Discussions At The Garden Bench

1. "The short answer is that you’re trying to prettify your prose, to give it a lushness that will settle on the reader. [...] But misplaced adjectives can do as much damage as botched-up syntax. If the adjectives are there only to prettify the prose, they should be eliminated. The key is, adjectives should be used only when they highlight something the noun can’t highlight. [...] Some years ago, a wise man (with perhaps a sexist bent) said, 'pick adjectives the way you would diamonds or a mistress …'

"Carefully, he meant, so carefully."

~ William Noble, http://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/by-writing-goal/write-first-chapte...



2. "There are two types of adjectives: descriptive and interpretive.

"Descriptive adjectives (“serpentine highway” or “sulphury smell”) use a word that’s objective to more clearly describe the fact of the situation. You and the reader can agree on what serpentine looks like, or sulphury smells like. [...] Interpretive adjectives impose your interpretations and judgments—which a reader may or may not share. For that reason, when you use interpretive adjectives, the reader may not have the response you intend (by which I mean, don’t use them in professional writing)."
- Sarah Chauncey, on https://www.sarahchauncey.com/adjectives-adverbs/


3. (It was hard to resist copying the entire article for this one.)

"When You Should Use An Adverb

         "1. When it adds new information or context. Adverbs are legitimate, useful words that have legitimate places in good prose. Not only do they give readers a fuller understanding of meaning, but they can help create mood and voice. [...]

         2. When the alternative is a wordy or ugly phrase. Consider the constructions “in a rough way,” “on a daily basis,” and “in a loving manner.” These phrases are just so much longer than they need to be when we have the adverbs roughly, daily, and lovingly at our disposal. [...]

         3. When no other word will do. This is the true test for whether to use an adverb, or any word. Writers and editors should pursue the exact right word every time." - Andy Hollandbeck, at https://www.copyediting.com/using-avoiding-adverbs/#.WwOPEUgvyM8

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"One cannot be too careful in the selection of adjectives for descriptions. Words or compounds which describe precisely, and which convey exactly the right suggestions to the mind of the reader, are essential." H.P. Lovecraft, https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/adjectives

"The secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components. Every word that serves no function, every long word that could be a short word, every adverb that carries the same meaning that’s already in the verb, every passive construction that leaves the reader unsure of who is doing what—these are the thousand and one adulterants that weaken the strength of a sentence. And they usually occur in proportion to the education and rank." - William Zinsser, found at http://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/adverbs.html

"Find something you like, go into a room, close the door and read it aloud. Read it aloud. Everybody in the world who likes dance can see dance, or hear music, or see art, or admire architecture - but everybody in the world uses words who is not a recluse or mute. But the writer has to take these most common things, more common than musical notes or dance positions, a writer has to take some adverbs, and verbs and nouns and ball them up together and make them bounce." - Maya Angelou, http://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/adverbs.html

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To be honest, nothing I saw I could consider surprising so much as it made me think "Oh, that makes sense." However, I did see - both for this discussion and while reading the lesson itself - that I have a way to go yet to understand how to identify adverbs and adjectives. One article I read, but didn't quote, talked about the School House Rock Grammar songs. I grew up watching that video and was so grateful for it... until I recently realized just how confused I was by the adverbs song. It really messed me up in understanding adverbs.

Thanks to this lesson and the articles, though, I'm also gonna go back and look at one of the stories I'm working on and see which adverbs and adjectives I can improve on.



Be cool and keep writing! ~ Mary, Duchess Laughing Lemurs

“You must write every single day of your life... You must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff books like perfumes and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads... may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world.” ― Ray Bradbury

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