Hi Bernard. I wonder can you give me a bit of literary advice. I am beavering away at a historical novel and I am wondering about the choice of some words. I am steering clear of as many clichés as possible especially modern ones but I am wondering about the use of such words as "electrifying". The period of the novel is well before electricity was discovered so is it OK to use this and similar words which probably did not exist at the time the novel was set. How do you manage such words or is it a case that the reader will not notice?? Am I being too careful? Do you take the approach of trying not to use words which have entered the language recently?? Thanks Bernard, I really appreciate being able to ask you such questions. Regards Willie
Well, we all make mistakes with this, I do, anyway, but I really don't think you can use 'electrifying' before electricity . . . . I use the 20 volume Oxford English Dictionary when I'm uncertain - it provides the earliest known citation for every word (electrify - 1745, electric - 17th century, but rare). But mistakes happen, sadly - in one of the grail quest books I used 'gunwale', not for a moment realising (obviously) that that word only came into use after the introduction of cannons on ships.