Adverbs everywhere

Welcome back to another blog hop, with #OpenBook. Here’s this week’s prompt.

Are adverbs really the devil? If they sneak in occasionally, does it mean we’re lazy?

As I’ve said to you many times before, I don’t do grammar. I failed English at school (twice as it happens) and wouldn’t know an adverb if it bit me savagely on the proverbial. And to be honest, I’m getting a bit too old to start learning it now.

I had to do a little research, this is what I found :-

An adverb is a word that modifies (describes) a verb (he sings loudly), an adjective (very tall), another adverb (ended too quickly), or even a whole sentence (Fortunately, I had brought an umbrella). Adverbs often end in -ly, but some (such as fast) look exactly the same as their adjective counterparts.

And this was some advice that I spotted about the use thereof.







Don’t use adverbs that state the obvious (everyone bellows loudly)Try not to be lazy…take the time to find a better wordDon’t add adverbs just to make a sentence longerIf your verb sucks, find a new one instead of trying to spruce it up with an adverbStay away from really and very (Yes, I’m sure I’ve used them lots of times)Try to use them only when the meaning of the sentence suffers without itDon’t use adverbs that are redundant

Just reading all of that made me so glad that I employ an editor. She takes care of such things for me, whilst I just write what I see on the never-ending film in my head.

As a result of her work, nobody has ever mentioned that I use too many adverbs, so she must be doing a good job.  

Which is a relief. I’d hate to get bogged down in technicalities, after all, I’m only really interested in writing. Any distraction can’t be good for the flow. If she was to tell me to cut the adverbs, I’d be totally lost.

As for what I think about the subject, it’s like anything, too much can be a nuisance and too little can leave you wanting more.

But.

The correct amount should be left up to the reader. I’ve said it before, language evolves and tastes change. There’s no place for the grammar police or the plot patrol in determining what’s acceptable. The language I use is appropriate to the action that’s unfolding. So there!

If I use them, am I lazy?

No. I’m not. I just write what I’m told and spend a considerable amount of my life doing it. The idea that my choice of words indicates someone who can’t be bothered is not one that I subscribe to, especially when I’ve been slaving over a hot keyboard all day.

Let me know what you think about this week’s subject.

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