Divas, whom and more

WHO'S NEXT: Or are you still pining for Fasano’s eventual replacement, whomever that might be?

Yes, it's whoever, not whomever.

MEANING? I've watched the movie McLintock many times, and Mrs. McLintock tells this man to shut his unprepossessing face (or something similar). John Wayne tells him that he once looked it up and he was better off not knowing; from context, I assumed it meant ugly or unattractive.

Unprepossessing means creating an unfavorable or neutral first impression or not overtly impressive; unremarkable; nondescript. That's pretty close.

THE DIVA: When I was growing up, a diva meant an operatic singer of note, such as Maria Callas or Beverly Sills. Later, the word was extended to Aretha Franklin and other top non-operatic singers. Then it was stretched to all women. Finally, NFL folk started talking about so-called diva receivas like Terrell Owens.

So I looked up diva.

1. An operatic prima donna.

2. A very successful singer of nonoperatic music: a jazz diva.

Why look it up? The headline Diva Diana Supremely Divine. It obviously involves Diana Ross, formerly of The Supremes.

Yes, I'd call her a diva.

Contact: Reach me at tgilli52@gmail.com or nc3022@yahoo.com.

More EDITOR@WORK blog entries

• You really DO need an editor

• Reminders for would-be novelists

• What I do when I'm editing

• What I charge (it's a deal) and what I edit

• Slogging through the Internet

• J-school: More eyes on your stories

• J-school: Go out and learn

• Rookie mistakes for magazine writers

Entries from The Dog Blog

• Katie cried

• Growl and pull

• 13-plus years with my dog Lady

• ... said the spider to ...

• The Dog Diary (2014)

• YIP! YIP! The stereo-sound huskies

• What Lady and Michael Jackson had in common

Blog entries from The Auto Racing Journal

• Angel in Black: Remembering Dale Earnhardt Sr.

(a book of great stories about the Intimidator)

• Then Junior Said to Jeff...

(the book of great NASCAR stories)

• My best day as a sports writer

• Jeff Gordon's milk toast to Dale Earnhardt

• Wayne Auton: A life in racing

More blog entries by Tom Gillispie

• Resume for a writer and editor

• An editor's views on powerful writing

• Advice for be and would-be novelists

• Links to TG's stories online

• Favorite quotes

• What I do when I'm editing

Anecdotes by Tom Gillispie

• Wipeout at Death Valley

• Days with rainbows

• A desperate writer working in the dark

• Yer outta there!