Recently, I was asked about tips for vocabulary. I thought it would be useful for everyone if I shared them, so here are some suggestions:
1) Use the books Direct Hits, Core Vocabulary of the SAT (there's two volumes, but you can start with one) if you really want to get serious about it. I ordered this book to help me with the reading section of the SATs, but it was a great tool to improve my vocabulary for writing in general because the author, Ted Griffith, describes the words in a memorable way. Also, Griffith teaches you to use them in the right context, which is much better than just memorizing random, difficult words.
2) Read a variety of different texts. This point has probably been drilled in so many times, but reading is essential to the writing process. If you keep reading a variety of difficult texts, you will come across exceptional words and phrases that you can use in your essays.
3) Always keep a tab open with a thesaurus. I use thesaurus.com whenever I'm doing any writing. I don't just pick the first synonym, but look through numerous options to see if I can rephrase a sentence in a more eloquent way. After a while of doing this, you get a feel for "what words work where". This is especially helpful if I think that I'm repeating a word too much. (Re-reading your writing is super important for this.)
I hope this had some valuable advice, and always feel free to reach out to me with questions. Often times they can result in new blog posts that can help others.
