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Saturday, 11 April 2015

J is for Jejune


For this year's A-Z Challenge I have selected a word from the dictionary for each day and written a story around it with a 100 word limit. For extra interest I have chosen words that are unknown or unfamiliar to me. All definitions are from the Oxford Dictionary & Thesaurus 2007 Edition. Today's word is Jejune.

 Jejune: 1. Naive and simplistic. 2. (Of ideas or writings) dull.
Everything had been terribly jejune before April. He didn’t know what it was, he was just going round in circles, nothing was happening in his novel, the characters needed a personality transplant or just a kick up the jacksie. But the stuff he was doing now was some of his best ever writing. Having to come up with a different short story every day was making his synapses fizz and go in loads of directions. And daily feedback helped to show what might be worth pursuing. Already he had ideas for several books. He’d recommend the A-Z Challenge to anyone.
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33 comments:

  1. Michael Abayomi11 April 2015 at 07:48

    There is something distinctly autobiographical about this piece, innit? :)

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  2. Tasha Duncan-Drake11 April 2015 at 11:08

    *claps* I love what you did there :) Also, new word on me again.
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)

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  3. Keith's Ramblings11 April 2015 at 11:40

    What a great sounding word. Far too good for it's meaning!

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  4. Alex J. Cavanaugh11 April 2015 at 12:39

    One of the bonuses of the Challenge!

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  5. Alex Hurst11 April 2015 at 12:54

    I'd tend to agree. Hopefully things will be far less jejune by the end of the month, and this writer will have enough material to keep him busy for months. ;)

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  6. Stephanie Faris11 April 2015 at 13:38

    That's a strange word! I can't say I'd ever use it, mostly because naive and dull just say it so much better!

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  7. Jennifer Hawes11 April 2015 at 13:45

    I see what you did there. It's nice to have plenty of ideas for stories, rather than none or only one:)

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  8. Chrys Fey11 April 2015 at 15:18

    Jejune is a cool word. “kick up the jacksie” Haha! I like how you found a way to include A to Z. 

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  9. Susan Gourley/Kelley11 April 2015 at 15:30

    That word doesn't mean what I thought it meant. Hope that is a true story today.

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  10. betty11 April 2015 at 15:35

    This was cute; and I agree with what Susan said. I hope it is a true story today :)

    When I first read this, I thought April was going to be a girl until the end and then of course I realized it was the month :)

    betty

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  11. Hilary Melton-Butcher11 April 2015 at 15:51

    Hi Nick - Jejune - is a good word .. needing to be used judiciously .. otherwise readers won't exactly know what we're inferring.

    I do love your post and the way you constructed it to explain jejune ...

    Cheers Hilary

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  12. Trisha11 April 2015 at 16:04

    I should definitely focus on writing snippets next year, then - so I can stop feeling so very jejune!! :P

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  13. Holly Jahangiri11 April 2015 at 16:50

    Hahaha...a little autobiographical, isn't it?

    :)

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  14. Annalisa Crawford11 April 2015 at 17:01

    Love it!

    Annalisa, writing A-Z vignettes, at Wake Up, Eat, Write, Sleep

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  15. cleemckenzie11 April 2015 at 18:05

    This is the first word you've posted that I actually did know! At last.

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  16. djinnia11 April 2015 at 18:13

    If only that were true for me. I think mine have atrophied.

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  17. J E Oneil11 April 2015 at 19:27

    Finally, a word I've heard of, although I didn't really know what it meant.

    So does this story have some real world inspiration? :)

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  18. Shell Flower11 April 2015 at 20:09

    That is awesome that you are getting inspired by the challenge. I do hope this is true and not just fiction.

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  19. Stephen Tremp11 April 2015 at 21:40

    I learned a new word today. Not sure if I'll ever use it, but it's good to know.

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  20. Liz A.11 April 2015 at 22:29

    Ah yes. A word I remember from French class...

    Liz A. from Laws of Gravity

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  21. Donna McDine11 April 2015 at 23:58

    How cool is that! Keep up the great work! Hope you are enjoying the A-Z Challenge!

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  22. Empty Nest Insider12 April 2015 at 02:23

    Now that's anything but a jejune story! What an excellent ending too!

    Julie

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  23. Cortney Pearson12 April 2015 at 02:35

    Jejune...it sounds/looks French! Great word, and I like the piece too, ha ha. :D

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  24. J Lenni Dorner12 April 2015 at 10:08

    LOL! Loving this post.

    Funny side note- I used this same word two years ago for A to Z.
    (Please don't mind the odd spacing, or the captcha killing request. My blog has since relocated, and moved posts suffered slightly. The words are still good though!
    http://jlennidornerblog.what-are-they.com/2013/04/11/jejune/ )

    Anyway, hope you're enjoying the 2015 challenge as much as I am. Keep up the great work.

    J

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  25. liz young12 April 2015 at 10:49

    Neat twist on yourself there!

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  26. Sophie Duncan12 April 2015 at 10:51

    Nicely done! This made me smile - glad the A to Z is working for you!

    And I learnt another new word.

    Sophie
    Sophie's Thoughts & Fumbles
    FB3X
    Wittegen Press

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  27. Jemima Pett12 April 2015 at 11:05

    I know what you mean! Great use of the prompt :)

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  28. Susan Scott12 April 2015 at 12:08

    Thanks for this, a lovely explanation. I'll be going back - and forward to keep up to date with these posts!

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  29. loverofwords12 April 2015 at 18:08

    Jejune, does juvenile stem from that word, I wonder? It would make sense. (Sometimes my comments are jejune).

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  30. J.L. Campbell12 April 2015 at 19:36

    Interestingly, I only came across this word recently when I was thinking about my J post.

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  31. Jean Davis12 April 2015 at 21:12

    I see what you did there. ;)

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  32. Michelle Wallace13 April 2015 at 20:33

    Very smart, Nick!
    I love the direction in which you took the word...

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  33. Kathryn Thornton14 April 2015 at 02:29

    I love how topical you made this. Lovely job

    Writing daily really does help. So does reading well written books.

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