The world of impoverished writers and literary hacks.   

[After Grub Street, London; former name of Milton Street, where such writers lived.]

             It is 1:31 in the morning on Grub Street. Hacking away at the keyboard in a state that tension dredged up, Chloe abruptly realizes she doesn't have to finish the novel.  Why? Simple. Chloe could make a better living channeling Howdy Doody than she could on what she would earn from sales of this book. -- N
 

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Eros: (ER-os, IR-) noun    

             1. The god of love, son of Aphrodite in Greek mythology.   

             2. The sum of all instincts for self-preservation. Sexual drive; libido.     

             3. Often eros. Creative, often sexual yearning, love, or desire.   

[Latin Eros, from Greek, from eros, sexual love.]

             Who can say why some spouses become complacent and take the eros of their partner for granted until they hear the squeak of the hinges on the back door for the last time. -- N

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Background: 

Along with countless other people the world over, I enjoy my subscription to A. Word. A. Day. that results in a daily email message with interesting, sometimes completely unknown-to-me words, along with pronounciation guide, etymology typical usage and more.

The New York Times hailed AWADmail as: "The most welcomed, most enduring piece of daily mass e-mail in cyberspace."

One day way back when, I decided that for learning, it would be helpful and fun to use the words AWAD sent to me in a sentence or two. Of course I found myself going beyond that and using them in not-so-obvious ways that entertained my friends as well as myself. Sometimes I use words incorrectly on purpose. But if you know the meaning, you get the joke. It is kind of a backward way of doing things, but that's creativity, right?

The first character inspired by AWAD was Maraj (not her real name.) She has quite a few fans. At the encouragement of several persistent friends, I decided it was time to share her and the others with my new friends here at OS, and begin on the first day of 2010. 

I'm offering vocabulary words I received from AWAD and what I wrote to practice using them. Tell me this isn't a much more fun way to work on improving one's vocabulary. Enjoy. Maraj and more will be back – and check out www.wordsmith.org to sign up for the free subscription. They don't know me, but for fun tell them I sent you. Like OS, it can be addictive. -- Natalie