I’m a simple guy and I tend to prefer writing that is direct, economical that doesn’t require more of my attention span than writers earn by virtue of their talent.
So when I read a story in which the characters are woefully underdeveloped and the prose is wooden yet painfully overwritten with lots and lots of three-dollar words, I cringe and breakout into a cold sweat. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? Using ten words where five will do or writing something a general audience might not understand without consulting a dictionary like “Plantar Fasciitis” instead of saying “foot inflammation” or “heel spur”.
There might actually be an occasion in a story or poem where using a big, fancy word or some jargon might work and be absolutely necessary — but the key word here is necessary. If your prose/poetry is otherwise un-engaging and is laced with cumbersome vocabulary, then you risk making your writing read like an SAT exam instead of what you intended.
The trick is to find a balance. Ask yourself why you are using so many big, fat hairy words. Is there no better word choice available or are you just insecure and trying too hard to show everyone how smart you are?
If it’s the latter, keep in mind when you submit something to a literary publication, you are not writing to impress your high school English teacher and you’re not involved in a 5th grade spelling bee (which is not to say you shouldn’t know how to spell). I’ve yet to meet an editor who’ll accept a story based on the size of a writer’s vocabulary.
Lindsay | 06-Jan-09 at 9:59 pm | Permalink
I used to spend a lot of time on flexing my vocabulary muscles and trying to create elegant prose, and then I decided that if my pretty words stood between the reader and the story, then it was all for naught.
That said, a good storyteller can write a great story even using $20 words. I can’t but a good storyteller can, hah.