Don't be fluffy by louise

Remember when you were a kid at school and your English teacher asked you to write a story? She wanted to see you write using adjectives and adverbs and lots of them!

The thing is, when you're writing for "real" ie a novel, all what Mrs Jenkins told you is wrong.

Too many adjectives and especially adverbs clutter up the story. It's best to leave them out; trust me it makes the story sharper.

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Comments

Dragonwriter

22 July 2009

Yes, this is especially stressed when writing for contests/ newspapers. Unfortunately, I need to work on adding more....but I doubt I'll ever end up writing like Mark Twain.

Mr Richard

23 July 2009

Quite often less is more I agree.

unbridledspirit

01 August 2009

It's all about balance!

DeUndrae

10 August 2009

They say that if you use an adjective to describe something the desired effect is weakened by half. That being said, use adjectives and adverbs sparingly.

Also see: Publisher's honesty. (belfastlass777) • Whitessmoke (Shadowwritr) • Anyone know of a good style checker? (ruminate81) • Editors - Is it still my own work? (JD Higginson) • To end a sentence (rowland) • The English Language (rowland) • Who said Grammar was boring (rowland) • How should I write a name? (totalwitch) • I'm stuck on POV (totalwitch) • Which Derection should I Go? (Snow Cone)

Kudos

From 2 votes

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Writer louise	Total posts: 112
Roles: Writer

Northants, UNITED KINGDOM

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Hi, my name's Louise Wise, and I am a journalist and writer. Eden, my debut novel, was released back in 2008, and my second book, A Proper Charlie, will be out this Christmas (2010). I am currently ... (Read more)

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