: Re: How to balance an eloquent character/narrator with the need for readers to understand the story I'm writing a short story told in first person by a character who, an avid book lover, is much

@Jennifer354

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When you introduce a new word, you can provide a context that allows the reader to figure out the meaning.
For instance, in the book The Shadow of the Torturer by Gene Wolfe, he makes use of the word fiacre, which is a horse-drawn carriage which did in old times what a taxi cab does in modern times. When the characters hired a fiacre to go somewhere, Wolfe made sure to provide the context of hiring the fiacre (such as paying the driver, using it to get about town, and so forth), so that the reader can understand that it's a temporary hired ride.
Only if it is impossible to provide the necessary context, you can have some expository dialogue. If you're getting too much of that, then it may be best to drop that particular word in favor of something better-known to the target audience.

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