Forum / Ms. form: crotting

• 
  Ann Bogle

  Apr 17, 07:21pm

  In preparing a double-spaced, 11 or 12 pt. short story ms., is it correct not to indent the initial paragraph of each story? There is crotting throughout many of the stories. I know the traditional form is not to indent the beginning of a new crot and to use centered ellipses only where there is a page break.

• 
  Susan Gibb

  Apr 18, 01:40pm

  I feel like such a dope--What is a "crot?"

• 
  James Lloyd Davis

  Apr 18, 03:21pm

  Me too. Never heard the term.

• 
  Ann Bogle

  Apr 18, 04:13pm

  It may be a Lish term. (Someone check me.) A crot is the group of paragraphs separated by an extra white space/hard return.

• 
  Marcus Speh

  Apr 18, 08:57pm

  "Lish term" sounds like "Lie group" (that's algebra, and nobody outside mathematics knows what it is either...)

  i found it on <a href="http://grammar.about.com/od/c/g/crot.htm">about.com</a> -

  «A verbal bit or fragment used as an autonomous unit to create an effect of abruptness and rapid transition.»

• 
  Susan Gibb

  Apr 18, 09:01pm

  Hmm. Now that I know what it is, I still don't know what to do with it!

• 
  Susan Gibb

  Apr 18, 09:01pm

  Hmm. Now that I know what it is, I still don't know what to do with it!

• 
  Ann Bogle

  Apr 19, 09:20pm

  I have decided to indent initial paragraphs because I like it that way, to include a double line space (double hard return) without ellipses to indicate a new crot, to indent initial paragraphs of crots, and to use centered ellipses when the end or beginning of a crot falls at the page break. Thanks for considering it.

• 
  Susan Gibb

  Apr 19, 09:47pm

  Tried this out, Ann, and it looks nice. Thank you for posting!

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