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Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Writing Craft » Page 11

Writing Craft

Five Dollar Words

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon July 28, 2016
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“Don’t use a five-dollar word when a fifty-cent word will do.” – Mark Twain

One of my daughters is an Arts and Visual Technology major, so of course she has to read articles about art. Here are a few sentences from an eight-page article, “Modernist Painting” by Clement Greenburg. The footnotes inform us that this article was both published and broadcast on the radio.

I identify Modernism with the intensification, almost the exacerbation, of this self-critical tendency that began with the philosopher Kant.

The fragmentary silhouette of a human figure, or of a teacup, will do so, and by doing so alienate pictorial space from the literal two-dimensionality which is the guarantee of paintingʼs independence as an art.

Far from incurring the danger of arbitrariness, Mondrianʼs art proves, as time passes, almost too disciplined, almost too tradition- and convention-bound in certain respects; once we have gotten used to its utter abstractness, we realize that it is more conservative in its color, for instance, as well as in its subservience to the frame, than the later paintings of Monet.*

Of course, this is an academic article and its intended audience (and most people, really) can understand what’s being conveyed. But for many, undue time and effort are needed to discern what the author means.

On the flip side, every now and again you’ll see someone complain about writing being dumbed down. This is usually pronounced by an older person criticizing the younger generation. Kids today!

But it wouldn’t take me long to tire of reading, or hearing, eight pages of sentences such as those from “Modernist Painting.”  I’m not sure I’d make it past the first couple of paragraphs unless I had a rabid interest in the subject. Even then, I might look for an author writing about the topic in a more approachable manner.

So if anyone thinks your writing is too simplistic, be glad, for you are friendly and approachable. And you place communication over eagerness to show off your ability to consult a thesaurus.

Is the occasional five-dollar word okay to use? Sure, in moderation. But obfuscating (Will that be a credit or debit for your $5 charge?) your message with too many two-dollar words risks leaving you – and your quickly exiting readers – an expensive mess.

Your turn:

Do you have to power through complicated texts that could have been made simpler? What tips can you offer to lessen the pain and suffering?

What is your favorite five-dollar word?

Do you think writers today make commercial fiction and nonfiction too easy? Or about right?

Just for fun, try rewriting any one of the sentences from the article. Show us what you can do!

 

*Citations from article:
Forum Lectures (Washington, D. C.: Voice of America), 1960
Arts Yearbook 4, 1961 (unrevised)
Art and Literature, Spring 1965 (slightly revised)
The New Art: A Critical Anthology, ed. Gregory Battcock, 1966
Peinture-cahiers théoriques, no. 8-9, I974 (titled “La peinture moderniste“)
Esthetics Contemporary, ed. Richard Kostelanetz, 1978
Modern Art and Modernism: A Critical Anthology. ed. Francis Frascina and Charles Harrison, 1982

Clement Greenberg: The Collected Essays and Criticism vol. 4, ed. John OʼBrian, 1993.
From: http://www.sharecom.ca/greenberg/modernism.html (Last access 21 July 07)

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Category: Art, Craft, Creativity, Writing CraftTag: Craft, words, Writing Craft

Show Off Your Emotions!

By Karen Ballon June 22, 2016
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You’ve heard it over and over: Show, don’t tell. Well, I agree with that sentiment when it comes to important emotional scenes. Fiction, nonfiction, doesn’t matter. If you want to stir your readers, learn to show powerful emotions. As I thought about this blog, though, I figured you all don’t need yet another how to. Instead, I want to challenge you to share the most powerful emotion you felt this …

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Emotions, show don't tell, Writing Craft

What’s My (Last) Line?

By Karen Ballon May 18, 2016
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Here are the sources of the last lines I shared last week: “Maybe loving dogs… “A Big Little Life, Dean Koontz’s book about his Golden retriever, Trixie. Actually, the ending “The sign now includes…:” comes from the afterword of that same book. Yeah, I cheated. But I thought they both were perfect, in their own ways. “But the good part is …” Shiloh, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. …

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Endings, Writing Craft

A Good End

By Karen Ballon May 11, 2016
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So, you’ve read the wondrous first lines of a book, been immersed in the journey through the rest of the pages, been enchanted and challenged, terrified and uplifted, educated and enlightened. And then it comes. The ending. The final words on the page to sum up all that you’ve read and experienced to this point. And these words, if chosen with wisdom and care, will echo through you, reminding you …

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Category: Craft, Creativity, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Endings, Writing Craft

Variety Is the Spice of Characters

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon May 5, 2016
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Recently I read a general market novel where I noticed that the characters sounded the same in a way. For example, for earning money, two disparate characters said, “made scratch.” The phrase jumped out at me the first time because it’s one I simply don’t use. So when a second character used the same expression, my mind wandered out of the story and into thinking about the expression. The book …

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Category: Craft, Creativity, Writing CraftTag: Characters, Craft, Creativity, Writing Craft

First Lines For All!

By Karen Ballon May 4, 2016
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Last week we considered some powerful first lines that we’ve read. And, as promised, here are the books they’re from: “This is my favorite book in all the world, though I have never read it.” The Princess Bride, William Goldman “It’s Nathan’s fault I became God.” The God Game, Andrew Greely “I once listened to an Indian on television say that God was in the wind and the water, and I wondered at …

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Category: CraftTag: Craft, first lines, Writing Craft

The Beauty of First Lines

By Karen Ballon April 27, 2016
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Has it happened to you? That moment when you open a book, let your eyes rest on the first page, and suddenly, you’re transported. Or shocked. Or laughing. Because the very first line has done exactly what the author hoped. It grabbed you, pulling you into the story as inexorably as a Pacific ocean riptide will carry you out to sea. And, depending on the kind of book, it can be equally terrifying. …

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Craft, first lines, Writing Craft

Be Careful with Your Facts

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon April 7, 2016
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In light of my last post on taking care of details, I thought my readers would be interested in seeing some oddities and errors I found – in the past week! An Irish Soda bread recipe in a local circular called for: 3 cups flower Hmmm. Roses? Daffodils? Tulips? What color? Green, perhaps? And this on Amazon in describing a book: Praying in the Holy Spirit is one important bible study about the …

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Category: Craft, Editing, Writing CraftTag: Editing, Writing Craft

Details, Details (Do They Matter?)

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon March 31, 2016
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I was chatting with a reader the other day who told me about an advertisement she’d received about a new book. She said, “I read the sample, but then the author said that Black-eyed Susans bloomed in May, but they don’t bloom until August. I didn’t buy the book.” “Did you like the story otherwise?” I asked. “Yes.” “But you’re not …

Read moreDetails, Details (Do They Matter?)
Category: Craft, Editing, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Details, Research, Writing Craft

What An Editor Does–Phase 2

By Karen Ballon March 23, 2016
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Next week, I promise, we’ll jump into the nuts and bolts of editing. But today I want to talk about what editors don’t do. Why do I bring these things up? Because I’ve encountered each and every one of them as a freelance editor. I’ve had clients say, “While you’re editing, can you do the copyedit?” or “Since you’re also an agent, would you be willing to pitch just this book to an editor?” Here …

Read moreWhat An Editor Does–Phase 2
Category: Editing, Writing CraftTag: Editing, Editor, Writing Craft
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