The stack of blank paper is yelling. Write ME! If that M. Clifford guy can do it, so can you!
What is this? Let's check the cover art. Advice on writing. Projects I'm working on and what's to come, updates, and all that jazz. Practices, like my proc...
I've written many first drafts. And as the years go by, I have become better at expressing myself in varied ways. That's why you need to become a master of words. Powerful words, simpler words, analogous words, antonyms, etc. One tool that can assist you in that venture is another one of my Favorite Things! Power Thesaurus.
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Nowadays, we're overrun with choices. When I first went searching for a handy online thesaurus, the options were limited. Yes, that's how old I am. What eventually grew out of basic dictionaries on the internet was Thesaurus.com, which is a fine, academic source. I prefer something abnormal, a little more cerebral. A thesaurus that offers me unexpected alternatives. That's the thing about writing books. Readers want uniformity and repetition and their expectations met, and in the same breath, they want subversion and surprises and a new perspective. Some of this can be achieved through language.
Variation is important because there are so many sources of content that are constantly attempting to get your reader's attention. Especially when they are reading from a phone. So while you want to keep consistency, you want to keep your writing engaging through a variety of descriptive words. Books are nothing more than a combination of words. I believe you are an artist who paints in the medium of words. Therefore
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For this reason, every author should permanently have a thesaurus within reach when they sit at their desk.
What I just demonstrated was the Power Thesaurus extension for Google Chrome. In mere seconds, I had a handful of options to clarify my thoughts. Eat your heart out, Hemingway!
This is a technological advancement in writing that authors, who build worlds from their imaginations, could never have imagined existing. The convenience is unparalleled in the art of storytelling. The results are fast acting and keep writers engaged with their content (instead of tripping over the cat on the way to the bookshelf (only to be distracted by what was going on outside and how they could use a snack... (and suddenly thirty minutes has gone by and you're completely out of the zone))). Power Thesaurus keeps you in your seat.
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The Chrome extension is still limited, however, which is why I prefer going to the website. There you can expand your search to include related words. You can narrow or broaden your search. You can find similar words, rhymes, or words that just sound like the one you're looking to replace. You can see your word in a sentence, or find the definition. And then, there are the basic synonyms and antonyms. They can even sort by hashtag.
Not only is it free, but what makes Power Thesaurus so unconventional is that the site is crowdsourced. This is the thesaurus of the future, a community-driven writing source that is easy to access, user-friendly, and controlled by us.
One note of caution when using a thesaurus. With the ability to switch out your ideas with all sorts of big and complicated words comes a responsibility to keep things clear to the reader. You have power. They trust you to use it wisely. And since power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely, let's always be prudent when choosing from a list of synonyms. If your book starts feeling like a seven-course meal because you really like how the word "prudent" sounds and it's YOUR book and you like sounding smart, well... your readers are going to get exhausted and might even start secretly hating you.
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Power Thesaurus is also available as an app. It has limitations of its own. The biggest is that it doesn't work offline. I would always encourage you to go directly to the website anyway so... what's the point? There is a PRO version for Power Thesaurus if you want even more word choices and ads bother you. It's $2.50 a month or $30 a year. I don't think it's necessary, but you do you.
So there you go. I'm a big fan and I think it's something you should utilize if you aren't already!
Okaybyeeeeeeeeeeeeee
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