Paraphrased from the pen of an insightful publishing executive:
Sometimes choosing exactly the right words can be difficult, especially with so many available in the English language. So many contexts. Specific syntax. Audiences. What a remarkable discovery was the thesaurus. I dare say discovery not invention, because hey, wasn’t it inevitable? As writers, we’d be lost without it. Even among the most encyclopedic, how can we deny the thesaurus as an invaluable tool?
When Peter Mark Roget first published the thesaurus in 1852, die-hard dictionary-purists most likely refused to recognize its value. How many years or generations must have passed before the thesaurus and dictionary were to coexist in compliment of each other as they do now? No one thinks twice about picking up the one most appropriate at any given time.
It would be futile to engage a conversation regarding which is better – the dictionary or the thesaurus. They serve different functions. Need several definitions of a word to choose from? Pick up the dictionary. Need to choose the best definition? The thesaurus will deliver.
Let’s consider self-publishing as the thesaurus. The traditional publishing houses in New York are the dictionaries. One isn’t better than the other – they are just different. Serve different ends in the broader order of writing. But all writers, even dictionary-purists, would do well to consider using both. Brings to mind our recent news about Steven Covey’s decision to self-publish.
Food for thought as you keep up the most important task – writing.
– Karl Schroeder
Self Publishing Advisor 