When I was younger I was cross re: Johnson’s freedom of language, because like all the writers I enjoyed, he seemed to break rules left and right. I had a sense that there existed some threshold beyond which liability became asset. The obvious suspicion was that the line was “getting published”, and that the way one got published despite a disregard for rules was through the co-sign of MFA programs, which proved you were actually serious enough to break them.
Anyway, eventually you learn that hardly anyone’s going to read you in any case, so you might as well just go where the work takes you, and use the shapes it insists upon. If I write something as good as “his face was shining and suffering”, it won’t really matter if it gets published or not. Better to rush into language unapologetically.
I'm also team "adverbs can be useful, actually". For example, "“I love you,” he said, trembling, red in the face" isn't as clear to me as "I love you," he said angrily". I suppose within a great context it could be clear that the emotion is anger but as a standalone, trembling and red in the face could also be signs of embarrassment or shyness too.
We use words to help us tell the story we want to tell, in the way we want to tell it, so the readers will understand. Why get so categorical about one part of speech and take a tool out of the toolbox?
Enjoyed this essay, and it reminded me of a book a read sometime ago. Can't recall the title or the author, but the writer used the adverb "gingerly" way too many times, distracting me from the story. Like anything good, adverbs should be used in moderation.
Am querying my second novel rn after the first died in the trenches (fatal case of commercial gangrene) ((can I get an F in the chat?)). Want you to know your blog has been a source of knowledge and pleasure over the last few (difficult) years, and I've picked up Metallic Realms. 50 pages in. Loving it so far! So, so clever and funny and often quite moving. Keep up the great work, dude!
I've come to accept and then embrace there are no rules for writing fiction. I think James Joyce, John Barth and whole host of other writers would agree with me. There are only guidelines, just as Captain Barbossa makes entertainingly (adverb alert!) clear in "The Pirates of the Caribbean" when he talks about the Pirate's Code. It's a brilliant scene, brilliantly (adverb alert!) done by Geoffrey Rush.
Use adverbs sparingly (oh, another adverb), but use them well. IMHO, "Kurt said, trembling, red in the face," doesn't have a smooth rythym. The two commas break it up too much. The exclamation point is the sign post for how Kurt says, "I love you." If there was no exclamation point, then Kurt might have whispered, he might have monotoned, he might have matter-of-facted it. (I made that last one up.) But the exclamation point doesn't necessarily mean that Kurt said the phrase in anger. He could have shouted it, etc. So the sign post needs a qualifier, either before or after the phrase unless the writer doesn't care how the reader perceives Kurt's attitude. How about something like, "I love you!" Kurt spit out. A little truncated but better (IMHO).
Why am I blathering on about this little issue on a rainy Saturday morning? Well, I'm bored for one thing. But I'm of the opinion that seemingly little things such how to best use an adverb are thought out about by great writers as they write or revise. Sometimes it's active thinking, sometimes it's an intuitive thing. It's these small but powerful nuances that separate good writing from great writing just as tenths and hundreths of a second separate world champions from those who are good but will not win any championships.
Yes, thank you. The blind anti-adverb crusade always struck me as cargo cult editing—mimicking the surface of good writing without understanding what makes it work. “Quickly” isn’t the problem. Thoughtless quickly is. Adverbs are like seasoning: too much is bad, but banning salt entirely is just monkish nonsense. ✍️🧂
Reading massive and grand efforts [Karamazov, Quixote, Les Miserables] told and showed me that show-don't-tell is a relative command — it depends on scale and scope ... what the writer is doing.
For peace and jubilance, awesomeness in adjectives and adverbs, read Leif Enger, especially Virgil Wander.
I wholeheartedly agree with this idea. I think, like anything with writing, we're looking at a balance. For my students, seeing them misuse adverbs is not because they shouldn't be used, but because they are not accustomed to seeing an image or concept fully realized. Like, when we're working in the short form, I really don't have the time for you to describe an entire emotion or scene, and we can just toss it to an adverb so we can keep moving, especially when we're building tension.
Adverbs kind of fall under the window of ellipsis and FULL CAPS, where they're the writing equivalents of an abused spouse.
Yes, completely agree. Most "rules" of writing are really "rules of thumb" because people don't think about what they are doing. "Show don't tell" is a good tip for young writers who default to always flatly stating things without creating real scenes or visual details. But, it doesn't follow that you should NEVER tell anything obviously.
Same with adverbs. Most people do use them lazily. But they can't be used well.
I think, to add to this, it is very funny to read in King's newer novels how often he breaks his own rules.
This might be projecting a bit, but I feel like this is an argument that only exists from folks who either don't spend much time reading or are too good for genre writing.
I like to force students to read Sirens of Titan whenever they think they have to be writing a certain way.
Great post. If anyone is interested, Virginia Tufte’s “Artful Sentences: Syntax as Style” has a whole chapter on adjectives and adverbs with lots of brilliant examples. (The whole book is highly recommended).
The Stephen King quote is overused. It's been thrashed to death as a result.
Compare that to what primary school children are taught in English: they are encouraged to use adverbs to show their 'creativity.' Ugh. I learned this while helping my son in the Covid Lockdown. Some of the garbage they are shown as examples of 'good' writing is nauseating.
Your only hintingly at this, so ok, but I always tittered at only break the rule if you know whyly. I know everyone works different, but don’t you break a rule to see what will happen? Breaking a rule when you know seems not so fun to go.
I hope you won´t think me pedantic if I point out what I think is a mind-blip error in your last paragraph. You write "Use any and all adjectives if they work for you." Did you mean to say adverbs?
Sorry! Your welcome! (choose A or B depending on your response to my observation)
When I was younger I was cross re: Johnson’s freedom of language, because like all the writers I enjoyed, he seemed to break rules left and right. I had a sense that there existed some threshold beyond which liability became asset. The obvious suspicion was that the line was “getting published”, and that the way one got published despite a disregard for rules was through the co-sign of MFA programs, which proved you were actually serious enough to break them.
Anyway, eventually you learn that hardly anyone’s going to read you in any case, so you might as well just go where the work takes you, and use the shapes it insists upon. If I write something as good as “his face was shining and suffering”, it won’t really matter if it gets published or not. Better to rush into language unapologetically.
"Better to rush into language unapologetically." Love that sentiment. And yes that old cliche is true, that rules are made to be broken.
That's the spirit!
I'm also team "adverbs can be useful, actually". For example, "“I love you,” he said, trembling, red in the face" isn't as clear to me as "I love you," he said angrily". I suppose within a great context it could be clear that the emotion is anger but as a standalone, trembling and red in the face could also be signs of embarrassment or shyness too.
We use words to help us tell the story we want to tell, in the way we want to tell it, so the readers will understand. Why get so categorical about one part of speech and take a tool out of the toolbox?
Writing rules are generally dumb. Good writing is about freedom. But you have to know the rules to break them. I guess...
You know you are breaking the rules, and have a reason. That's the difference between a pro and amateur
Enjoyed this essay, and it reminded me of a book a read sometime ago. Can't recall the title or the author, but the writer used the adverb "gingerly" way too many times, distracting me from the story. Like anything good, adverbs should be used in moderation.
Am querying my second novel rn after the first died in the trenches (fatal case of commercial gangrene) ((can I get an F in the chat?)). Want you to know your blog has been a source of knowledge and pleasure over the last few (difficult) years, and I've picked up Metallic Realms. 50 pages in. Loving it so far! So, so clever and funny and often quite moving. Keep up the great work, dude!
Thank you so much!
I appreciate you sharing this take. Definitely got me thinking about my intentionality and style. Thanks again!
I've come to accept and then embrace there are no rules for writing fiction. I think James Joyce, John Barth and whole host of other writers would agree with me. There are only guidelines, just as Captain Barbossa makes entertainingly (adverb alert!) clear in "The Pirates of the Caribbean" when he talks about the Pirate's Code. It's a brilliant scene, brilliantly (adverb alert!) done by Geoffrey Rush.
Use adverbs sparingly (oh, another adverb), but use them well. IMHO, "Kurt said, trembling, red in the face," doesn't have a smooth rythym. The two commas break it up too much. The exclamation point is the sign post for how Kurt says, "I love you." If there was no exclamation point, then Kurt might have whispered, he might have monotoned, he might have matter-of-facted it. (I made that last one up.) But the exclamation point doesn't necessarily mean that Kurt said the phrase in anger. He could have shouted it, etc. So the sign post needs a qualifier, either before or after the phrase unless the writer doesn't care how the reader perceives Kurt's attitude. How about something like, "I love you!" Kurt spit out. A little truncated but better (IMHO).
Why am I blathering on about this little issue on a rainy Saturday morning? Well, I'm bored for one thing. But I'm of the opinion that seemingly little things such how to best use an adverb are thought out about by great writers as they write or revise. Sometimes it's active thinking, sometimes it's an intuitive thing. It's these small but powerful nuances that separate good writing from great writing just as tenths and hundreths of a second separate world champions from those who are good but will not win any championships.
Yes, thank you. The blind anti-adverb crusade always struck me as cargo cult editing—mimicking the surface of good writing without understanding what makes it work. “Quickly” isn’t the problem. Thoughtless quickly is. Adverbs are like seasoning: too much is bad, but banning salt entirely is just monkish nonsense. ✍️🧂
Reading massive and grand efforts [Karamazov, Quixote, Les Miserables] told and showed me that show-don't-tell is a relative command — it depends on scale and scope ... what the writer is doing.
For peace and jubilance, awesomeness in adjectives and adverbs, read Leif Enger, especially Virgil Wander.
I wholeheartedly agree with this idea. I think, like anything with writing, we're looking at a balance. For my students, seeing them misuse adverbs is not because they shouldn't be used, but because they are not accustomed to seeing an image or concept fully realized. Like, when we're working in the short form, I really don't have the time for you to describe an entire emotion or scene, and we can just toss it to an adverb so we can keep moving, especially when we're building tension.
Adverbs kind of fall under the window of ellipsis and FULL CAPS, where they're the writing equivalents of an abused spouse.
Yes, completely agree. Most "rules" of writing are really "rules of thumb" because people don't think about what they are doing. "Show don't tell" is a good tip for young writers who default to always flatly stating things without creating real scenes or visual details. But, it doesn't follow that you should NEVER tell anything obviously.
Same with adverbs. Most people do use them lazily. But they can't be used well.
I think, to add to this, it is very funny to read in King's newer novels how often he breaks his own rules.
This might be projecting a bit, but I feel like this is an argument that only exists from folks who either don't spend much time reading or are too good for genre writing.
I like to force students to read Sirens of Titan whenever they think they have to be writing a certain way.
Rachel Cusk used adverbs hilariously in Outline. I remember thinking, man, she’s using a lot of adverbs. But I couldn’t find fault with any of them.
Great post. If anyone is interested, Virginia Tufte’s “Artful Sentences: Syntax as Style” has a whole chapter on adjectives and adverbs with lots of brilliant examples. (The whole book is highly recommended).
Nice article, I enjoyed it immensely...
The Stephen King quote is overused. It's been thrashed to death as a result.
Compare that to what primary school children are taught in English: they are encouraged to use adverbs to show their 'creativity.' Ugh. I learned this while helping my son in the Covid Lockdown. Some of the garbage they are shown as examples of 'good' writing is nauseating.
Your only hintingly at this, so ok, but I always tittered at only break the rule if you know whyly. I know everyone works different, but don’t you break a rule to see what will happen? Breaking a rule when you know seems not so fun to go.
I hope you won´t think me pedantic if I point out what I think is a mind-blip error in your last paragraph. You write "Use any and all adjectives if they work for you." Did you mean to say adverbs?
Sorry! Your welcome! (choose A or B depending on your response to my observation)
Oops, yes I had switched to talking about Denis Johnson's adjective use (then deleted most of that paragraph) and got mixed up there. Thank you!