0"`&-H"L!S971N,@8`!L,"@S($1@(`<'!R<3$@"%4'L@* ?7\*@ C/"=D"
M@ J!#;$+8&Y@9S$P,S0*^Q+Q<VPQ. J@`V!T!9 %0$Q280AR($<$D&@&\'K1
M& P@('<9`CH8#QD4MPJ/&J@=)3X;OQD41@6Q+'1H&< 5H',%0&]FE"!Y"& L
M&T!H:1&PNB =470$("&1!:!N%S(9"X!G( K &<!E87/R>2.@;F0B!2.Q'2<:
M>RL?3QD%9 :09B(P=6P@=#\@2&\'X&1O>P>1(0!A!4 +@!<@"E!N_F,9P"$"
M(P4$("'!(O 5H/TI4&4A\ 6Q&A 'X"'!)1][)B\G.V\H0 > `C @\FT./QTE
M'2\:J$DG;2#B;AD0(&=O!' CH 5 UP> !& %$'HC<G8O0 &@^RA0"L!Y(? D
M0@N #; )@',R("C1;B<OH31@(/!OG"!L(_ $H381<W C\-YK,(4`<"0@(9%M
M)" 7,LAU86<'D2AN*5 JE/$!D'5G: 5 `_ A`"0Q[2EP;0> $>!I`B S(2$`
M^S+2(\%A)^,$D"^!,(4A`+DC<2DN-4$UU0# :RI)?2M!9 &@-D A\ N -L!U
M^R2R&T!A-?$I0B$"-= `<?YL.? $D"E0.L$PA2CB-9*G/>,Y\#I1<&\$$&D_
M$?\V`B@@.& CP0A@0'0K00,@UG,(8"10<STP5"(@!"#_1?$G]S"%15 [`0=R
M(?!%4/\U03A@!Y I$4#L1A([M"@S[R)C1 `%L0> +C <-5 H(/\TL@5 (_,V
M$06@!M +@$+AOPVP) `CH ;@1)$)P&$Z</\*P3]A.[ %H"$0/"(B`0;PURN"
M*>(R,'8E!F9.P ,0/P<P,W$U(3GC+\(]," M^"TB3P40(V$'0#GP)"#_1?$A
M`DJR(9$B("?P(X$AP>=',@AP*?!S(E,`,(5%T-T9P'-.P!G 2O)P&A R</D5
M,&=Y1;)$Y1CQ/Q$R4/]%\2(0"? U01' 4. V`@6!]TWA(@% 8F\PA39!6?%$
M@O]3``6@!O!$`"M11$$BLSNP_S@V*20CLD,\368YXC"%&1#G3Y%'T4KR97A.
MP M02T[N02113&$'0&PT<2$""X#704%1<"GQ8A(`=PGA3I?_)$)7>3U1"? D
M8#VV+\)&YO9E,+$K861C<"0S(0%9DO],9DUA"U B,&AR-I,KXD=2OTZ7)_ A
M8 N &4 ZP7,PA?LYXD2"=CK "V!L42.0(0+K5W)'@6,VP'DA8%D!)$+.<BA0
M!Y$U4&IU(6$K-+ID/3 H(,)AA2'P23QF_PB!9M-P@!G -D #`$ED3S+_.#8A
M\#0@0'1J$Q(`<VEO\[\_02&@`A!C8"BP"8 L;.;]"&!L)&!9TW#%.Z%-L&LQ
M?P9Q710C`450.. ",$6@*?\P'%:B`, _82F((9$A`7-1_UBU(K$ZX20@*F=%
M\5BR/P'_0") OTM6-5 ]X@0@5P()X/\#($5P3.9S0CNP15,YUT2!OT#@.) (
M8$B?6 -/,6Q%4/\\9VZ45[-)I$V0)]E2\35!_S0``Z 8\3)P17 I\454=P*?
M6;$V42^S*Z(A`7DG)/?_#; $\F20-,):00&0`Q!TY/\R<BFC.0`T=35002!G
M0C8@WS["?HL'0 A@,N-A,(4K0?=ZHG_2,G!R`,!%,3;@=Z'S32,A$&-K=P*,
M,H.U4T%O.;!+73"%4P!0/P$V($8O%3$'D#"%%,$`F, ```,`$! ``````P`1
M$ ````! ``<P(%TBO4GJO0% ``@P(%TBO4GJO0$>`#T``0````4```!213H@
&``````HJ
`
end