Words of Wonder: Apricity - with Grant Snider

Do you like using interesting words in your conversations? We do. And there's one that's a tip top favourite...

You're guaranteed* to learn loads of interesting words from this episode.

Special guest Grant Snider - author, illustrator, poet (and orthodontist) talks about the illustration of interesting words, particularly obscure, outdated or esoteric ones. We kick off with a word both Jono and Grant have illustrated: 'apricity,' which means the warmth of the sun in winter and is a big favourite of ours - now that we know it. Grant shares his fascination with words and his 'Words of Wonder' series, where he illustrates intriguing words from his readings. We touch on the emotional connection words can create through compelling illustrations and delve into the creative processes behind these illustrations as well as the influence of childhood comics like Calvin and Hobbes.

Links for further investigation

• Apricity sketches: Jono's Sketchplanation & Grant's Words of Wonder
• Some other of Jono's word-related Sketchplanations we reference are: Snerdle & Greeble
• Previous podcast episodes we bring up include: Schadenfreude and we also talk about Apophenia in the episode on Crossmodal Perception
• Susie Dent's Word of the Day thread on X.
• Jono mentions the fun he had reading Etymologicon by Mark Forsyth
• Grant's latest book Thinking About Thinking is available now.

Episode Summary

00:00 Introduction and Grant Snider's Background

02:18 Exploring the Word 'Apricity'

04:34 Grant's Words of Wonder Series

07:24 The Joy of Learning New Words

11:24 Favourite Words and Their Illustrations

20:28 Exploring Obscure Words and Their Origins

21:16 The Fascinating Concept of 'Greeble'

22:50 The Joy of Discovering New Words

23:52 Sketching Words and Their Meanings

28:22 The Beauty of Children's Language Development

30:35 Grant's New Book: Thinking About Thinking

33:46 The Influence of Calvin and Hobbes

37:04 Grant's Unique Use of Colour in Comics

39:26 Final Thoughts and Upcoming Projects

*We make no actual guarantees.

All music on this podcast series is provided by the highly talented Franc Cinelli

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