Improve your writing with precise and meaningful descriptors

Use these terms to better describe items and ideas to your readers. 

Ragan Insider Premium Content
Ragan Insider Content

I was immediately curious about her approach to writing. As a medical writer, I would be at a complete loss if I had to describe how something tastes. I simply don’t have the command of adjectives and adverbs required for that type of writing.

She told me that in her work, she’s very attentive to how the food tastes and how it’s cooked, and she’s very deliberate in how she describes the food. She also said that it helps to have a good thesaurus “so you can look up the 100 other words for ‘succulent.'”

The lesson I learned from our conversation is that no matter what you’re writing, you should pay close attention to your descriptors. Are they precise and meaningful? Would someone understand how something tastes based on your description?

To read the full story, log in.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today

Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.