The English language is very precise…

“The English language is very precise.”

It’s a phrase I’ve heard many times from my father-in-law to my husband. Usually it is in jest and has now become a running joke.

But it is completely true.

I’m launching a new website that will host three separate publications at one place. The construction, introduction and application of this project has been far beyond what I expected. It has come down to conveying clearly what I intended. Thus, being very precise.

The. English. Language. Is. Very. Precise.

Precise.

As writers, there’s nothing that describes our job better. We tell a story and it must be clear. If the reader gets lost, they’ll set the book down, which is the very thing you never want to happen (until the reader reaches the last page.)

How can we be precise? Learn our craft, study it. English class doesn’t end after you’ve graduated. We utilize the dictionary and thesaurus, but it cannot be our crutch. We must work sentences until they are perfect. That’s the job.

Having said all this, I must confess: I’m horribly (horribly) un-precise when it comes to speaking. Thus, why I write.

I jumble my words and get ahead of myself sometimes. And I always hear that voice in my head. “The English language is very precise…”

Yes, it is. Thanks to my father in law for the lesson in writing! (And he doesn’t even know it!)