Words Are A Wonder -Take My Word for It!

 Wonderful, wonderful Words...

Writers collect words. It is almost compulsive. I have always had a fascination for words.  If we can get the right word in the right place, you can give the reader a nudge and make then pay extra attention. For this reason alone words deserve our respect.

I recently saw the word –skedaddle in a story. It’s a word I recall from my childhood, but I had neither seen or heard it for yonks (an indeterminate yet substantial period of time). I love the sound of skedaddle. I have been sharing it with young writers recently in the hope I can singlehandedly revive its use in common conversation.

I vividly recall reading Colin Theile’s wonderful short story ‘The Lock Out’ to a Grade 6 class I taught quite some years back and coming across the words ‘agog’ and ’gingerly.’

I wrote them on the board, and we discussed them and savoured the sounds they made. I encouraged the students to try and use them in their writing. In time these special words along with others began to appear in their writing. They grew like flowers. Magically bursting through into the light,- blossoming on the page. We developed a place for those special words we came across in our reading and discussion. We called the words ‘Wonder Words.’ It was a way of paying homage to the rich meaning these words conveyed

Another word that has always fascinated me is segue. It is common in conversation but largely unseen in print. If you don’t believe me ask people to spell it and see what happens. They say a difficult word is a word we have rarely sighted. The word fuchsia is one of those words.

As I am writing this, the book shelves in front of me hold a number of titles on display further reinforcing the view that words are important to me.

 Titles such as,

The Word Spy,
Lost for Words,
The Superior Person’s Little Book of Words,
The Boy Who Loved Words

They sit there along with assorted dictionaries designed for writers, poets and those obsessed with rhyme, standing as testimony to my ongoing love of words.

The great thing about words is that they are constantly being invented. Sadly, words also fall out of use. Sometimes those words are well worth reviving.

Anyway, it’s time for this writer to skedaddle…

Alan j Wright

https://www.alanjwrightauthorpoet.com/




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