Delicious Words

One of my favorites is intimated. I'm not sure why, but I like how it rolls off my tongue, how it infers meaning ever so slightly, seductively. The core word, intimate, may have something to do with it; intimacy is always a good thing. But regardless of its meaning, I like how it feels when I say it in a sentence.

It got me thinking that others have favorite words, too. A good friend of mine loves the word egomaniacal. I can understand why. It has an unusually good flow about it, never mind about what its definition is.

Being a writer (I fancy myself one), words are very important to me. I like hearing them, digesting them when I read and letting them fully hit my brain with their meaning. The impact can be quite great at times. They create a tone, an understanding and ultimately a connection. That impact can be with another person giving a speech or with characters in the story, but also individuals during conversation. The words people use help me to understand them better, either bringing me closer or tainting what their outer appearance may indicate about them.

Words are used to describe things, they identify what we are trying to talk about. They give clarity and direction. They obviously serve the purpose of being able to communicate with other individuals. It is a rather banal task, but for me it never seems that way. Words are juicy, entertaining and really... just wonderful. :)

Either in this blog or elsewhere, the goal is that readers get me. But they may not. Hopefully I will leave them pondering and coming back to hear more. The words I choose deliberately will set the tone for future engagement with others. I like that. And for that reason, I choose my words carefully, but also purposefully. I have a voice with a distinct message, that is what my writing is about. Or at least that is what I'm trying to convey.

Interestingly, for many years I thought I just loved good music for it richness and ability to weave a melodic current that I connected with. I certainly enjoyed good combinations of instruments and a melody that produced that oh so special quality that kept me physically involved, but I realized that in order for me to truly be sold 100% on the song, it had to have the right lyrics. They had to make sense, they had to fit along with the music and they had to convey some sort of message with the wording. If a songwriter can appeal to my sensitivity to words used well and the music backing it up is original as well as inducing a physical reaction... well, then they are good in my book.

Bottom line... I.love.words. That is all. I didn't really realize that until writing became my focus. When I reflected back, it's always been about the words. I remember when I was younger, the dictionary held my attention quite a bit. It wasn't unusual for me to read it diligently for quite some time after I'd found the word I needed to look up for better understanding. I could actually just read the dictionary for no other reason than for enjoyment. Spelling was my favorite thing in English class. I usually got an A on our weekly tests. Book reports were second in line and listening to oral presentations rounded out my top favorites in school. I truly enjoyed words... listening to them, understanding them and then utilizing them correctly. Interestingly, this didn't dawn on me until I was much older. It's funny how sometimes we don't figure out things about ourselves until we involve ourselves deeply in our passions. I would definitely advocate that we all do that.

What do words do for you? Do you have favorites, too?