by Adedotun Adejoorin
Words. Those delicate little blocks that can make or break your writing. They carry great emotions. They have a lot of power when used wisely but sometimes they can be elusive. So how do you find the right words to express yourself? How do you find the words which will communicate exactly how you feel to your readers?
No matter how spectacular your idea is, you won’t elicit the desired emotion from your audience without the right words. Words are building blocks for your writing. They help your writing come alive and bring the reader into your world. Your inability to use the right word to relay your idea will affect the overall presentation of your writing. One of the most important things that writers do is to relay emotions, feelings and thoughts. You don’t want your reader to just smile when you expect them to be jumping and shouting for joy.
The tricky thing about words is that if you do not know the right words you cannot use them. This is why you have to invest in new words and use them as often as you can.
Whenever you cannot find the right words DO NOT settle for the nearest in meaning. Invest in your dictionary. This is what Gustave Flaubert said about finding the right words and we agree
“Whatever you want to say, there is only one word that will express it, one verb to make it move, one adjective to qualify it. You must seek that word, that verb, that adjective, and never be satisfied with approximations, never resort to tricks, even clever ones, or to verbal pirouettes to escape the difficulty.”
Don’t be satisfied with synonyms and approximations. The right word gets your reader excited, annoyed, anxious whenever you want.
Avoid clichés.
Once you are done with your first draft, don’t be too quick to publish the article or send it off to a publisher. Go over your work and make sure every word expresses the correct emotion.
Never use a word because it seems fancy. Use it because it brings to life the idea you want to pass across.
This is a simple example:
There is a difference between Sandra went home and Sandra tiptoed home Tiptoed elicits a different emotion in your reader and it makes them ask the question, “Why would she have to tiptoe?”
As you write, remember that finding the right word is always worth it. It makes all the difference in your writing.
thesparklewritershub 