buzambie Adjectives are stupid Good writers use adjectives sparingly Book reviewers distaste writing that is littered with unnecessary description Ex Twilight Adjectives are like makeup the right amount can complement your natural features too much and you look fake deceitful ID: 780750
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Slide1
Creative Writing: Advice from buzambie
Slide2Adjectives are stupidGood writers use adjectives sparingly. Book reviewers distaste writing that is littered with unnecessary description.
Ex: Twilight
Adjectives are like make-up: the right amount can complement your natural features; too much and you look fake, deceitful, and cheap.
Slide3“When you catch an adjective, kill it.” -Mark Twain
“The adjective is the banana peel of the parts of speech.” -Clifton Fadiman
“Avoid the use of adjectives, especially such extravagant ones as splendid, gorgeous, grand, magnificent, etc.” -
Hemmingway
Slide4AdjectivesAre supposed to make a precise point.BE CAREFUL! They steal power from the noun.
Adding precision sometimes means limiting meaning, rather than adding to it.
Slide5I had a party last night.
Descriptivize
this sentence
Slide6Meh…betterI had a rocking party last night.I had a party that shook the entire house.
Slide7Okay…I can see it.I had a party last night. The house rocked like a dryer filled with shoes.
Slide8Use an adjectival participial phraseSitting in her living room, propping her feet on the radiator, and balancing a notepad on her lap, Mrs.
Newcombe
wrote stories.
Sitting
on the old couch, balancing a teacup on my finger, I realized I was dreadfully bored.
Slide9Compound adjectives are niceIt was a delicious burrito.
It had one of those bigger-than-my face tortilla.
It was a real tortilla—textured and dotted with stove-top burns; not one of those
plasticy
-made-by white-people tortillas.
Slide10Beware of stage-five clinging prepositionsSitting
on the old couch, balancing a teacup on my finger, I realized I was dreadfully
bored.
Sitting
with
my feet
up on
the old couch, balancing a teacup
on top of
my
finger, I realized I was dreadfully bored
.
Slide11(A Kurt Vonnegut specialty.)Sitting on the old couch, balancing a teacup on my finger, I realized I was artistically bored.
Use an ironic adjective
Slide12Ironic adjectivesIt was a long pause.It was an awkward pause.
It was a
pregnant
pause.
Slide13Prepositional simile“like” is the keyword in a comparison. Don’t assume the comparison is a byproduct of the word itself.
Ex: Rain is like water that falls from the sky.
Uh? Yep. That’s exactly what it is.
Slide14Prepositional similesThe rain was like a mother’s voice whispering, “wake up”.
The winds of March are like the rustle of covers drawn from a slumbering planet.
Slide15Catalyst verbsVerbs paint the image of the
action
; adjectives create the image of the object—in place.
If you want your piece to m o v e, pick strong verbs.
Slide16LAMEMy heart thumped.
Slide17Try a verbal metaphorMy heart galloped in my chest.
The letter ignited my fear.
The car staggered into the driveway, bled fluid, and gasped it’s last breath.
Slide18Eliminate ineffective Adverbs
An adverb should show the degree of your action.
Slide19LAME!My heart
was beating
so
fast.
Slide20Still LAME!My heart
was beating
sooooooo
fast.
Slide21Stillllllll LAME!
My heart
was beating
soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
fast.
Slide22What, are you talking into a fan?
You’re dumb. Use a real adverb.
Slide23My heart beat angrily.
Slide24Avoid redundant adverbsd
ashed quickly
p
lodded heavily
g
rowled angrily
Slide25William safire’s fumble rules
Avoid run-on sentences that are hard to read.
No sentence fragments.
It behooves us to avoid archaisms.
Also, avoid, awkward or affected alliteration.
Slide26William safire’s fumble rules
Don’t use no double negatives.
I’ve told you a thousand times, resist hyperbole!
Avoid commas, that are not necessary.
Verbs has to agree with their subjects.
Slide27William safire’s fumble rules
Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
KILL all exclamation points!!!!!
Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.
Slide28William safire’s fumble rules
Take the bull by the long hand and don’t mix metaphors.
Don’t verb nouns.
Never, ever use repetitious redundancies.
Avoid clichés
like the plague.
Slide29“Writing should feel like a hot turd coming out.” -Charles
Bukowski
Slide30Learn from good music:Specific and unique nouns