This sent me on a quest to stamp out anything remotely similar in my own writing. Okay, well first I'll start with the emotional turmoil phrases that I often run into in other books...and that I can be guilty of myslef. I shall "comb through" my manuscript and "shine the light on" anything that is "been-there-done-that" in terms of descriptions.
If you're interested, a great article on addressing Cliche's is The Bookshelf Muse and talks about how they are The Poison Apples of Writing.
Back to my task...I will eviscerate my prose, ripping out the "heart's ramming in my chests" and the "my stomach churneds" from my heroine's inner thoughts. Out go the "I shruggeds"...well not all of them, and the "he ran his hand through his hair" references. This is actually kind of fun! Be gone, evil "his eyes bore into mine"!Now that I am done and survey the carnage on my desktop I am left with some holes. I need to replace those descriptions and sentiments with something...but what? As I labor to craft my novel into a shiny, gleaming collection of breathtaking images...I leave you with this:
What is the cliche' that gets you to roll your eyes? It can be in movies, or books...even those summer blockbuster trailers a' la: "In a world...where one man...must fight to...blah blah blah..." Let me know what you'd be happy never to hear again...and maybe throw some suggestions my way. I await your response, eyes flashing, bated breath...just kidding.
Until next time...Go Write!
Photograph by Aurimas Rimsa, Uploaded on August 21, 2007 Photograph by erix!, Uploaded on September 16, 2009