Book Shows How Life Can Be Improved
Through the Knowledge of Words
* NOTE: From time to time, I will be posting information about resources that are potentially life-changing for individuals. This story announces a new book and blog on how using the right words can help make dreams come true.
National Vocabulary Coach of the Year Debbie Watts of Hendersonville, Tenn., has penned a new book to show individuals how life can be improved, enjoyed and celebrated through the knowledge and appreciation of words.
Wordabulous! -- Celebrating the 'Positive Power' of Words, which is published by Shine Time Books, will hit web sites and store shelves in May. Described as a fun-filled guide to a better vocabulary, the book provides the author's insights on words, some "words of wisdom", and chapters arranged in a "word-a-week" configuration.
"The examples I have chosen to use in the book are strictly my own preference," said Watts, who was inspired to write Wordabulous! after being named the country's top vocabulary coach by the Game Show Network. "There is a larger world of words out there, and readers are encouraged to develop a vocabulary that will help make their own lives more successful, enjoyable, and in short, 'wordabulous'."
Readers can improve their word usage by studying famous quotes by legendary writers such as William Shakespeare and Emily Dickinson, new words that are helping shape the 21st Century, the latest text messaging lingo, commonly misspelled words, misused words, and clever quizzes to test one's understanding of words.
Watts is well prepared to take her message into the vocabulary stratosphere. For more than five years, she has inspired teenagers as an award-winning middle school teacher at Merrol Hyde Magnet School in Hendersonville. Before that, she was a highly respected writer and producer of game shows for Reid-Land Productions and an acclaimed performer at Opryland theme park.
Today, she is known as “Word Woman,” a “guru” of grammar, a “high priestess” of pronouns and prepositions, a “comma-mama”, and among other things, a “woman of words”.
“I’m an advocate for life being ‘wordabulous’,” Watts added with a hearty laugh. “‘Word Woman’ fights her arch enemy, ‘apathy’, and inspires her students to ‘arm themselves with an empowering vocabulary’. Come reach into my bag of tricks. The results will be magical.”
In 2007, the Game Show Network and The Princeton Review asked Watts to coach high schoolstudents for the National Vocabulary Championship. She used her “Word Woman” persona (infectious, high-spirited personality) to motivate her students to become “word wizards”. Her “Wonder Woman”-like character would appear in class in full regalia, wearing a magical headdress and wrist deflectors. Each school day, she led a percussion-accented vocabulary ritual, encouraging students to drop newly discovered words into a large box marked “word bank.”
Her creative antics for student motivation were recognized in 2008 when she was named National Vocabulary Coach of the Year. She won a cash prize of $1,000, another $1,000 in books for her school, and an invitation to attend the nationally televised competition in Santa Monica, Calif. The honor landed her news media exposure across Middle Tennessee. She says it was one of the happiest moments in her life and a turning point in her career.
In late 2008, "Word Woman" got to work on her book, developing chapters containing famous quotes, new words for the 21st Century, commonly misspelled words, and professional "buzz words". She even surveyed her students to develop a special chapter on "teenspeak and message lingo". For the "BYOW (Bring Your Own Words)" chapter, she created her own list of new words, including "flibbertigiblets", "rock 'n' rollover", "X-it" and "Zagnut".
Watts, who sidelines as a vocabulary consultant and staff development speaker for Tennessee public schools, plans to launch a national speaking tour after her new book is released. She hasn’t been shy about pursuing every music, broadcast or “wordabulous” opportunity she hears about as the book’s release date nears. Also a singer-songwriter-pianist, she regularly pitches songs to publishers on Nashville’s Music Row and performs on Wednesday evenings at the Loew’s Vanderbilt Plaza Hotel. She currently has a script in development for a full-length feature film on the life of Leonardo Da Vinci.
The budding author already has inspired fellow teachers with the book, Eat My Chalk Dust: Creative Teaching With a Sense of Humor. Her first book, Diary of a Nashville Lady: Recollection & Recipes, is based on a historical/fictional character she created named Elise Bransford. Also on the “writing board” are two heartfelt stories for children.
A number of respected Middle Tennessee professionals have already endorsed Wordabulous!.
"Words are the paint we use to create the pictures of our lives," said Lori Kissinger, executive director of VSA Arts Tennessee and a member of the Department of Speech and Theatre for Middle Tennessee State University. "The larger our vocabulary, the more vibrant our tapestry. The concept of 'wordabulous' is a terrific idea."
"Never have we laughed so hard over a discussion of words," said Barbara Nowak, co-host of Sauced!, a nationally syndicated radio talk show on WLAC-AM 1510 in Nashville. "Words, of course, are serious business. But Debbie has made their usage in everyday situations something to smile about… and to remember."
"Debbie Watts offers a delightful compendium of words, meanings and joyous play with the English language," said Candy Paull, author of The Art of Abundance, The Art of Encouragement, and The Art of Simplicity. "Whether you want to inspire students to love vocabulary or just want to savor the flavor of both new and familiar words, you’ll find tons of word fun in this book."
