Last weekend, while on the way to our daughter’s gymnastics meet, my husband, Jake, was reading my latest book, Until Then. Though my contemporary romance books aren’t really his cup of tea, he is very well read and I trust his opinion and input when it comes to my stories. So, I’m driving along and he makes a comment that there is a lot of grinning going on in the first part of the book. There was some discussion about a line where I said she gave a weak grin, which launched into what exactly a grin looks like.
My mom and I both showed him our best grins. I would show you a picture of us grinning, but these guys do it better. So this is what we both picture when we think of a grin:
Jake shook his head and said, “That is not a grin, that’s a smile!” and proceeded to look up the definition online.
The official Merriam-Webster definition of GRIN:
to draw back the lips so as to show the teeth especially in amusement or laughter; broadly. To smile widely.
This is how my husband thinks all the characters in my book are looking at each other:
The official Merriam-Webster definition of SMILE:
to make the corners of your mouth turn up in an expression that shows happiness, amusement, pleasure, affection, etc.
What? How have I gone my entire life thinking it was the other way around? At what point did I start to think closed mouth = grin? I’m sure I was taught the correct definition in school. I guess you learn something new every day, right?
So the point of all this was to see just how many people agree with me and how many agree with Jake. How many have come to believe that those handsome guys at the top of this post are grinning at us? And how many picture the cheshire cat when they think of a grin?
THE RESULTS:
Four people shared their selfies with me. It was actually a 50/50 split. So I’m not the only crazy one that thinks a grin is a little closed mouth smile. Even my mom-in-law agrees with me, but my sister-in-law agrees with Jake. 😉
The winner of a signed paperback
of any one of my novels,
wearing a very pretty “grin” is:
KELLEY
Congratulations!
Thanks to everyone who participated. 🙂