Creative Writing: Word Choice

Module 7: Word Choice

Write the right words — craft powerful sentences that elevate your story

Great writing isn’t just about what you say — it’s how you say it. In this linguistically rich and hands-on workshop, Iain McKinnon helps you master the building blocks of style, tone, rhythm, and clarity through better word choice.

Whether you’re aiming for the precision of Hemingway or the poetic repetition of Churchill, you’ll explore how different words shape your voice, character, and emotional impact. From the origins of English vocabulary to modern-day semantics, this session will sharpen your language toolkit and deepen your creative expression.

In this workshop, you'll:

• Understand denotation vs connotation — and why word feelings matter as much as definitions
• Explore semantic drift and how words shift meaning over time
• Learn the power of verbs over adjectives, and how to “show, not tell”
• Practise using strong verbs, active voice, and parallelism to make your writing sing
• Avoid “filtering” language and zombie nouns that weaken your prose
• Examine how culture, sound, and even name endings shape perception and narrative tone

From the poetic to the punchy, you’ll come away from this session with practical, immediately usable tools to enhance your voice, tighten your prose, and leave a lasting impact on your reader.

All language guides, word lists, and writing exercises are available at www.iain-mckinnon.com for continued reference and development.

Whether you write fiction, memoir, or genre fiction, this workshop will help you write with clarity, confidence, and creativity.

Module 1: Introduction to Creative Writing, Rules & PURPOSE
Module 2: Metrics, Motivation & Productivity
Module 3: What is a Novel & Genre
Module 4: Plot
Module 5: Character
Module 6: Theme
Module 7: Word Choice
Module 8: Writing Scenes – SORCA
Module 9: Dialogue
Module 10: World Building
Module 11: Language Building
Module 12: Narrative Positioning & Description over Exposition
Module 13: Concept Mapping
Module 14: Constraint and Creativity
Module 15: Defamiliarization & NLP
Module 16: Suspense, Tension, Hooks & Cliffhangers & LOCK
Module 17: Editing
Module 18: Drafting your Novel with ChatGPT
Module 19: From Hook to Inbox: Blurbs, Synopses & Query Letters for Novelists
Module 20: Author Function – Social Media Guide

http://www.iain-mckinnon.co.uk/creative-writing-course.html

Secure your spot today and let's embark on this transformative writing course together!