Don't use the Magic Word
[ Rant / r ă nt/ : to speak or declaim extravagantly or violently; talk in a wild or vehement way; to rave.] T here’s a new magic word. It’s nothing like the one your mother taught you. In fact, mothers everywhere will be horrified that I’m calling it magic. I’m horrified myself. But the word frustrates me. It mystifies me. I can’t get past it – it’s everywhere I turn. It’s thrown into modern literature without profit, adding nothing. It clutters movies, like the intake of breath. And it seems to have power – like magic. My mother’s magic word was a good word. Simple and useful – a word that got me second helpings at dinner or juice. This new magic word can get you things too, I’m afraid. An R rating, if it’s used twice. A nice write up in Rolling Stone if you use it in your song lyrics. Critical acclaim for novelists – maybe even an award. In fact, I can hardly find a novel to read anymore without running into the magic word. Doesn’t th...