When I write a book I’m happiest when what I’m saying matches my personality. You know — unpredictable. I like my words to come across as both familiar and surprising at the same time. In turn, I want you, the reader, to want to read each succeeding sentence. Not only because you wonder what’s coming next plotwise but also because you want to know what’s coming next wordwise. For instance, I’m into crime. Four of my six books are crime related. And with crime, especially true crime, the criminal has already written the plot for you. What keeps you interested is the bonding you do with the characters and how the story is told.
Typical plot: A wants something B has. A develops a bad idea on how to obtain said something from B and then blammo, B is found floating face down in an open sewer. Then C gets involved. She might be wearing a brown corduroy jacket with a spaghetti-stained black tie. C’s goal is to figure out who caused B’s untimely demise.
So now you’ve got the plot. Next comes the character development. Authors usually start with a physical description, like their character’s height, hair color and what they’re wearing. Similar to what a cop might write in his police report. But what really piques the reader’s interest is the character’s personality. Is the fellow mellow? Is he phobic. Is he into eating greasy pizza by the truckload? Or is he more of a carrot type of guy? I like offbeat personalities myself. Folks with baseless fears and daily struggles. Kind of like me, except maybe a little more felonious.
All of the above and the “how the story is told” part is why I developed my alternative thesaurus: writersthesaurus.com. This thesaurus takes a different approach. It is not so much a collection of synonyms but rather a collection of words associated with other words, phrases and half-sentences. It contains descriptions, lists, idioms, body language, slang, examples, quotes, expletives, and more. Hopefully, it will provide you with both substance and ideas. My plan is that this thesaurus will be fluid and alive; continuously changing, growing, and updating. I welcome any and all suggestions.
Side note: my thesaurus is not meant to replace the traditional thesaurus. Not at all. If anything, it’s meant to augment it and glorify it. This new, re-imagined thesaurus is like a trendy spice for your condiment rack or a hot-off-the-presses novel for your bookshelf. You just gotta have it.
At least I’m hoping you’ll feel that way.
I’m also hoping that after exploring the site for awhile you will bookmark writersthesaurus.com to include it as a tool in your ever-expanding array of tools in your writer’s toolkit.