Tuesday 15 February 2011

THESAURUS

When I'm writing, unnecessary words creep in that don't really add anything. Like the word 'really'. It's quick work to get rid of them (if I remember) with a global search and delete.

Sorting out dull description is another matter. I have no idea how to use a thesaurus properly and can't be bothered to learn. I spend forever in search of perfection, spend hours on 'writing' without actually getting any writing done.

Then I discovered the thesaurus facility on my wordprocessor. It's more basic, but fast, intuitive and seems to give me words that 'fit' better. Maybe that's because I'm writing a novel for age 9-12, and not the kind of novel that has a title like 'The Ineluctable Discomobulation of Being'.

Don't think I got those words from a thesaurus, please. 'Ineluctable' comes to me courtesy of Ulysses, a book I was forced to read for my degree, 'discombobulation' from Blackadder (and also the recent Sherlock Holmes film) and I'm frequently accused of having made it up.

Sometimes I wonder whether I would like to write 'literary fiction'. I think I probably wouldn't.

I'd need to learn to use a Thesaurus.

More on Improving Description. Grab my one page guide to all the describing words you'll ever need.

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