Writers Tricks of the Trade Issue 2 Volume 9 | Page 22

Vulture capitalism: (first used in the
“greed is good” 1980s) a form of venture
capitalism in which aggressive methods are
used to buy a distressed business with the
intention of selling it at a profit.
Among new words from entertainment:
Bottle episode: an inexpensively pro-
duced episode of a television series that is
typically confined to one setting.
EGOT: An entry in the dictionary seems
like an appropriate award for the acronym
that stands for the rare achievement of
winning an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and
a Tony.
A MONG N EW W ORDS F ROM S CIENCE A ND M EDICINE :
Bioabsorbable: capable of being ab-
sorbed by living tissue.
Traumatology: the study, diagnosis, and
treatment of severe, acute physical injuries
sustained by individuals requiring immedi-
ate medical attention.
O THERS :
Garbage time: the final moments or
minutes of a game in which one side has an
insurmountable lead.
Go-cup: a plastic or paper cup used es-
pecially for taking a beverage off the prem-
ises of a bar, restaurant, etc.
Merriam-Webster reminds that “the
English language never sleeps and neither
does the dictionary. The work of revising a
dictionary is constant and it mirrors the
culture’s need to make sense of the world
with words."
A BOUT THE A UTHOR :
Hal Morris spent two decades at Times-Mirror Co. — Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles
Mirror. Early bylines, while a young, full-time editorial staffer at The Times, were as campus
correspondent, Los Angeles City College, and frequent contributor to The Times’ glossy Sunday
Home Magazine, writing mostly about plants and flowers. He was one of the first nine editorial
people hired when the Los Angeles Mirror started. Through the years he filled assignments as
either reporter or columnist for a variety of topics. He also hosted an FM radio show interview-
ing a different celebrity every week.
S UMMER 2019
P AGE 17
W RITERS ’ T RICKS OF THE T RADE