Winsome Words.

Caramia · Jul 17, 2009

I subscribe to a bunch of 'word of the day' emails and sites. I always have the thesaurus site tab up when I'm writing. I even have a file with words, terms and such I wanna fit in my current story. Yet, I have one friend who stumps me every single conversation on IM and I have to go digging (I realize he gets a twisted enjoyment from this). There are so many wonderful words in the world.

My most recent favorite word is panoply. Say it hehe, it's a fun word!

While I love new words (new to me), I understand the reluctance in using somewhat unique words in writing. If a reader has to pause to look it up, it's considered bad. This is limiting though. If we refrain from infusing our tales with fresh (Sometimes very old but new to most folks) terms, isn't that also assuming they are lacking in worldly words themselves? Is it our job to give spotlight to words when it fits, or is it our job to tell the tale with only common and easy to understand words, even if this further buries unused words to the history pages?

I think I am striving for a balance. The scale is equal on both sides for me, I can't give more weight to either idea. The majority of my writing is perfectly easy to understand and usually I insert the rare words in context that it is self explanatory without having to pull away to find a dictionary, but it may provoke curiosity, which can lead to looking it up later, hopefully.

The purpose of this thread is to open up discussion, get opinions and of course learn of your most recent favorite words

Mr Flibble · Jul 17, 2009

I love using slightly unusual words too - but I don't go out of my way to look up new ones, because I've got a pretty good vocab, and if I've not heard of it, how many of my readers will? I also try and make it so what the more unusual words mean is clear in context

I'm reading a book now where it's pretty clear the writer is in love with his own vocab. I can't remember the last time I had to use the dictionary so often reading a book

Especially with phrases like 'Aphotic fagus forest'. I looked it up and I'm still not 100% what the heck it is. And as we were there for all of about about three paragraphs, did I need to know, or could I have been shown, rather than told in a way that is both confusing and annoying?

Caramia · Jul 17, 2009

IdiotsRUs said:
Especially with phrases like 'Aphotic fagus forest'. I looked it up and I'm still not 100% what the heck it is.

I *think* (Could be wrong!) this would translate to Dark Tree Forest. Fagus is a species of tree it seems. It also has a meaning of 'beeches'. But in the forest context, I'd lean to the tree.

I do like the word Aphotic!

Mr Flibble · Jul 17, 2009

That's all I could think of too.

But could he not have just shown me it was a dark forest rather than show off his vocab? It's very distracting / annoying / confusing

Now it's a good word - and if he'd made it clear in context that would be ok. But just to throw it in?

Caramia · Jul 17, 2009

Yep. Exactly what I struggle with. While I adore the use of a wider range of words, simplicity is not a bad thing.

If you notice my signature quotes, those are there as reminders for me to keep myself in check.

Do you think you could paraphrase his use of the words and then give a counter example of what would have been better in your eyes?

Mr Flibble · Jul 17, 2009

Well on one page Our Hero finds himself lying in 'a betula forest' ( that's birch to you and me). Then he 'stumbled through the aphotic fagus forest'

Now the use of the genus I get - it is ( extremely briefly) said to be important in some sect. I think. How ever if he'd written that teh Hero had found himself on the floor of the betula forest and stared up at the silver bark of the birches, I would have gone 'Aha! Betula, birch, got it'. Clear in context. Same with the fagus if Hero had noted the smooth bark of the beeches in the darkness.

And if you're using unusual words in your world-building ( not a problem, like I say, if it's clear in context), adding in extras cos they are fancy just seems OTT. Especially if the worldbuilding words ( betula and fagus are important to a sect, not the plot) aren't what you'd call words that everyone will know. And (iirc) these genus words don't appear again. The narrative just calls it 'forest' afterwards. So....why did he drop in these fancy words, not make them clear in context and then just leave them?

Once or twice in a book wouldn't be a problem. Twice in a page? Yeah, gets annoying.

Caramia · Jul 17, 2009

I'd have to agree with you on this one. It does seem a little self satisfying on the writer's part and not relevant to the story or beneficial to the reader.

Matera the Mad · Jul 17, 2009

Writers that drive me to a dictionary too often don't get much return custom. Stephen Donaldson aggravated me that way. If I haven't already encountered a word in at least one of several thousand books -- ugh. Not that a lot of younger readers don't need to have a few more words drilled into their heads, but the words should be in reasonably common usage.

I would bet that nine out of ten readers today wouldn't even know what a beech tree looks like, and would have giggle-fits over fagus. Besides, "aphotic" is a silly sounding word :tongue

I like digging up old words and giving them a little air. They don't have to be snobbish textbook Latin, just useful and becoming neglected.

Barrett · Jul 17, 2009

As a new writer, the best advice I ever got on word choice was this;

A compelling story washes the text invisible.

In other words, if you have a good read in your hands, after a moment or two, you are taking in the sentences at a speed of conversational comfort. A word you aren't familiar with will slam on the brakes and yank you out of the story emotionally, at least briefly.

I like Bradbury's technique--better to arrange common terms into powerful sentences than adorn passable sentences with chunks of linguistic rarity.

Winsome Words.

Caramia

Alliteration Afflicted

Mr Flibble

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Caramia

Alliteration Afflicted

Mr Flibble

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Caramia

Alliteration Afflicted

Mr Flibble

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Caramia

Alliteration Afflicted

Matera the Mad

Bartender, gimme a Linux Mint

Barrett