The Power of Words

Two years ago I had the wonderful opportunity to work with a rehab shelter for young women, most of them under twenty-one and many pregnant, who were recovering from drug addiction.  One of the most powerful things we discovered for all of them was their inability to use words to express their emotions.  We worked on this for many months with poetry writing, letter writing, and finally they wrote a play which they produced and put on for family, friends and their children.  It was a wonderful experience and one I miss and hope to repeat in the future.

Words are our most powerful weapon.  We use them to convey our love, our disapproval and sometimes to manipulate people.  As a motivational speaker we use words to change the thoughts, beliefs and sometimes the actions of the people we're speaking to.

In writing, authors use words to convey the emotions and sometimes the personalities of their characters.  My sister-in-law commented that I sometimes used "bad words" in my novels.  I laughed and stated: "It's hard to write a hard-core FBI agent who comes upon a brutal murder scene and have him say "sugar-beads.'"

So what gives words their power?  Basically they're hooks.  And the power lies in the meaning of the word to the persons who hear them.  Powerful weapons, or meaningless manipulations.  Words trigger emotions and emotions trigger actions.  I could say "I love you", but I don't know who is reading this post so if I don't know you, how can I possible truly love you.  I could say "I hate you", but the same would hold true.  I don't know you, so how can I possibly feel strongly enough about you to hate you?

Words without an emotional attachment are usually meaningless to the person reading or listening to them, and basically in time will bore a person to tune them out.  So how do we write exciting words that keep our readers turning pages?  We have to combine those words with emotions and meaning.  We do that with body language and punctuation.

Carrie turned back to the sink and continued slicing vegetables. "I said no."
Carrie turned back to the sink and continued slicing vegetables. "I said no!"
Carrie turned back to the sink, sighing deeply as she slammed the knife into the cutting board. "I.. said... no."

Each of these basically say pretty much the same thing, but express a different emotional state.  In sentence one, Carrie is basically just telling her listener that the answer is no. She's said it before, but she's still calm, and conveying the message without anger or frustration.  In sentence two Carrie is getting angry and frustrated and shouting "I said no!"  Her body language is still controlled and she's expressing her anger through her words only.   In sentence three Carrie is basically losing control as she slams the knife into the cutting board, taking her anger out both in her words and her body language.

As a method of power, sentence one might be enough for someone who was simply asking a question, like a child who wants a cookie.  Carrie says no, end of it with a well mannered child or someone listening who is willing to take no for an answer.  Sentence two goes further and could be the mother who is tired and has a  child, or adult for that matter, who repeatedly asks the same question. It insinuates she's said no before and more than once.  Sentence three is basically a woman who has pretty much reached the end of her rope.  Emphasizing each individual word I...said...no.  She isn't shouting, but using what is actually a more dangerous tone of voice.  Most likely deep, bitter and controlled.

With writing, as with life--emotions run the show.  Love, joy, pleasure, anger, fear, pain.  The only way your reader can possibly feel these emotions is if your character is feeling those emotions.  Jacody Ives said it best in The Gifts--the impact of words was in direct correlation to the emotions of the reader. Words could be twisted, knives to open up wounds long hidden. Maneuvered to evoke buried nightmares. Bare the soul, expose the wound, and you had a best seller.  Make them laugh.  Make them cry.  But above all, make them feel something.

A good writing habit is to set aside what you wrote this morning and come back to it in several hours.  Look at the scene, the words or conversation between characters.  Have you conveyed what your character is feeling?  Do you feel it?  Have you conveyed what your character is thinking?  Do you feel it?   If you feel it, then there's a good chance your readers will feel it, making their reading experience far more enjoyable.

Have a wonderful day!

Stop by my new website and say hi.  http://www.lindasprather.com

Tell Me A Story - A tribute to Poet Robert Penn Warren

As an author I truly appreciate the beauty of words. If you've read any of my poetry you've probably gathered that I'm not that great a poet. Occasionally something clicks for me and those moments are precious. Words are about passion, and poetry many times is passion at its best. Like the words of a beautiful love song they inspire us to greater heights. I, as an author, use words to weave stories. Stories of love, hate, fear, good and evil. My words aren't always subtle like the poets. And that perhaps is why I have always loved poetry.

Kentucky has had many great poets, and possibly some in the making right now. Robert Penn Warren caught my eye early on with the subtle messages weaved into his words. And if you've ever been to a poetry reading--they're amazing. To have someone read those lines of verse grasping the passion beneath the words.

I combined poetry and story in my second book because of my love of the art, and the passion in those short verses that say so much. Take the poem below, one of my favorites by Mr. Warren. As an author I immediately have a vision of this young man as he stands in the road. His passion to see the world, experience life as yet unknown. To write his story. Perhaps he is a young man in his early teens wanting to spread his wings. He knows there's a world out there. He can't see it, but he's heard about it. And his heart beats to fly into the adult world. Or perhaps he's a young man and war is going on, and he aches to join the fight. Either way you can feel the passion of this young man, standing on a dark country road, hearing the sounds of life in motion, and seasons changing. Or perhaps it is simply the opposite. A time when the Elderberry blooms. Mid-summer. Perhaps he was seeing the days slip by, moving much too fast toward the end of summer.

The ability for the reader to feel the passion, and place upon it their own feelings and emotions is part of the true beauty of these subtly written words.


Robert Penn Warren 1905 - 1989

Tell Me a Story

Long ago, in Kentucky, I, a boy, stood
By a dirt road, in first dark, and heard
The great geese hoot northward.

I could not see them, there being no moon
And the stars sparse.I heard them.

I did not know what was happening in my heart.

It was the season before the elderberry blooms,
Therefore they were going north.

The sound was passing northward.



I hope you enjoyed my tribute to Robert Penn Warren. Look up his poetry, see what passion it inspires in you. Enjoy for this is National Poetry Month.

The ART of Healing

As an author, words are a daily part of my life. Stringing together descriptive words to create a certain scene, a certain mood. And as Gavin McAllister says: “the impact of the words was in direct correlation to the emotions of the reader. Words could be twisted, knives to open up wounds long hidden. Maneuvered to evoke buried nightmares. Bare the soul, expose the wound”.

We often remember hurtful words, hateful words, words thrown out in moments of anger, depression and despair. And words, as well as images, can be incredibly powerful. They can and do create drastic changes in both your mind and your body.

Imagine a scene for just a moment. Your very best friend is about to reveal something to you. He/she states “I booked us on an Alaskan tour.” Your reaction would be elated. Happy. And you would feel that happiness in both your mind and your body. Now, let’s change the scene. And he/she says: “I just found out I have cancer.” The mental and physical reaction is drastically different. Instead of elation, you feel pain, fear, and perhaps just a little anger. Your physical reaction will also be different. Where before you felt energetic, anticipating the cruise, you now feel a certain tightness and/or depression.

There are some words, like the example above, we can’t control. We can’t control the words being spoken to us, nor can we totally control our mental and physical reaction to those words.

But let’s take a look at everyday life. Are we letting words we speak or hear control us? When you utter harsh words to someone it doesn’t just hurt them, it also hurts you. Your own mental and physical well-being are damaged by the internal conflicts of those words. And how often have you been so sorry for words you uttered in anger, or words you lashed out with when in pain? Words you wished you could take back the moment they were spoken?

We all need love, affection and reassurance. Words attached to emotions. In meditation we often give ourselves positive suggestions. In a deepened state of awareness words like: “I am loved” have an overall positive effect on our emotional and mental attitude as well as our physical health.

But we live in the real world the majority of the day, faced with money problems, finding a job, paying the bills, feeding the family, and just trying to survive. So how do we find time to use words that purify our mind of negative thoughts, lighten our mood and add a positive element to both our surroundings and demeanor?

This is where the ART of healing comes in. Try this for just a moment, paying special attention to how you feel emotionally and physically. Sing “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” making the hand motions (yeah, I know you’re at work and everyone is going to think you’re nuts—do it on your lunch hour when you’re alone, or go to the bathroom and sing it to yourself). Actually if managers would take a fifteen minute break and have all the employees sing “Itsy Bitsy Spider, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” I bet production would increase because the employees would feel better both mentally and physically.

It’s hard to sing these little nursery rhymes and not smile. An immediate mood adjustment. And those mood adjustments create an immediate physical reaction, allowing your body for just a moment or two to relax the tension that has been building throughout the day. Relaxing the body allows your organs to function easier, and blood to flow to tense areas. Healing to begin.

Can’t bring yourself to sing nursery rhymes? Then choose another upbeat song. Something you like. Something that makes you feel GOOD. Do this several times a day and you should see a noticeable change in both your mental attitude as well as your physical well-being and even perhaps your surroundings. Happy thoughts create a happy atmosphere.

Have a great day. And give someone a smile—it makes you both feel better.