Words Have Power
Yes, words have power. You know that. But do you know how much power they have?
Consider this. What if I had titled this post ‘The Power of Words’?
That phrase, while acting in the same capacity as the actual title here, does not bear the impact of ‘Words Have Power’. It sounds more like a thoughtful, professorial essay on the subject, maybe one with citations and everything. Interesting reading.
ho-hum.
‘Words Have Power’, however, is a bold statement, an assertion of a fact that emphasizes its importance and challenges you to think and even discuss its truth.
For those of you who suspect, yes, it is in part because of the use of active voice rather than passive. [rewrite: For you suspicious readers, it’s indeed because I used active voice. Active voice=assertion, confidence, power] You see what I did there.
So. Fine. Words Have Power. What do we do with that power?
We rock our lovers’ world. And then we break their hearts. We create images of great beauty with sensory depiction: sight, sound, taste, smell, texture. And then we plunge it into a great abyss of black dejection. We speak volumes in oration and build societies based on great ideas; and we rip them apart through the creation of chaos and destruction.
As writers, how do we achieve this? I’ve already touched on the use of the active voice and strong verbs. Imbuing our words with our passion as we write—granted, less tangible a means than choosing a specific word—is a true if unsung way to write powerful words.
How often have you sat constructing a persuasive essay or argument on a topic you cared deeply about, only to feel the sweat beneath your arms and the palpitations of your heart as you near the finish? It’s not a heart attack, nor even a panic attack. It’s the passion of your heart and thoughts flowing into the words you put down. As your thoughts crescendo and crest upon the page, you imbue them with power that reaches your reader as they absorb them.
Ever cry with real tears at your own words? Choke up reading them aloud at a writers’ group? You have written words with power even to move yourself. Feel your passion as you write, encourage the emotions to surround and invade and enhance your words. Choose conscientiously and wisely, but feel the emotions you want to conjure as you write them. It’s magic. Powerful magic.
