Simple Or Smart?

[Silence Sei]

A simple question for the many roleplayers of Althanas. IT is a question that has been asked before, but one that has enough merit to be asked again.

When you write, do you go for the smart approach, writing in words that some people do not understand, just to sound smarter to the judges? Or do you keep things fairly simple, and tend to dumb your writing down a bit so everyone can enjoy it?

A simple question of curiosity that just sparked randomly in my mind.

I myself try to find a happy medium. Using big words that (hopefully) everyonbe understands.

Anyone else?

[Khalxaen]

I just use the first words that come into mind, I don't really care if it sounds too simple or complicated. Besides, with my brain, I think all the words I use can be understood by a toddler. XD

But when it becomes too redundant after a while, right-clicking on a word and using the thesaurus isn't so bad. (:

[Rajani Aishwara]

I'd like to think that I go for the smart approach, but not to impress the judges. I do it because it's fitting and entertaining to me. I also don't necessarily use advanced vocabulary either. I like to use as many advanced literary divices as I can.

Also, my character's a rich boy who grew up in a sheltered and pompus environment, so until he learns how to speak plain, his language is almost Shakespeare.

[Zook Murnig]

I go for a combination. I try to use literary devices, and unusual words, but nothing that can't be understood by the average reader.

[Corvus MacCallum]

I go for the full range of possible english words, even those that don't exist to give a characterful flair, its rare to find a person that dosen't conjure up some made-up word for their own purposes and a character should be no different... plus its just plain fun to muck around with language.

[Reiko]

I write simply because trying to smarten things up takes away resources from creativity. My brains a bit limited sadly.

[Karuka]

I am a firm believer in the propriety of words. I like them to be exact, I like my details to be detailed and my narration to accurately reflect the sentiments and actions of the character.

I tend to write more simply than normal for Karuka (in word terms) because she's not a native English speaker, and she's a simple sort of girl that likes her simple sorts of thoughts. She also flits from thought to thought faster. Darn annoying of her, but she does.

Sara is kinda simple and very direct, not too complex but not too simple.

Basically...the character dictates the language of the post.

[Sok]

Honestly, I also don't really think about language beyond how my characters think and talk.

Am I a bad person?

[Fenris]

The thing about a word: there's so much more to it than a certain quantity of quasi-phoenetic lettering.

I dunno...for me, I guess, when I write, I don't necessarily go for either "smart" or "simple." I go for evocation. In any given post, there's always some specific feel, some emotion, some moment I want to evoke as effectively as possible. I can't just use the thesaurus on any one given word to make it longer, smarter looking, or anything like that--because it has to dance with all the rest. Every sound and rhythm, every appearance on the page, every connotation of every word dances with that of every other word. At the risk of sounding grotesquely poetic--each word is a step in the dance of the thought, and every thought a dance in the ballad of the tale. If any given step is slightly misplaced, the entire dance can fall to shambles.

So...I will say neither. And...both. Long, academic words have their own inferences, their own feel, their own pace, and are valuable to the dance--just as short, simple thoughts are. They all have to meld with the grander scheme of the choreography.

[Atzar]

I just write. What comes out is what comes out.

[Nymph and Dragon]

Sadly, it's the presumptuous-sounding words that are usually the most apt for what I'm trying to say. I like when dialogue is natural, since most people don't speak in poetry even if the narrative practically is.

[hamnat]

I write how I speak: What ever enters my head. I rarely find myself in a situation like this: hmm....what word should I use here?

I try to write as detailed as possible, and sometimes overly detailed. And as for those who are wondering about Shenjara's grammar, yes...she has VERY good grammar.

[Zook Murnig]

If I have learned nothing else in my time as a writer, I have learned this: the thesaurus is your friend. The same word over and over gets boring fast, and sometimes you need a similar word that has a slightly different meaning. Right and correct, for example. Right means that it's justified, quite often. Correct means that it is true.

And spelling is essential. "Sound it out" may work for some words, but others are tougher. There, their, and they're. To, two, and too. Lead and led. New and knew. No and know. And many more. Make sure you're using the right word for the right time, and spell it right. Understanding your point comes more easily that way.

[Darkness Impulse]

I try to mix words up a little. Just like Zook said, one word over and over is boring... If I see that I am being redundant, I try to either end the subject or use different words. I like to be in the middle, not being too simplistic.

This is, after all, a forum [mostly] full of sophisticated writers, I think they can find out what a big word means if they don't know it off the top of their head. But I also don't try not to make my words too complicated...

[Elrundir]

Whatever fits, really. I don't try to use simple words or smart words, because if you strive too far in one direction or the other it becomes really obvious, and frankly quite transparent. Readers don't want to have their intelligence insulted, but they don't want to read someone who looks like they're trying too hard to sound fancy-pantsy, either.

A thesaurus is a very useful tool, yes, but make sure to use it with care. We don't want a repeat of that episode of Friends, do we, with Joey signing the adoption referral letter "Baby Kangaroo Tribbiani"?

[Soliel]

A thesaurus is a very useful tool, yes, but make sure to use it with care. We don't want a repeat of that episode of Friends, do we, with Joey signing the adoption referral letter "Baby Kangaroo Tribbiani"?

Lol, I saw that episode. Cracked the hell up.

Sorry, random. XD

[Ataraxis]

They have full-sized aortic pumps.

<3

[Ashiakin]

The wording of this question is misleading. It implies that our judges award points to writers use "big" words even if they are used out of context and that the only reason to write "intelligently" is to impress them. Not everyone that uses longer words does so in a masturbatory effort to look cool (although, I suppose, some do.) It can also be about using an evocative word in the appropriate context to summon feelings and thoughts that a common word could not.

I don't really think that this sort of anti-intellectualism is healthy (unless it's directed toward people using large words they don't understand in an incorrect context.)

[Lucien]

I have to agree with Ashiakin, and I also want to add to that.

The entire title of this thread seems a little off to me. Who says simple writing can't be smart? Who says using a verbose vocabulary is smart writing? Smart isn't really measured by what words you use, but rather the content of stories and your ability to weave excellent words and sentences into a tapestry of beauty.

Ignoring that, I use a thesaurus. I'm endowed with a mildly impressive vocabulary, but I'm slow to conjure these words up, and sometimes use the words incorrectly. It's just safer for me to use the thesaurus. "Hmm, 'nother word for forest. Oh yes, copse. Huh, don't see that outside the BBC."


Using big words that (hopefully) everyonbe understands. You see? That's why I can never write smart. Just haven't mastered the language as well yet.

[Letho]

I have to admit that at one point while being here on Althanas I fell into the trap of trying to "smarten" up my writing with words I plucked from the thesaurus. And now that I look back at it, it wasn't smartening up my writing at all, but doing completely the opposite. The point of writing isn't to impress the judges with words that are more fit for a manual on how to handle the washing machine. Sometimes it's necessary to find an alternative for a certain word, but most of the time it's best to write down the first word that comes to mind. If your brain came up with a word to describe something, why use it's more sophisticated cousin that doesn't do as good of a job at describing what you tried to say as your original choice?

[Storm Veritas]

If a big word creeps into my writing, it's because I think that word will do a better job describing a setting, feeling, theme, item, action or idea. Sometimes words like "big", "good", and "fast" work just fine, and some times they just don't accurately convey what I want to say.

So, yeah. What Elrundir said.

[Silence Sei]

I have to agree with Ashiakin, and I also want to add to that.

The entire title of this thread seems a little off to me. Who says simple writing can't be smart? Who says using a verbose vocabulary is smart writing? Smart isn't really measured by what words you use, but rather the content of stories and your ability to weave excellent words and sentences into a tapestry of beauty.

Ignoring that, I use a thesaurus. I'm endowed with a mildly impressive vocabulary, but I'm slow to conjure these words up, and sometimes use the words incorrectly. It's just safer for me to use the thesaurus. "Hmm, 'nother word for forest. Oh yes, copse. Huh, don't see that outside the BBC."

You see? That's why I can never write smart. Just haven't mastered the language as well yet.

I never admitted to 'mastering the language'. Although, most of my recent mispellings have come from the fact that my keyboard buttons stick, and I don't catch all the letters that get added in.

And while I agree that I may not have picked the most appropriate title, I could not think of a better way to phrase it at the time.

Ashiakin, I in no way meant to sound like I was bad-mouthing judges or anything like that. I was simply asking if people prefer to use big words to 'try' and impress you guys. I never stated that their attempts worked or have cause to work. The question just came out of my head. I just wanted to know if people wrote their posts in a simple manner or if they tried to accsess everything in their vocabulary (or as it seems, a thesaurus' vocabulary).

[Koran]

Durrr...*hic* Whaaa?

I dunno, a little of both maybe? O.o

[AdventWings]

Fenris pretty much summed up my opinion... *Cough*

[Killoth]

i'm new to this kinda thing so i'm slightly at a loss of how to go about things

[Aeraul Smythe]

I just use whatever's required for the mood. Unnecessarily simple wording can kill the feel of something. Unnecessarily complex wording is even worse, since it drags out every little detail and has the effect of making everything look snobby and unappealing.

EDIT: And for what it's worth, I don't use a thesaurus.

[Flames of Hyperion]

I try to use the correct word for the situation... some scenes prefer simplicity of vocabulary, while others seem to require details and grandiose words. I've fallen into the trap before of trying to be too clever with my choice of words, and unfortunately I'll probably do so again, but it hasn't stopped me from looking into a thesaurus when the first word that springs to mind isn't quite right for the situation.

Yet.

[Tshael]

I write whatever comes to mind. I don't use any words that I wouldn't use in my normal vocabulary, though I do use alliteration more than any other literary device aside from simile/metaphor. I have lots of fun with that.