Drama: July 14, 2021 Issue [#10787] |
This week: Oh, the drama! Edited by: Lilith 🎄 Christmas Cheer More Newsletters By This Editor
1. About this Newsletter 2. A Word from our Sponsor 3. Letter from the Editor 4. Editor's Picks 5. A Word from Writing.Com 6. Ask & Answer 7. Removal instructions
“It ain’t whatcha write, it’s the way atcha write it.”
~ Jack Kerouac, WD
“For your born writer, nothing is so healing as the realization that he has come upon the right word.”
~ Catherine Drinker Bowen
“Style means the right word. The rest matters little.”
~ Jules Renard |
ASIN: B07P4NVL51 |
Product Type: Toys & Games
|
Amazon's Price: Price N/A
|
|
Cut all the adjectives & adverbs" is right up there with "Show, don't Tell", as one of the first "rules" that new writers get told, and for similar reasons. And although it's perhaps responsible for more bland, threadbare writing than almost any other phenomenon except the ghost of Hemingway, it's not entirely nonsense either, any more than Hemingway is.
The truth is, writing would be impossible if we couldn't use adjectives, adverbs and adverbial and adjectival phrases. But although you'll never get me to say that you "should" cut them, there is a whiff of good writerly sense somewhere at the root of it. It's not necessarily a bad idea to take a long, hard look at the quality of adverbs and adjectives in your writing, and seeing if the effect they're trying for would be better achieved another way.
Let's start with some basics first.
What is an adjective?
An adjective is a word or phrase naming an attribute, added to or grammatically related to a noun to modify or describe it.
What is an adverb?
An adverb is a word or phrase that modifies or qualifies an adjective, verb, or other adverb or a word group.
So, this week we are going to take a look as some possible substitutions for the ever-popular 'very'. This is an adverb that can easily be removed from your writing and increase the impact immediately. Here are some suggestions:
Instead of saying... Try saying this...
very afraid terrified
very angry furious
very bad atrocious
very big immense
very good supberb
very large colossal
very roomy spacious
very thin gaunt
very tired exhausted
If you need some help find the right word to replace your 'very whatever', use a thesaurus! Or even WdC's Indeanary which can be found under "Writing.com Tools"!
|
2020 Quill Award Winner x3 - Best New Group,
Best Advice/How-to and Self-help, and Best Educational
| | Breathe (13+) Shaye arrives in the no-stoplight Colorado town, alone, with a plan. #2211576 by Roseille ♥ |
|
Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter! https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
Don't forget to support our sponsor!
ASIN: B01IEVJVAG |
Product Type: Kindle Store
|
Amazon's Price: $ 9.99
|
|
ASIN: B004PICKDS |
Product Type: Toys & Games
|
Amazon's Price: Price N/A
|
|
To stop receiving this newsletter, click here for your newsletter subscription list. Simply uncheck the box next to any newsletter(s) you wish to cancel and then click to "Submit Changes". You can edit your subscriptions at any time.
|
This printed copy is for your personal use only. Reproduction
of this work in any other form is not allowed and does violate its copyright. |