Writing: Four Common Danger Signs

[sinvraal]

The blog io9 has another great writing article up, this time about four common danger signs to look for in your work. It's a heck of a lot easier to run word searches in a fanfic chapter than a whole novel, so it seems like some great advice for things to look out for, both during self-editing runs and as a beta for someone else's work.

Comments

[goes_kaboom]

I am very guilty of the adverb thing (I almost used definitely guilty... see??) Haha. Thanks, amazing article. :D

[decuvieri]

Sure enough, I came across this same article last night. Have had it opened in a tab for reference. :D

Everybody knows about the Deadly Adverbs of Death, but I realized now that I also have an issue starting sentences with 'it'. There was/there were also a visible trend in my writing now that it's been pointed out to me.

[time_ambassador]

I use "was" so much, and I try not to, but it's so hard. I don't know how to avoid using the damn thing.

[wynndfae]

Pfffft. Applying such rules to writing is like fencing in a wild animal. My creativity must roam free!

I love adverbs. I love adjectives. If you ask me, they make the story far more than bland "He said, she said". I want to know what they're feeling, dammit! Are they saying something sadly? Happily? Cheerfully? Mournfully? Where's the human element if all of the adverbs are reined in? Nope, nope. I shall continue to be a staunch advocate of the adverb, to hell with what "professionals" say. It's those professionals that allowed shit like Twilight to be published! Why should I listen to them? Volus!Bah.

[baroque_tragedy]

Yay for adverbs! They get an unfair beat-down, I think. Without a nice smattering of adverbs and adjectives, writing tends to look over-simplified and robotic, imo.

I am a huge fan of lush, descriptive writing, though. So, idk?? It's all in personal taste, I guess?

[iccara]

Well, adverbs aren't bad in and of themselves. The trouble comes when people use them to "tell, not show" instead of "show, not tell."

"She stood there shamefully" works but "She stood with downcast eyes" is a much stronger sentence because it shows the reader how the character is feeling (as well as how she appears) instead of spoonfeeding it to him/her. What does shame look like anyway? Different people express shame in different ways. Let the context speak for itself. Don't tell me how I'm supposed to be seeing this world, just let me see it. A good writer will get the point across without spelling it out in giant adverb-laced letters.

Tl;dr many people use adverbs as a crux and if this isn't pointed out to them they'll continue to make sentences that would be better served with different words.

[goes_kaboom]

"Show, not tell" is such an important rule I want to write it all over the place a million times a la Bart Simpson. Tell me what they're doing and the meaning will become apparent if you're executing it correctly--that's all you have to do. Harder than it sounds sometimes but that's really all it boils down to

[redhoundstooth]

I'm pretty guilty of 'it' and I'm a little paranoid that I'm red-handed with the adverbs and adjectives. Shoot, maybe even the 'ly' part I'm guilty with? Wow this is making me feel like a bad writer. XD

[goes_kaboom]

The only way that could make you be a bad writer is if you didn't take advice or crit at all. :D

[redhoundstooth]

Oh I take criticism as food for thought as much as I can! But it's difficult for me to execute my own 'style' of writing without it coming off to someone else as poor grammar or poor sentence structure. Not saying that that has happened before, but I'm certain that it will one day. xD

[goes_kaboom]

So many people knock on uber-successful and influential writers as having bad grammar or bad sentence structure, though--it's so subjective. And stylistic choices go a LONG way if they make the writing juicier and more vivid. As long as the sentences make grammatical sense, I gladly accept an abundance of adverbs over a robotic-perfect stanza thats as dry as dust but everything's correct. Just rock it out your way and the "skill" will come with practice. :D