What Word Did You Just Use? Stop!
Withdraw Wielding Worthless Wearisome Words
One of my favorite lines from the movie Joe Dirt is when the local bullies confront the main character (obviously Joe Dirt). They begin hassling him and making a mockery of his last name. In an attempt to push back (albeit a cowardly pushback), Joe Dirt responds by saying, “It’s pronounced, Dier-té.” The bullies rebuke Dirt, saying, “Don’t try to church it up, dirt!”
Don’t try to “Church it up” in your writing, at least in the sense of sounding snobbish when it is entirely unnecessary. Academic writing norms probably impressed this into us from college, but it doesn’t mean it is good writing outside of those ivory tower walls. Your word choice should not make you sound like someone whose nose is so stuck up in the air so high that if it rained, you’d drown.
For instance, no one regularly uses the word “one” to reference a person outside of academic writing. Who says, “If one wants to do this or that, then one must do it…” People are not “ones.” What a vague and impersonal word. We have plenty of perfectly good personal pronouns, so let’s use them. We don’t need “ones.” These sorts of strange practices should never really be used outside the academy.
Another example of “churching it up” is in the use of words we would never use because we either can’t pronounce it or it is far too pretentious to be verbalized in public. Despite these facts, we oddly reason that we should use these words in our writing, like Floccinaucinihilipilification. I’m totally kidding about that one; I don’t think I have ever heard anyone use that. Some real snobbish examples are vicissitude, ubiquitous, quintessential, prelude, neophyte, etc. If you really use those words in your daily speech, great, but otherwise, don’t use them just because they look smart on paper.
Don’t Be Cliché
Some clichés have been used to death twelve times over, and there is a special place in literary hell for some of these worn-out phrases. This may sound contradictory to what I’ve said earlier, but don’t pick boring words either. If you want to be unoriginal and passionless, use cliché phrases like these:
- “Only to be met”
- “crashing into his face”
- “waging a lonely war”
- “sending shock waves”
- “fired off”
- “a spell of….”
- “enjoyed a slump of…”
- “at the end of the day”
- “Gaslighting” (What are we in the 1800s? Who still knows how a gas lamp works anymore?)
- “side hustle”
- “I hear you”
- “it is what it is”
Words as dry as dust build stale sentences, which go on to construct spiritless stories.
Surprise us! Please spend some time and find the perfect word for what you are trying to say to us. Care about words; seek the right ones that you connect with on a personal level. Remember, we want to read from your heart, not the words of any humdrum hack.
“The race in writing is not to the swift but to the original” (William Zinsser, On Writing Well)
Habits That Bring You Great Words
In a world full of stale and repetitive words, these habits will bring fresh, flavorful words into your life:
You must read quality writers. Find the writers and authors who tickle your ear and move your soul. Analyze the words and phrases they use. How do they do it? Then, try implementing some of their tactics and vocabulary in your writing. What is the rhythm of their sentence like? See if you can mimic it. Alliteration is another go-to habit; look for writers who use it in their work. There are more than you think who utilize this skill.
The other main habit to begin is that of exploring the wonderful world of dictionaries. Yes, you heard me right. Now, before you run away, hear me out first. The dictionary has never been faster and easier to use than it is now. It isn’t like it was back in the day, leafing through a gigantic book that took half a tree to make. You can do quick searches of any word you think is boring or that you use too often and ask for the synonym of it. Instantly, you will have a myriad of choices at your fingertips.
Please take 30 seconds to look through it and pick something new, something you don’t often hear, or even better, a word that speaks to your soul. Whatever word you choose, ensure that it is within the scope of the real you on that page. Remember, that’s who we want to hear from: You.
Let’s Write! ✍️
