Booking It With The Dictionary

“Words -- so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them.” - Nathaniel Hawthorne



I’ve always wondered what other people do when they come across a word/phrase that they’ve never heard before. I mean, do they jot it down on paper so they can look it up later, or do they stop reading to look it up on the dictionary/google it or do they just continue reading and forget about the word?

If the definition of the word can't be inferred by the use, then I'll usually stop and look it up immediately.

That said, as an author, I try not to use too many $100 words for just that reason. You don't WANT to have your reader stop reading your story for any reason. My job as a romance author is not to educate the reader (though, at least in the case of my vintage work, I imagine I do to a certain extent), but to entertain.

Thankfully, because of all the reading I do and have done I have a decent-sized vocabulary so I don't have to stop very often.

You?

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There are still two weeks worth of daily book giveaway's over at the Long and the Short of It's reviews blog. So far, sixteen people have won free books! Wouldn't you like to be one of them?

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Dru, writing is not coming along well. The website is sucking all my time. **SIGH**. I did finish the article and will submit it today. Yay! At least that's something.

Thanks for asking :-)

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So...

Dakota flunked yesterday's quiz in her doggy obedience class. Color me frustrated. She did it fine at home, even with distractions (she's supposed to have learned "look" or "watch me" -- to maintain eye contact with you for ten seconds). In the class? I couldn't even get her attention at all. Not AT ALL. Not for one second. The teacher even gave me hot dogs (which gave her the runs later in the day -- so, I've learned). There is a little 12-week-old pug puppy in there who is, by far, the best dog we have. She listens, she obeys, she doesn't get distracted... and she's only 12 weeks! Puts the older dogs to shame.

**sigh**

This week we're supposed to work on loose-leash walking. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Actually, I've been taking Dakota out on my bike and running her to work off some of her crazy energy, and it seems to work. So, maybe I'll run her up and down the street first and THEN work on her leash training. Of course, she needs to be able to obey, even when she's keyed up, but it's a start.

I have a feeling we're going to be repeating the class. For a smart dog, she's awfully resistant to learning.

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The Keys to Your Life

Anything good in your life comes from boldly confronting the darkness. Illusions are dangerous, and you benefit from seeing the world as it truly is. Anything bad in your life comes from sinking to the level of those around you. Remember to lift people up, and refuse to participate in anything petty.

The Keys To Your Life