I suggest reading on writing. It's an excellent book. And the advice he mentions in it is sound. Writing, if you're going to take is seriously needs to be consistent. Accordingly, he sets a time to write, between two and four hours in the morning or it's a word count with a time limit placed on it so that he doesn't spend the entire day stuck in his head.
Again, I'm not saying you can't use another word in place of surprise, but if you mean surprise, then you don't mean stunned, which is a kind of surprise but suggests in action, or amazed which suggests awe. And if you do, then use those words, and not surprise. The point King is making is that the most important job for a writer is to get their point across. Chances are you are not going to clarify anything if you use a replacement word for the one you mean.
His main point when he does get into tools is look at them, then chuck them. They can work but, but too often they become a crutch. It's whatever works in the end, honestly. In the end the point is to be consistent, write constantly.
Also, the fact that we disagree not only on his point but his meaning, is another reason why he suggests chucking the thesaurus. Meaning is hard to figure out at the best of times with the clearest language.
In the end the best advice I've heard is. "Don't use a big word when a diminutive one will do." :D
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branchandroot
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Date: 2009-09-03 03:27 pm (UTC)Again, I'm not saying you can't use another word in place of surprise, but if you mean surprise, then you don't mean stunned, which is a kind of surprise but suggests in action, or amazed which suggests awe. And if you do, then use those words, and not surprise. The point King is making is that the most important job for a writer is to get their point across. Chances are you are not going to clarify anything if you use a replacement word for the one you mean.
His main point when he does get into tools is look at them, then chuck them. They can work but, but too often they become a crutch. It's whatever works in the end, honestly. In the end the point is to be consistent, write constantly.
Also, the fact that we disagree not only on his point but his meaning, is another reason why he suggests chucking the thesaurus. Meaning is hard to figure out at the best of times with the clearest language.
In the end the best advice I've heard is. "Don't use a big word when a diminutive one will do." :D