I heard
a bit of advice recently that I am going to take to heart, and I love it. “Verbs
are muscles and make your writing stronger.” Consider the following:
·
“The castle is tall.” Flex it!
·
“The castle loomed over them.” Isn’t that much
better?
Verbs
are the muscles of writing, and they can carry your words right off the page
into reality if you put enough in it. What’s also important to note is that
your decision on what verb to use can work overtime for you and create tone. If
I was to create a dark theme, I would most definitely use the word “loomed”,
but if I was writing a happy scene, I would use another word that paints a
brighter picture. Sometimes, these verbs that work overtime for us will just
not come, and that’s fine! Just ensure that you don’t contrast the tone of the
story with your verbs.
Also, adjectives
aren't entirely evil either. They can work overtime by attributing humanistic
traits to objects or animals, often for the same purpose as a simile or
metaphor- to get us to understand a difficult concept without burdening the
reader with explanations. “The castle stood proudly.” I’m certain that someone’s
inner editor is screaming at this moment, but I will simply respond by saying
that to use it in this manner is a purely stylistic approach.
Now,
adjectives can also be useful when they highlight an action with a counter
intuitive description. For example, “Jessica smiled darkly.” Many writers
believe that adjectives are evil, but most would agree that a modification in
this manner is entirely acceptable. The thing to always remember is there are
no rules in writing!
