Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Need A New Word

While driving home from the gym (yes, the gym!) last night, I was rehearsing my upcoming agent/editor pitch. It started with something like, "I was the girl..."

Hm, I thought. Maybe I'm kinda outta the "girl" category.

Okay. "I was the woman..."

That didn't sound right, either. More mature than I give myself credit for.

Which is when I started running through the synonyms.

Lady? Too prim and proper.

Gal? Too forties.

Female? Too clinical.

Chick? Too young, hip, and probably used only by men.

Broad? Ditto that last part (and I'm sure there are a variety of other alternatives used by men we don't need to consider).

I tell ya, I'm stymied.

5 comments:

Reagan said...

You might just have to go with "I was the one..."

Makes you feel really special and feminine, right? ;)

John said...

Two thoughts.

1. Why are you wazzing? I am...It isn't about the past, it is about now.

2. Be the writer; that's who you are.

I am the writer...

Randy said...

It's about the past when your connection to the editor happened in the past. :)

Carol Burnside aka Annie Rayburn said...

Use a descriptive or avoid altogether.

Ex: I was the pooped conference attendee who accosted you on the sidewalk outside... (just kidding!)

Ex: You may not remember, but we shared a cab on the way to the airport after...

John said...

OK, I was the writer...

Actually, for female reference, I like lady over woman or girl (unless it is someone under 25). It comes from liking the song by Kenny Rogers.