Comments on: Simplicity

By: Melissa Donovan

Melissa Donovan — Tue, 20 May 2008 23:51:00 +0000

Yes, I know that a lot of people are turned off by large and obscure words). Another way to go is to use them sparingly, maybe one or two in a piece. That way, the meaning can be determined by context or (better yet) the reader’s curiosity can be roused just enough to make them want to look the words up.

Melissa Donovan’s last blog post..Metaphor Creativity

By: Lillie Ammann

Lillie Ammann — Sun, 18 May 2008 21:41:54 +0000

I’ve often heard that most kinds of writing for the general public - especially novels - should be written on the 8th grade level. Most people don’t want to have to work hard when reading for pleasure. That doesn’t mean that you can’t use a “big word” when it’s the best way to convey meaning, but on the whole, the writing should be simple enough to make reading easy. The vocabulary should vary with the purpose and the audience. An academic paper would use a different vocabulary than a novel.

Lillie Ammann’s last blog post..Writer’s Worth Day

By: --Deb

--Deb — Fri, 16 May 2008 14:20:05 +0000

@Rawley–but that doesn’t mean our mothers didn’t strive to teach us not to show off. I know that mine did! I was taught that there was a time and place for that kind of thing, though I was a natural show-off, so it was a hard lesson to learn (grin).

By: Rawley Grau

Rawley Grau — Fri, 16 May 2008 13:44:19 +0000

I had to chuckle when I read, “Maybe it’s a cultural thing, where showing off is frowned upon, even over something as simple as vocabulary and correct grammatical structure.” Which culture are you thinking of? Not American culture surely, where people are encouraged from the 1st grade on to flaunt whatever they’ve got — except, of course, intelligence. Ours is not society that prizes modesty, but nor does it value intellectual ability. Indeed, in many quarters, “intellectual” is a no less damning epithet than “liberal.” Using fancy words just to show people that you know them is never a good idea. Use the right word, the precise word, the apt word, even it is not to be found on a 5th-grade vocabulary list. And if what you are saying is important enough or compelling enough, your reader may just go look the word up in a dictionary (only a click away these days) and learn something.

By: --Deb

--Deb — Fri, 16 May 2008 02:27:01 +0000

@Maria–It makes perfect sense to me. Is there anything more frustrating than making a perfectly-worded statement to a friend, only to have them ask, “What does that mean?” So that you have to try to define the word for them, by which time you’re just wishing you hadn’t said anything more than, “Isn’t this fun?” in the first place (grin).

By: maria

maria — Fri, 16 May 2008 00:50:36 +0000

This topic speaks to me. I’ve always read a lot, and had a larger vocabulary because of it. More than that, I love words. I like how precise you can be. I can search my mind and come up with a word that eloquently expresses exactly the sentiments I’m trying to convey. (Well, sometimes. Often I’m left searching, trying to remember.)

I feel that this love of words and this knowledge of them actually acts as more of a hindrance. No matter how carefully I may choose my words to avoid affronting someone, if the person I am speaking with doesn’t understand the nuances of language, they may mistake my meaning anyway. And contrariliwise (to quote Alice), I may take more offense than is intended, since I understand the insult in the connotation of a word, even if the speaker is ignorant of it.

Now I fear I am becoming less eloquent, rather than more. It’s probably the heat.

maria’s last blog post..Puppy Love

By: --Deb

--Deb — Thu, 15 May 2008 22:50:33 +0000

@Barbara, I agree with that, but as a reader, I always feel that step #1 is so important to do RIGHT. So many authors give so much away while they’re telling you what they’re going to tell you, I often don’t feel it’s necessary to read any further!

@Gillian–and yes, shorter often is better. Unless something is so fascinating, gripping, challenging, and fun that you just don’t wat it to end at all, and I don’t think too many research papers come in under that category (grin).

By: Gillian

Gillian — Thu, 15 May 2008 19:29:20 +0000

This post is amusingly apropos. I’ve just be handed a 7-page report in French, which is to be a sample of the reports I should write for this company. French is more flowery, but I’d use several other adjectives such as pretentious and pedantic for this sample. I’ve been writing my reports in this field for seven and a half years, and generally keep them to one page. I need the research reports which say that shorter is better, and more likely to be read.

By: Barbara Ling

Barbara Ling — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:20:13 +0000

One thing that I’ve learned that always stands me in good stead is remembering:

1.) Tell your audience what you’re going to say.
2.) Say it.
3.) Tell your audience what you just said.

This works great in online how-tos as well as at speaking engagements.

Enjoy,

Barbara

Barbara Ling’s last blog post..Insane Luxury of YesterYear - Pair of 25K Watermelons

By: --Deb

--Deb — Thu, 15 May 2008 12:45:11 +0000

Who could forget Howard Cosell’s reedy, nasally voice? Although, not being a sports fan, I never actually WATCHED any of his games, but I sure knew the sound of his voice (grin).

I was reading through an old, childhood favorite last month and was actually impressed with how many “big words” the author used for a book geared toward 10-year olds, and I couldn’t help but wonder if that’s something she would have trouble doing now, with the dumbing-down of education these days.