Okay.
I absolutely love learning vocabulary words that are rarely used. A few months ago, I bought Robert W. Bly’s 1,200 Words You Should Know to Sound Smart: Essential Words Every Sophisticated Person Should be Able to Use.
Well, I am not altogether sure if I would define myself as necessarily “sophisticated” per say. I do like to color coordinate my shoe color with my handbag, if that counts.
I do find, as a creative writer, that increasing my vocabulary helps with generating new ideas for stories and poems.
Some really interesting words that Bly mentioned which I would like to share with you are:
Jejune (adjective) an inferior work or poor performance.
Imagine at your job’s next board meeting standing at the head of the conference table and declaring, “Your proposals are all jejune!” (Well, that might just get you some days off since your co-workers will either assume you are mentally exhausted or drunk, or maybe both).
Imbroglio (noun) a sticky situation-a predicament that is difficult to get out of.
The next time your significant other’s family starts to give you grief blurt out “Marrying into your family has certainly created an imbroglio, wouldn’t you agree?” Just step back and monitor their expressions and bask in the knowledge that, yes, you’re not as dumb as they all thought you were!
Raconteur (noun) Someone who enjoys telling stories, does so frequently, and is good at it.
At the next office party, cocktail party, engagement party, (any of those places where you have to stand around and pretend you are interested in listening to others brag and boast about themselves, their children, and their successes) simply liven things up by blurting out “I come from a family of raconteurs” each time anyone inquires about you and your background. That should get them to scratching their heads for a minute or two while you slip away to another room (or to your car).
Yes, learning new vocabulary is a great way to stimulate creativity.
Take the words in my blog’s title and see what stories you can create. Drop me a line and share what you’ve come up with, if you’d like to.
Happy Writing!
Jenny W. Andrews Copyright 2022
Jenny Grace's Poetry and Creative Writing Techniques 