Words Matter. That’s the nice title for this.
WORDS FUCKING MATTER!! (The real title)
If someone is walking they are not running, if they are strolling, they are moving at a different pace than if they are jogging. When you are a writer you need to pick your words carefully, making sure you are getting the proper feel for your story.
I ride the metro every day and every day I hear them say, “We must stop momentarily to wait for the train ahead of us to leave the station.” These stops are usually 3-10 minutes, they are almost never a momentary stop. I’m sure “momentarily” is used because they did some kind of survey and found that people felt better if you used the word “momentarily” instead of a more accurate word, like shortly, soon, or I don’t fucking know how long. It annoys me, because words mean things, they matter.
So the next time you begin to edit your work pay special attention to your choice of words. Is the character intellectual, would he know or use complex words to describe his situation? Is he trying to impress someone and uses the words incorrectly? Is the heroine running from a shuffling or a staggering zombie? Did the victim guzzle from the poison cup or just sip from it?
You are a writer, choose your words carefully, they matter.
The Part Time Writer 