Do I know the exact meaning of every word in this sentence?
That was the second of the Questions to Ask When Rewriting.
It may seem obvious that a writer needs to know the dictionary definition of the rarer words they use.
If they’re not sure of one, they should look it up.
But being aware of the formal meaning of a word isn’t everything. There’s something else, which is a bit more like hearing the timbre or feeling the vibe.
There is no clearer sign of a writer’s insecurity than when they use a thesaurus word, a high shelf word, rather than a word they truly know, and for which they have often reached.
First, in a omniscient narration, this is likely to be a tonal inconsistency, because all the other words in the piece aren’t equally strained.
If you’re not Maggie Nelson or David Foster Wallace, but are just trying to come across like Maggie Nelson or David Foster Wallace, that’s going to be obvious.
Perhaps the writer feels that word needs to be on that page, somewhere, for some reason.
In which case, I’d suggest that they shift responsibility for those word choices to a narrator, so their offness becomes a character note.
Alternatively they should try including those words in dialogue, and so attributing them to a character who isn’t quite sure of their use.
Second, if the reader knows the precise use of a word, and sees it placed for effect, they are going to think less of the writer.
No-one looks down on Denis Johnson or Mary Gaitskill for having a fairly basic core vocabulary. Instead, they are astounded at how they use those common elements.
It’s with slang that I’ll turn this on myself, though I’m quite likely to misuse metonymy or sensual (sensous? sensual).
I often hear words being used in speech, and want to reproduce them for the effect I judge they have. But if I’m not attuned with real precision to each one, I’ll avoid them — or only use them with irony.
For example, random, as in —
You’re so random.
I have, I think, a sense of who might use this, and in reference to what kind of behaviour. Partly because it’s been around a long time.
At least, I have a better sense than I do with —
He thinks he’s so sigma.
Or —
He’s all like rizz.
Or —
No cap.
The Question as I shared it asked ‘do you know the exact meaning of every word in a sentence’. But what I’m trying to get across is, that’s not the whole thing.
I could look up rizz in the Urban Dictionary, a third time, and even put it in a sentence I’ve searched for, and heard someone using on TikTok — I’m still going to embarrass myself, and probably my reader.
A writer doesn’t only need to know a word’s meaning, they need to really hear the word’s timbre, and really feel the word’s vibe.
Otherwise it will sound like they’re halfway through a lovely piano piece and suddenly there’s a note from a harpischord.
That’s in the case of the thesaurus word.
With slang, they’ll be halfway through an acoustic strum and whoops someone’s dropped a sick beat.
(Ironic mistake.)
Someone’s dropped in a single sampled drum sound.
I don’t want this to come across as the vocabulary equivalent of stay in your lane.
Writers should be ambitious in the words they use, and always deepening and expanding their knowledge of the language, but —
Don’t be some like loquacious rando.
I'd love to hear a lovely piano piece and suddenly there’s a note from a harpsichord. I reckon that'd sound pukka.
I use very common vocabulary and language. There's a poetry to it. Bit of slang here and there, but old-school. I grew up with it. But I do also occasionally use unusual esoteric words. Strange words for a hallucinatory states of altered perception, etc. Visions. Sometimes, old Mystic and Theistic, sometimes, old thieves slang.
It may look odd with the common language. It makes sense with the storytelling. And there are those of us who exist among the underclass ranks of rogues and villains who are also Mystic and schizo and know them words and use them well, old-school slang of crooks, madmen, and enchanters scattered among the common lingo. Dunno what others think of it, but I seem to get away with it, at least with them who like my work.
I wonder if it looks jarring to other people reading it. It seems to work for me, but that might be because I know them words. Last book published, the proof reader thought I misspelt puppet, but I meant poppet (European version of a Voodoo Doll), and them changing it took away the meaning of that moment. Lucky I clocked it, but them things are easily missed. I suppose they didn't know what it meant and didn't expect it in among the common words.
Ha, I wrote about something very similar myself today!