Bodhipaksa

Every time I'm writing a book I'm grateful to Benjamin Dreyer, who suggested that every writer should try going a week without using:

* very
* rather
* really
* quite
* so
* of course
* in fact

It's astonishing to search through a draft to find these words. In almost every case a sentence is better off if you just delete them. On rare occasions they serve a purpose, but it's possible to reword in order to get rid of them. But I'd like to train myself not to use them in the first place!

Jan 31 at 5:38pmWeb
Show threadStoneface VimesJan 31
@bodhipaksa interesting. I'd certainly like to see (hear?) people manage to go a week without using the word so. It's become almost obligatory. Particularly on TV.
Show threadBodhipaksaJan 31
@capnthommo I found "so" the hardest one to eliminate. Yes, the "so" that we put at the start of sentences as a habit, to not sound abrupt, as in "So, yesterday I was at the mall," have to go. But if the so at the start of a sentence is, so to speak, gathering the energy of previous sentences and channeling it into the next — if it acts as a "therefore" — then I'm likely to let it stand. I probably got rid of around half of my "so's." Maybe two thirds.
Show threadStoneface VimesJan 31
@bodhipaksa yes. There are situations when it would be appropriate. But just eliminating the automatic usage makes one's writing more powerful and positive.
Show threadStoneface VimesJan 31
@bodhipaksa I do use them but I endeavour to vary. I employ the practice of not repeating in the same paragraph or in nearby sentences.
Show threadFelixJan 31
@bodhipaksa Quite so! This is very good advice, in fact; though really rather obvious.
Show threadEugene ParnellFeb 1
@bodhipaksa The best bit of writing advice I ever heard was along the same lines, from some famous author, I forget who, but it stuck in my head. He said "go through your manuscript and get rid of the adverbs. Just search for words ending in -ly and nuke them." At the time I kind of just snorted, because we spent all that time in school learning how to use adverbs, but I tried it, and damned if he wasn't right.
Show threadBodhipaksaFeb 1

@eugeneparnell Yes, adverbs tend to weaken writing.

The other best thing is to read your writing out loud. You pick up things that way that you miss when you're reading silently. Silent reading doesn't let you hear repetition or awkward phrasing as easily.

I try to do that when I'm writing a book, but it takes a lot of time, especially when you keep stopping to edit.

Alternatively, "hear" your writing being narrated by your favorite NPR host. That can teach you a lot.

Show threadBodhipaksaFeb 1
@eugeneparnell BTW I think Stephen King says this in "On Writing." I'm sure a lot of other writers have made the same point, though.