Ten writers for children. All with something to say.

2/2/10

New discovery

Reference materials for illustration are completely different than those used for writing, but for either task I look at everything I can get my hands on. I examine both online and library sources. When possible I go to relevant locations and exhibitions. I talk to people with first hand knowledge. The specifics vary.

A constant companion for all writing is my old thesaurus. In contrast to Stephanie’s college roommate, I look for short, clean words. Brevity excites me. Mem Fox said, “One-syllable words, like a good man, are hard to find.” I use my rhyming dictionary often too, finding inspiration on those dog-eared pages! Recently I offered to lend these books to my daughter as she worked on a poetry assignment, but she just smirked. The same tools are available to her on line. I decided to try her approach while I was working on a poem for my Stanford class. I stumbled on an interactive word map/visual thesaurus.
http://www.visualthesaurus.com/howitworks
I love the free association, intuitive dynamic. Language is rich with nuance. Try this out!

6 comments:

Stephanie said...

I love that! I'm going to check it out right now...

Lauren said...

This looks fantastic. I love word maps-- they are how I map out my life, my stories, my plays, my days. Thanks for the quote from Mem Fox-- I love it!

Edie Hemingway said...

This looks like a really interesting resource, Christy. I'll look forward to playing around with it. Thanks!

john said...

I'll take issue with Mem Fox on this. I don't think one syllable words are hard to find. They are all around us. Good men are, too.

Christy said...

Ah yes, then there's you--a good man with two one-syllable words to your name.

Mark said...

Christy, thanks for letting us know about this cool resource.