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This episodeās vocabulary
Persistent (adj.) ā continuing to do something in a determined way.
A burden (noun) ā a serious or difficult responsibility that you have to deal with.
Stockholm syndrome (noun) ā a psychological condition in which a hostage sympathizes with their captor.
To type up (phrasal verb) ā If you type up a text that has been written by hand, you produce a typed copy of it.
Blocky handwriting (noun) ā a style of handwriting, in which the letters are written individually, with no joining.
Capital letters (noun) āCapital (or āupper caseā) letters are, among all, used to mark the beginning of a sentence. (opposite ā lower case letters)
A loop (noun) āa round shape or curve made by a line curling back towards itself.
Sentimental (adj) ā relating to emotions rather than reason.
Untidy/messy handwriting (adj.) āhandwriting that is very difficult to read or understand.
Indecipherable (adj.) ā incapable of being deciphered, read, or understood.
To judge a book by itās cover (idiom) ā this is said to show that you cannot know what something or someone is like by looking only at that person or thingās appearance.
We have also added these words to a āQuizletā set for you to study and revise in your free time: bit.ly/quizlets03e09
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Questions and Answers
Maria: Rory, how did you learn to write?
Rory: Oh, I learned to write at school like everybody else did with very persistent and somewhat authoritarian teachers. But I learned to write well through a love of reading, and I wanted to be clear. So thatās how I developed my handwriting. The motivation kind of came from within after a while.
Maria: Do you usually writes by hand?
Rory: And I used to enjoy it a lot. But now itās more of a burden. It takes a lot of effort to write something by hand. And of course, Iām doing everything by computer now. Maybe Iāll get back into it once I finish my other things that Iām working on.
Maria: Why did you hand write to your first three books?
Rory: Because I hated typing.
Maria: Oh, wow.
Rory: I used to hate typing and I used to hate computers. And now Iāve kind of got Stockholm syndrome, so I feel like I need to use them.
Maria: So when you hand wrote three books that, likeā¦ wowā¦ it took you a whileā¦
Rory: I think it took aboutā¦ Well, I mean, the first book that I ever wrote took about 10 years to write. So yeah, that did take a while.
Maria: And after you hand wrote your three books, you typed everything up?
Rory: Well, I had them typed up. I didnāt type them up myself. Thatās way too much. I would like to point out, though, that I have typed up everything else that Iāve written since then. Like all of the articles Iāve written, and all of the other bits and pieces that Iāve done for other books that Iāve worked on have been typed up. Itās just these ones.
Maria: So so far you have what, fifteen books?
Rory: No, I have three. And then I have another one coming out very soon, actually. The manuscript has been handed to the editor, so hopefully it will be approvedā¦ I think in the next two weeks. And then itāll be out.
Maria: Yeah! Yes dear listeners, Rory is an author! He writes books. He writes books and articles. Wohoo! Rory, but do you actually like writing by hand? Rory: Like I say, I still get a little bit of pleasure out of it, but not so much as I used to really.
Maria: Do you have good handwriting?
Rory: I used to. Itās probably more, I suppose, āblockyā now, given that I write in block capital letters. I used to write with like lots of loops and I have tails on my Yās and things like this. I used to have really nice handwriting. People said it looked a bit girly. I donāt know what that means. But recently everything that I write is just in block capital letters. You can see it on my diary, actually, Iām just looking at it now. So, yes, itāsā¦ It was nice. Itās less so now. And hopefully it will be when I get back to writing normally in the future.
Maria: Do you like receiving handwritten letters?
Rory: I donāt mind really. I suppose regardless of if itās handwritten or electronic, itās nice to know that someone is thinking about you. Unless itās my mom and dad, then I do quite like getting handwritten letters from them, although thatās hardly ever because we live so far away from each other. I keep all the emails and letters that I get from my family as well for the sentimental value that they have. So as you can imagine, I built up, quite a collection over the years. And I suppose that since e-mails are a bit more portable and lasting, itās probably better to get electronic ones, but like I say, the occasional handwritten email (???) or letter, handwritten email (???), handwritten letter is quite nice.
Maria: Yeahā¦ you can hand write your emails š
Rory: You can hand write your e-mails if youāre completely insane!
Maria: Yeah! Itās a new thing!
Rory: You could actuallyā¦ One of myā¦ I have a student that does this. She writes her essays and then sends me the pictures, which is actually, well, efficient. But itāsā¦ It does make things a bit more complicated for me.
Maria: How important is handwriting in your country?
Rory: I suppose not veryā¦ in the digital age that we currently live in. I think most people have quite untidy or quite messy handwriting. And I can definitely think of a lot of people where Iām from, where itās almost indecipherable. However, on the flip side, my cousin does a lot of calligraphy and her handwriting is beautiful. But I think thatās a very rare thing from where Iām from. Everybody just types things up.
Maria: What impression does a personās handwriting have on other people?
Rory: Oh, I think it really does make a difference. I think people say that it doesnāt make a difference, but I think people actually care more than they say they do. For example, for me, it really makes a difference. If Iām marking essays and someone whoās really untidy handwriting, then I do write a comment and tell them theyāve made a mess of it, and it annoyed me, because then I had to work harder to decode it. And Iām a really busy person, and a lot of people are busy. And I think thatās true for most people that they feel that way.
Maria: Rory, do you think that a person is judged by their handwriting.
Rory: Well, if theyāre writing to me, then yes, they are definitely judged.
Maria: But kind ofā¦ For example, at work or some other places.
Rory: Definitely!
Maria: Is it like clothes, you know, like, you have your first impression of a person, like, looking at their clothes? The same with the handwriting?
Rory: Yeah! I wondered briefly there, if it might be more important than clothes, but itās probably actually on the same level. But definitely you have toā¦ Itās all part of your personal presentation, isnāt it? You have to make an effort to represent yourself well. I know you shouldnāt judge a book by its cover, but whoever said that obviously hasnāt been to a bookshop. Some of the best books have the best covers.
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Please read through these words one more time and make sure you can explain to yourself in English what they mean: persistent, a burden, Stockholm syndrome, to type up, blocky handwriting, loop, sentimental, untidy/messy handwriting, indecipherable, to judge a book by itās cover
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