{"id":11501,"date":"2025-08-05T07:39:33","date_gmt":"2025-08-05T11:39:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=11501"},"modified":"2025-10-06T11:31:36","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T15:31:36","slug":"every-words-a-choice-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=11501","title":{"rendered":"Every Word&#8217;s a Choice &#8212; Part 2 &#8212; Nouns Name the World"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"584\" height=\"465\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?resize=584%2C465&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11502\" style=\"width:272px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?resize=1024%2C816&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?resize=300%2C239&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?resize=150%2C119&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?resize=377%2C300&amp;ssl=1 377w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?w=1400&amp;ssl=1 1400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/tin-hat.jpg?w=1168&amp;ssl=1 1168w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To get the most out of this series of posts on ways for writers to \u201cfind the best words,\u201d you may want to give a read to Eric Bogle\u2019s bush ballad, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishsongs.com\/lyrics.php?Action=view&amp;Song_id=27\">The Band Played Waltzing Matilda.<\/a>\u201d The first four verses illustrate many points I\u2019ll be making. Many versions of the song are on YouTube, but reading it is probably best at first, because it\u2019s free of the singer\u2019s interpretation. It\u2019s just you and the words. Like your readers and your words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once you\u2019ve read it, I hope you agree the songwriter chose words that effectively create a moving lyric. It\u2019s full of descriptive language. Which <em>individual words<\/em> strike you? Here are two that particularly strike me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201ctin hat\u201d\u2014doesn\u2019t sound like it would give much protection does it? To me, \u201ctin hat\u201d immediately conjures an image like that above. Vulnerability.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>how about \u201ccorpses\u201d? Most times we\u2019d say \u201cbodies\u201d here, but corpses is so much more powerful. We all have a body, we think of our bodies, we don\u2019t think of ourselves as a \u201ccorpse.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Nouns Name the World<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"584\" height=\"365\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Planets.jpg?resize=584%2C365&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11503\" style=\"width:363px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Planets.jpg?resize=1024%2C640&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Planets.jpg?resize=300%2C188&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Planets.jpg?resize=150%2C94&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Planets.jpg?resize=480%2C300&amp;ssl=1 480w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Planets.jpg?w=1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chances are, some of the words you picked out from the song are powerful nouns. Picking the right noun is the first step in establishing a relationship with your readers. Think back to how nouns were described in elementary school: Nouns NAME THINGS. The right noun tells readers what you\u2019re talking about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You probably recognize \u201cWaltzing Matilda\u201d\u2014it\u2019s called the \u201cunofficial national anthem of Australia.\u201d But do you know what \u201cWaltzing Matilda\u201d actually means? It isn\u2019t a ballroom dance. In Australian slang, \u201cwaltzing\u201d means traveling on foot. Americans use \u201cwaltz\u201d to signal an easy accomplishment, often one a person is rather smug about: You might write,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\u201cThe detective waltzed into the squad room, grinning. \u2018I solved the case!\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What about \u201cMatilda\u201d? \u2013 Not a girlfriend. A Matilda is a backpack and sleeping gear. So to go \u201cwaltzing Matilda\u201d is to hike the country carrying your possessions with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We know what the \u201coutback\u201d is\u2014thank you, Outback Steak House. What about Murray\u2019s green basin? The Murray is Australia\u2019s longest river. Since so much of the country is desert or semi-arid, the green along the river is precious. The Circular Quay, near the end of the song, is Sydney Harbor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now that we\u2019re oriented, let\u2019s examine some of the other things its nouns do. A number of words here serve as <strong>touchstones\u2014or anchors<\/strong>\u2014for the reader\u2014particularly for an Australian hearer, but for anyone who knows a little history. Touchstones bring you and your reader onto the same page. They build rapport between you. They let you inside their heads, linking your story to things they already know and have feelings about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two of those touchstones provide the first signal of what\u2019s coming: <em>1915, Gallipoli<\/em>. Most people born in the 20<sup>th<\/sup> Century will know instantly the song is about World War I, even if Eric Bogle hadn\u2019t then written \u201cmarched me away to the war.\u201d The instant the verse lands on \u201c<em>Gallipoli<\/em>,\u201d we know tragedy looms. (And notice <strong>where<\/strong> this ominous word is strategically placed\u2014at the end of the line for maximum impact.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But even if you\u2019ve forgotten that terrible battle, plenty of details fill you in. The songwriter pulls you in deep with \u201c<em>Johnny Turk was ready<\/em>.\u201d This reference is a little more esoteric, unless you\u2019re a history buff. The ill-prepared Australian troops were ordered to march ashore with virtually no covering fire because their officers were overconfident. Plus their maps were wrong. Plus their intelligence was bad. They simply believed the Turks were no match for troops with <em>British<\/em> leadership. They believed the Turks would NOT be ready, but it was the British who weren\u2019t prepared. So, that line is a little jab at the Brits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In our song, many of the specific geographic touchstones\u2014the outback, Murray\u2019s green basin, Circular Quay\u2014are well-known to Australian hearers. Eric Bogle could use them because he knew his hearers would understand what they were\u2014and what they stood for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Americans have significant touchstones too. If we mention any of them, we\u2019re likely to evoke a particular feeling. We don\u2019t need a lengthy explanation of certain times (9\/11, D-Day), places (Pearl Harbor, Selma), events (the Kennedy assassination, Hurricane Katrina), mindsets (The Depression) or geography (The West, Martha\u2019s Vineyard). You can make a connection with most Americans with just those words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Obviously, you have to be judicious. You don\u2019t want to evoke the wrong thing. Referring to Ruby Ridge could pull up a range of feelings. Readers might also have unpredictable reactions to Waco, Watts, Chicago 1968.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you use touchstones in your writing? Could you? In her book <em>The Final Episode,<\/em> Lori Roy uses a fictional touchstone to anchor her story: the kidnapping of a young girl twenty years earlier. Everyone in the book knows and remembers the details of the crime and has had their lives altered because of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019d be interested in knowing what touchstones you may have used.<strong>Part 1:<\/strong><em>Introduction to \u201c Every Word\u2019s a Choice\u201d\u2014finding the best words to tell your story. The series is based on a talk I recently gave at a writers\u2019 conference. Find it here:<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=11484\">https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=11484<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To get the most out of this series of posts on ways for writers to \u201cfind the best words,\u201d you may want to give a read to Eric Bogle\u2019s bush ballad, \u201cThe Band Played Waltzing Matilda.\u201d The first four verses &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=11501\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[174,51,29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-first-draft-blog","category-words","category-writing"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2NkiT-2Zv","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11501"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11501\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11610,"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11501\/revisions\/11610"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}