Carolyn's Blog

Saturday, May 20, 2006

Gasping...

Worked madly on DX today. I was over target but got down to slightly over target by going through and eliminating what Elmore Leondard calls Hooptedoodle. As always, I'm floored by the difference this makes. Writing is far stronger and more evocative when you keep only the good words. Everything packs more punch when you eliminate the unnecessary: that very much maybe seemed could almost nearly about *ly pretty. It's amazing. People, adverbs and adjectives are bad. Delete them. Delete the noise words and only leave the ones that really truly have to be there. (Unlike in this post, I might add.)

Since I'm punchy, I'll rant a bit and thumb my blogger nose at writers who refuse to do this. Yes, they are out there. I have been around enough writers (all of them wannabes) who refuse even though they shouldn't. Their prose is golden, every overloaded bloated sentence. But you are not like that, right? What have you got to lose by not trying this? I know! A contract!

Ok, to bed.

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