October 25, 2004
HAVE YOU CONSIDERED INVESTING IN A GOOD THESAURUS?
A hallmark of a good writer is that he uses all the vocabularic tools at his disposal. Whenever I write a piece, I try - to the best of my ability - to avoid using the same adjectives over & over. Repetition is literary poison. It eats away at the soul of an essay, making it sound as dull and tedious as a third-grader's "What I Did On My Summer Vacation" writing assignment.
It also helps that I know what I'm talking about. When I'm well-versed in a subject, I can look at it from a number of angles, and dream up a plethora of descriptive metaphors. I don't have to rely on pummelling my audience with a single word, screamed ad nauseum.
Like Michael Moore and his friend "fictitious".
Or - even more dramatically - this freakishly psychotic screaming fit by Lawrence O'Donnell.
He used the words "lie", "liar", or "lying" 46 times in just under 11 minutes.
Maybe it's because he didn't know what he was talking about...
Check this out... what a fuckin looney tune...
It's funny, but my eldest son, who loves to read and is starting to enjoy writing, discoverd the Thesaurus. It completely cracks me up when I read his stuff. He doesn't understand that just because words may mean similarly, they really are not exchangeable every single time. It makes for good stories.
That it lists "gay" as a synonym for "happy" makes kids stories even more interesting ;-)
Bou, you *do* realise that Harvey will be getting Son#1 to start his own blog now, don't you?
Bou - can he type yet? :-)
Oh he can type, but I don't think there are any blogs out there I would allow him to read! Therefore, he would get NO links. And I wouldn't want anyone referring him somewhere.. and I wouldn't want him HERE! *grin* Hell, I just frickin' explained to him that sex does not mean getting naked in a restaurant. I don't want to have to explain anything about handcuffs or blindfolds. Blech.
Come on, Bou, I'd be very delicate about it.
"Ya see, #1, sex is your when mommy & daddy love each other very much and hold each other in a... "special way""
"and the handcuffs?"
"Helps with the "holding" part."
"blindfolds?"
"Helps make it "special". You'll understand why that's necessary after you've been married a few years."
"What about cunni..."
"WOW! Look at the time! Gotta run! If you have any more questions, just ask your mom."
Heh. You forget he thinks EVERYONE does it like a donkey and the other animals at Lion Country Safari. *grin*
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