Hello there!

If you’re new, welcome. If you’ve been here before, yay. It’s Pride Month (hi gay!). To the marvellous, multiplicitous queer people in my life, I’m extra glad that you’re here.

“You have some queer friends, Dorothy,” she said.

“The queerness doesn't matter, so long as they're friends,” was the answer.

— L. Frank Baum

Meanwhile in editing

When creating writing style guides, I’m frequently asked for a section on commonly confused words. These are usually a combo of hyperspecific organisational jargon and standard-issue head-scratchers like complement vs compliment. I propose a new addition: uncommonly confused words. These are words nobody has ever asked me about, but which I pair up regardless.

Dangle vs Dandle

To dangle is to hold, carry or sway something loosely. To dandle is to tremble or move lightly up and down. It’s a friendly gesture to dandle a baby on your knee. To dangle the baby is seldom recommended.

Vacillate vs Oscillate vs Osculate

To vacillate is to waver, mostly in opinion. To oscillate is to do the same, but generally physically — and with an implied rhythm. To osculate is to kiss, no rhythm required. 😘

Complacent vs Complaisant

Complacent meant complaisant until compaisant came along, and now — depending on your dictionary — complacent means complaisant again but still means complacent, too. Wow! Annoying! I ignore all that and stick to the following:

A complacent person is self-satisfied, pleased with themselves and their achievements. A complaisant person is compliant, people-pleasing and agreeable.

Meanwhile in reading

In 1975, James Baldwin and Maya Angelou earned an instant spot on everyone’s dream dinner party guest list when they appeared together on Assignment America, during which Baldwin discussed the word (or, rather, the experience of being) homosexual:

All I know about human life is if I love you, I love you. And if I love you and duck it, I die.

and

Homosexual is not a noun. It might be a verb (transitive). It is certainly an adjective. But it is not a noun. To ask the question means you don’t know anything about human experience, where it can take you, what it can do.

Which leads us beautifully into June’s book of the month:

Poetry

I recently came across Jos Charles, a trans poet, medievalist and Pulitzer-finalist. Her 2018 poetry collection, feeld, is written in a luscious mix of Middle English and modern slang, plus she just seems like a great person. Highly recommended reading (and reciting).

on the sportes feeld   /     speech is wut

          grls do  /  but speech

          doesnt a grl make

          reel  /  its a secrete

— Jos Charles

Meanwhile online

Swiss author Alain de Botton is so attractive that God quietly removed his hair to make it easier on the rest of us. I’m a big fan of his solo work and generally find The School of Life (his media company) pretty great, too.

However, recently, I’ve been quietly noticing a quiet addition slipping quietly into every quiet one of their quiet posts.

In the last six weeks, quiet or quietly appears in well over half the posts on the School of Life’s Instagram page — and I think we all know the culprit. But just in case there’s a person writing these, I serenely, peacefully, discreetly, unobtrusively, softly and gently hope they discover a thesaurus soon. Just quietly.

Meanwhile in art

This month’s adverbial coda is murkily, illustrated by the wonderful designer, illustrator and fellow chicken-fancier, EC Gildersleeve-Morris of EC Inks.

It was what should have been a bright summer day, but the smoke from the burning world filled the sky, through which the sun shone murkily, a dull and lifeless orb, blood-red and ominous. — Jack London

That’s all for June 🏳️‍🌈

Thanks for reading Meanwhile in June! If you were sent this and fancy subscribing or reading past editions, you can do so below — feel free to share it far and wide or keep it squirrelled away just for you. I’ll see you in July. 🫶