Unlock the Hidden Power of Your 20,000-Word Brain
While your brain holds an impressive array of more than 20,000 words, you likely use only a small fraction of them. That fraction is often filled with words that are overused, vague or have lost their impact. And a thesaurus and AI have their limits!
I had the idea for this blog—my first ever—to talk about the rerelease of one of my books, A Cure for the Common Word (more on the book later). But over the last few months, I’ve received so many questions not just about vocabulary, but also about help with writing and speaking, grammar, punctuation, language, and even publishing—that I decided to expand the blog to cover all of these fun (okay, not always fun) topics.
Here’s a useful tip to start with.
A lot of people have trouble remembering when to use its and when to use it’s.
TIP: Instead of working to remember or look up multiple rules, maybe this will make it easier to remember when to use which:
it’s—Only means “it is”!
its—Use for everything else. (Technically, its means belongs to it. Use it like you would use his and hers.)
Are there any The Adaam’s Family fans out there thinking, What if I’m referring to Cousin It’s long hair—don’t I use an apostrophe there? Yes, you do—but, really, how often is that situation going to come up?
It’s hard for me to believe, but I’ve been in the publishing industry for over 40 years. I started as a proofreader (my first job was proofreading a biography of Roy Orbison). I then went on to provide editorial services to hundreds of publishers and corporations worldwide, through my company Creative Solutions Editorial, which I sold in 2005. And I’ve been a publisher, as cofounder and CEO of Untreed Reads Publishing, which we sold in 2022. Now I’m working as a publishing consultant on all aspects of writing and publishing—sharing my experience and connections with authors and companies.
I’ve learned a lot in those 40 years—about as much from my mistakes as from my successes. I want to help you avoid some of the mistakes, and get the successes faster, and hopefully, more easily.
In each blog, I’ll have Tips and Tools about:
- Building Vocabulary—whether English is your first language or not.
- Writing and Speaking—whether you’re a book author, speaker, student or professional. These are for anyone who is writing and speaking—and wants to do it well.
- Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation—whether you need more info in your professional life or just want to know it for yourself.
- Publishing Insights—whether you’re a publisher, or someone navigating the moving landscape of publishing.
Ready for a few more tips?
Writing and Speaking
(adapted from my book with coauthor Merilee Eggleston, The McGraw-Hill Desk Reference for Editors, Writers, and Proofreaders):
Effective writing depends on two things—what you say and how you say it.
Limit pronouns as sentence subjects. It, she, he and they can be ambiguous.
Tom told Jerry he should update the report.
Who should update the report—Tom or Jerry?
Publishing Insights
Did you know that when you publish an ebook through Amazon that if the price is below $2.99 or above $9.99, Amazon takes a commission of approximately 65% right off the top? Ouch!
Now…back to talk a bit about my book A Cure for the Common Word.
Though there is usually one specific rule for each grammar and punctuation usage, when it comes to word usage, there are infinite choices to make. A Cure for the Common Word (Cure for short) is for everyone—students, professionals, writers, speakers—who wants to increase their vocabulary to a higher, precise and more effective level.
As indicated at the beginning of this post, most of us have a vocabulary of around 20,000 words—and we don’t use them all. The other problem is that the ones we do use are often overused, vague or have lost their impact.
Often, changing one word in a sentence can either subtly or dramatically change your message—or how your message is interpreted—so you want to choose words that precisely convey your intended meaning.
Think of Cure as an expanded thesaurus—with a lot more help. Cure provides precise, engaging alternatives to 100 overused or misused words. With at least 15 refined substitutes for each, plus definitions, synonyms, example sentences and witty quotes, this guide makes expanding your vocabulary both practical and enjoyable.
Here’s an excerpt from the book.
Common Word #18
correct (adjective)
free from error; especially conforming to fact or truth
example: Make sure to use correct details in the brochure.
Diagnosis
Correct can refer to changes in etiquette or tone, so a more precise word would help determine the changes needed to improve the brochure’s effectiveness.
Remedies
Substitute an alternative remedy for correct:
Make sure to use ________ details in the brochure.
| appropriate | The details need to be suitable for this particular brochure. |
| factual | All details in the brochure should be verifiably accurate. |
| legitimate | The details need to be in accordance with established standards. |
| on target | The information in the brochure should reach a particular audience. |
| precise | The brochure needs to say exactly what it needs to say and no more. |
| proper | The brochure needs to be fitting for the company and its image. |
| undistorted | The details should not be altered or misrepresented. |
Additional Cures for the Common Word
| actual | defined | suitable |
| applicable | germane | true |
| apropos | impeccable | unmistakable |
| authentic | pertinent | veracious |
| concrete | relevant | verifiable |
CURED!
In suggesting gifts: money is appropriate, and one size fits all.
William Randolph Hearst
Cyberspace: a consensual hallucination experienced daily by billions of legitimate operators, in every nation.
William Gibson
***
If you have any comments, questions and suggestions, or want to join my Words Work newsletter, feel free to email me at kd@cureforthecommonword.com.
I’m also planning to start a mobile app and a YouTube channel, and create workbooks to accompany this version of Cure, as well for future releases in a Cure series, and I welcome any suggestions on those too.
Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next time.
K.D.