Strength in Words

  As writers we immensely study the words we put to paper. We may even look at one paragraph for an hour to make sure it is perfectly painted, carefully choosing the placement and timing of each individual word. Insuring that every word we write is interpreted by the reader the way we want them to perceive it.  A lone word written out of context is all that is required to turn the perfect novel into a misunderstood book of ramblings.  After writing for a short time I have come to learn that this is one of the most important things a writer can study. The play on words can be what makes or breaks you as a writer.

  With that being said here is my question: Knowing how detrimental our words can be, why do we not sometimes think before we speak or quickly jot out an e-mail in our everyday lives?

  The play on words can be what makes or breaks our character as well. The words we chose and the context we speak them in are just as important as the words we chose to write in our books.

  I recently experienced the unfortunate consequences of not thinking before jotting. Hastily writing words that were easily misconstrued hurting people that I care deeply for. What a miserable way to learn a valuable lesson. It could have easily turned into a very bad situation with the final cost being the loss of two of my very best friends. Lucky for me, they are very understanding people.

  I am writing this to possibly save some of you the shame and embarrassment of not thinking before you speak. It is a phrase that we so frequently hear throughout our lives. Think before you speak. What a stronger impact that phrase now has on me. We should truly slow down long enough to think about the results of our words and how they can so easily be misinterpreted. Just because you know what you meant, doesn’t necessarily mean that the recipient does.

Please, please, treat the words you speak on a daily basis as if they were the words you’ve analyzed over and over before proposing them to a publisher.


Dedicated to my best friends,
The Morans