Tololy’s Box » Blog Archive » Crafting the word

Play with words ; they�re your way to the world�s heart and conscience. What you communicate through speech or written media is what you are.

You don�t have to be a poet to appreciate the essence of linguistic beauty, and necessity for that matter. Language is the medium through which your messages and everyone else�s are carried. Choosing a correct, clean, and creative medium is crucial to get your message across the way you intend it to arrive to its destination.

Think of your target audience. Is this, what you write or say, meant to get to the hearts of mothers or to the solid wills of decision-makers? Structure your diction accordingly. Moms would better appreciate soft imagery while a corporate responsible would rather you cut to the numeral chase, generally speaking.

You may be able to break a rule or two � you could get away with using semi-romantic diction in, say, an ad campaign that �defies� the norm. Again, it�s the language that is in sync with the concept. Composing a quarterly report with mushy words and no numbers will not do, no matter how revolutionary open-minded your boss may be.

I started out jotting my random ideas down on this topic out of sheer curiosity. I was in bed trying to rest my overloaded head and there were a dozen bulldozers working just outside my room, my laptop was in its case, and I afforded to be lazy enough to match my pajama pants with my formal top. Suddenly this little screwy thought caused a surge of electrical signals in my brain cells � I had to de-stimulate the genie.

Nothing gives me more joy than playing with words. I like putting two shocking words together and watching the concept of each change dramatically due to the association. I enjoy the looks on people�s faces when I do it, too. Once I answered the phone and it was an old friend of mine complaining that I do not get in touch as much as I should. I hung up and someone asked me who it was.

�Oh, an angry citizen�.

The quality of your language defines you to people in most situations. I like seeing a form of the word used in various techniques. Be smart about your language, you�ll be surprised what that reflects onto you and onto others. It says a lot.

Once upon a place there was a little girl who looked like a catfish. She surfed the web constantly, looking for a facial mask recipe to help her grow eyelids so she can close her eyes when she goes to bed. She never found any, but she landed a deal as a model at a circus and at age thirty, her show sold more tickets than the Cirque Du Soleil.

Love your speech and make it an individual output of your creation, as unique as you are. Why not design your own clich�s? I have my angry citizens, what do you have? Leave your touch in language, make it public that you intend to be special in the way you speak and write and work on progressing and inventing new ways to say the same thing.

Don�t be the burdensome clich�-parrot. Be the person everyone wants to approach, even if there�s nothing to talk about, but to listen to what miracles you deliver with ease.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, May 28th, 2006 at 8:16 am and is filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Peter S. says:
May 28th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
For uncommon language, always turn to Thomas. :)
Fern Hill by: Dylan Thomas   Now as I was young and easy under the apple boughs About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green, The night above the dingle starry, Time let me hail and climb Golden in the heydays of his eyes, And honoured among wagons I was prince of the apple towns And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves Trail with daisies and barley Down the rivers of the windfall light.
And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home, In the sun that is young once only, Time let me play and be Golden in the mercy of his means, And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold, And the sabbath rang slowly In the pebbles of the holy streams.
All the sun long it was running, it was lovely, the hay Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys, it was air And playing, lovely and watery And fire green as grass. And nightly under the simple stars As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away, All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars Flying with the ricks, and the horses Flashing into the dark.
And then to awake, and the farm, like a wanderer white With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder: it was all Shining, it was Adam and maiden, The sky gathered again And the sun grew round that very day. So it must have been after the birth of the simple light In the first, spinning place, the spellbound horses walking warm Out of the whinnying green stable On to the fields of praise.
And honoured among foxes and pheasants by the gay house Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long, In the sun born over and over, I ran my heedless ways, My wishes raced through the house high hay And nothing I cared, at my sky blue trades, that time allows In all his tuneful turning so few and such morning songs Before the children green and golden Follow him out of grace.
Nothing I cared, in the lamb white days, that time would take me Up to the swallow thronged loft by the shadow of my hand, In the moon that is always rising, Nor that riding to sleep I should hear him fly with the high fields And wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land. Oh as I was young and easy in the mercy of his means, Time held me green and dying Though I sang in my chains like the sea.
Yazan says:
May 28th, 2006 at 2:59 pm
Wow, brilliant… I definitley agree with the create ur own cliches. ur obviously very skillful with words. kudos!
Omar Barsawad says:
May 28th, 2006 at 3:57 pm
Very well said! And may I quote:
�Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become habits. Watch your habits, for they become character. Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."
Devil's Mind says:
May 28th, 2006 at 11:23 pm
Personally, I prefer clear, straight to the point, yet smart language… I mean, language -for me- is a tool to convey ideas and communicate, so the main goal is the idea rather than the language itself!! Thats why i dont like peotry and similar stuff, because such literate productions put language, melody, and million other considerations before the idea itself, which defies the primary goal of language..
eyad says:
May 30th, 2006 at 8:03 am
Hi,
this is a great post! i really donno why, i think its genuin, excuse my words, language, :)

Peter S. says:
May 28th, 2006 at 12:03 pm

For uncommon language, always turn to Thomas. :)
Fern Hill by: Dylan Thomas   Now as I was young and easy under the apple boughs About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green, The night above the dingle starry, Time let me hail and climb Golden in the heydays of his eyes, And honoured among wagons I was prince of the apple towns And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves Trail with daisies and barley Down the rivers of the windfall light.
And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home, In the sun that is young once only, Time let me play and be Golden in the mercy of his means, And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold, And the sabbath rang slowly In the pebbles of the holy streams.
All the sun long it was running, it was lovely, the hay Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys, it was air And playing, lovely and watery And fire green as grass. And nightly under the simple stars As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away, All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars Flying with the ricks, and the horses Flashing into the dark.
And then to awake, and the farm, like a wanderer white With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder: it was all Shining, it was Adam and maiden, The sky gathered again And the sun grew round that very day. So it must have been after the birth of the simple light In the first, spinning place, the spellbound horses walking warm Out of the whinnying green stable On to the fields of praise.
And honoured among foxes and pheasants by the gay house Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long, In the sun born over and over, I ran my heedless ways, My wishes raced through the house high hay And nothing I cared, at my sky blue trades, that time allows In all his tuneful turning so few and such morning songs Before the children green and golden Follow him out of grace.
Nothing I cared, in the lamb white days, that time would take me Up to the swallow thronged loft by the shadow of my hand, In the moon that is always rising, Nor that riding to sleep I should hear him fly with the high fields And wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land. Oh as I was young and easy in the mercy of his means, Time held me green and dying Though I sang in my chains like the sea.

Yazan says:
May 28th, 2006 at 2:59 pm

Wow, brilliant… I definitley agree with the create ur own cliches. ur obviously very skillful with words. kudos!

Omar Barsawad says:
May 28th, 2006 at 3:57 pm

Very well said! And may I quote:
�Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become habits. Watch your habits, for they become character. Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."

Devil's Mind says:
May 28th, 2006 at 11:23 pm

Personally, I prefer clear, straight to the point, yet smart language… I mean, language -for me- is a tool to convey ideas and communicate, so the main goal is the idea rather than the language itself!! Thats why i dont like peotry and similar stuff, because such literate productions put language, melody, and million other considerations before the idea itself, which defies the primary goal of language..

eyad says:
May 30th, 2006 at 8:03 am

Hi,
this is a great post! i really donno why, i think its genuin, excuse my words, language, :)