Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Adverbs and cliches


Paula wonders why we should avoid adverbs and clichés.
 
I read an interesting, and somewhat eyebrow raising, article this week by a writer who claimed we shouldn’t tie ourselves in knots over not using adverbs, or clichés. Her argument was that we’re not in the business of recreating our language.
 
All languages, she maintained, are full of clichés; they are what people use and understand, so why should we avoid them in our stories and/or agonise over trying to create new ones – which often end up sounding ridiculously laboured and ‘invented’ anyway.
 
Similarly, why shouldn’t we use adverbs? They are part of the richness of our language, so why should we remove them? Her comment was, ‘Where is the space for creativity when you limit the number of paints in the box?’
 
Publishers, she claims, are looking for stories that will appeal to people. Ordinary people. Not literary critics or readers of highbrow stuff (because these kind of readers are well outnumbered by Mr. or Ms. Average Reader). Publishing is a business and publishers want to make money out of us. They’re involved in manufacturing, marketing, sales, and distribution. So we shouldn’t be writing for them, or even for their editors, all of whom have their own individual, and different, ideas about words they like and words they don’t, etc. It seems to be these editors, and the writing tutors who slavishly follow them, who have created the mass of ‘rules’ that we writers are supposed to follow. If we followed them all, we’d end up writing nothing more interesting than a list of ingredients found on the back of a cereal packet. Or we’d be so frightened of doing ‘something wrong’ that we wouldn’t write anything at all.
 
That’s not to say we shouldn’t follow the norms of GPS (grammar, punctuation, and spelling), but we should be creating stories that people want to read, whether those stories  mirror their own lives, or provide some escapism from their lives. And if those stories include adverbs and clichés with which people are already familiar, then why not use them? We should be writing for the people who want to read our work, and not to accommodate the whims of a single agent or editor.
 
I’ve summarised the article here, but it certainly made me think! I know we have to get past the ‘gatekeepers’ in the publishing world, but is it time those gatekeepers became more flexible (and stopped creating their own rules)?

13 comments:

  1. I feel no urge to fight with the gatekeepers when the option of self-publishing is available.

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  2. I believe if the story is compelling and well-written, it will be accepted. If those two things happen, then whether or not you follow the rules is addressed during the editing process, where there is more flexibility. There is no editor out there who will turn you down strictly because you used too many adverbs--they'd never make money. There has to be another reason.

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  3. Good point, Jen.
    There is reason to edit out "He said loudly." in favor of "He shouted."

    And I am not a fan of sentences like: "Her long, blonde hair fell past her pale, slender shoulders onto her blue brocade gown."

    Skilled use of adverbs and adjectives is a wond'rous thing. Pedantic applications take me out of the read.

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  4. There is something to be said against over-use of adverbs,(Ana Morgan made a great example), on the other hand, you have to be descriptive at times.Readers are not psychics,(at least, not most of them).
    These are like the so-called 'rule' against semi-colons;however,they do have a place.
    I agree that less is more when it comes to cliches(!) but the reason that there ARE cliches is that people use them! Like radio stations that never play Chopin's Minute Waltz or the Rolling Stone's Jumping Jack Flash and instead play some obscure composer or something that was #11 on the top ten list at the time, certain figures of speech are used by people because they suit a purpose because they are well-known and understood.

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  5. Ana, it seems to be as difficult to self-publish as to get past the gatekeepers, judging by the frustrations I've heard from some self-publishers.

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  6. Jen, I think you are right, but I have no idea when and where all these 'rules' crept in, or who actually 'invented' them! The main issue, as I see it, is that writers are wary of using them, whereas many readers wouldn't even notice!

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  7. Tonette, you are right about 'less is more', and also that people do often use clichés when they are speaking, and when they are thinking about something. Why reinvent the wheel when it has already been invented!
    There are obviously times when one stronger word can replace said + adverb, but equally there are times when an adverb can do its job perfectly of qualifying a verb in a way that no single word can do.

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  8. I agree with the publishers on this. We need to write for ordinary people, not literary critics. Great article.
    I've joined as a follower to this sight, and I know I'm going to be smiling about that.
    Deb@ http://debioneille.blogspot.com

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    1. Debi, the problem with some publishers (as I see it) is that they (or they editors) can be too concerned with the 'minor' style issues, instead of concentrating on the story itself!
      Thanks for following us, and hope you'll enjoy our posts :-)

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    2. I have read that editors look for any "excuse" to reject a submission that doesn't immediately grab them. Uninspiring adverb or adjective use could be one "excuse."

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    3. This made me smile, because my very first novel (which was accepted by Mills and Boon back in the 60s) was littered with 'said + adverbs' ! Times have changed since then LOL! I think maybe it's the overuse, rather than the occasional use, of adverbs that 's the non-no. Same with a plethora of adjectives. As with everything, less is more!

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  9. I'm totally on board with this article. I tend to use a lot of adverbs.

    And I agree that every publisher and editor is different. Some don't like adverbs, some don't like pronouns, etc.

    I still think we all need to write the stories in our hearts in our own voice and figure things out from there!

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    1. You're absolutely right, Debra. If we try to follow all the so-called 'rules' about style, we're in danger of losing our own voice. I'm aware of times where I've tried to omit an adverb, not been happy with the result, and put it in again!

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