The Murickan Saga

 

Hey Lolli Leave Your Adverbs Here

 

    I think that most of us writing types know that the adverb is a creation of the devil, and is to be shunned at all costs.  The question that some of us have, is why?  Why is the adverb so demonized by the writing community?  What has the poor adverb ever done to any of us?  Well, I'm here on this Sunday morning to explain it to... probably no one.  lol  But, I love to write, so I'm going into heavy detail as to why you should never, well almost never, use an adverb in your writing.

    Let's start off by going over what an adverb does.  An adverb describes a verb.  That's it.  It simply an adjective for the verb.  Like an apple can be red or green, writing can be done quickly or slowly.  So, you may ask, why aren't adjectives demonized as well?  We'll get into that as well, and hopefully reading this article will help you remember the anti-adverb rule when you're writing, and save yourself a lot of time during the editing process.

    The adverb is to be shunned because they are, by and large, unnecessary.  They are fluff and dander that pads the word count, but contributes nothing to the message.  Adverbs are used to describe things that don't need description.  Adjectives on the other hand describe nouns, which are not self descriptive, and need help. 

    Comparatively speaking, and I mean compared to walking, people run fast.  You don't need to add any descriptive words, explaining to the reader, that someone is trying to go fast when they are running.  An apple, on the other hand, can be large or small, yellow or green, light or heavy.  Nouns don't describe themselves the way verbs do, so the adjective is necessary to give the reader a mental image of the scene.  

    When I say, "Mary ran," I can picture Mary running.  I don't need any other words to describe it, unless she is running in a way that is out of the ordinary.  "Mary ran slowly" or "Mary ran awkwardly" may be used, if the context doesn't give us this information already.  You still may not want to write "slowly" or "awkwardly" if the reader knows that she is running through knee deep mud.  The word running, and most other verbs, are self-descriptive, so most words added for description are superfluous and unnecessary.  Even though adverbs may sound good when we are writing, they bloat our work and slow the readers roll.

    I hope that you've learned something that will help you improve your writing.  Every one of us can improve.  That's the wonderful thing about writing, we are constantly evolving and improving as artists.  I hope you're having a terrific weekend, and as always happy writing!

My Story

 

    Today I'm going to share some of my personal writing history with you, in hopes that it will help someone.  This post will be useful to any aspiring writers who are having trouble getting started writing, or any writers who are having trouble getting started on a project.  

    My whole young life, I was supposed to be a writer when I grew up.  Everyone thought that I would be, including myself.  Somehow though, I got caught up in a headgame where I was convinced that I needed to have the entire story outlined, all dialog mapped out, and the story basically written before I could begin writing my novel.  It sounds crazy to me as I write this now, but that is what I believed, so I know that there must be others out there who believe the same thing.  You have to have your novel basically written, before you start writing.  lol  Well, I never could manage to find the time to begin all of the work that I imagined I must do to begin writing my book, so it never got written.

    Once I learned that I could just start writing, I wrote my first novel in about four months, and now I'm half way through the sequel, which will be published sometime this summer.  My advice to all of you aspiring writers out there, is to write.  Put it down, get it out, then get some real HONEST criticism.  That is key.  You don't need anyone telling you lies about your work, no matter how much they love you, or how well-meant the lies may be.  You need honest, even if painful, truth to grow and prosper as a writer.  In this day and age, it is too easy to publish bad work, and waste a lot of your time, energy, and even money putting out unsatisfactory work.  There are scores of unscrupulous marketers out there who will take your money to promote your work, but the hard truth is that only good books sell.  If you are dead set on becoming a writer, you need to improve, and that takes honesty from the people reading it.  Amazon is flooded with self-published work that is mediocre at best.  Don't be that person.  Get some good criticism and let your work shine.

    My final point will be that writing should make you happy.  If it feels like work, well maybe you should rethink your career as a writer.  You have to love it and love isn't work.  You should find what you love to do, whether it be writing or something else, and pursue that.  If you love your work, you will never work a day in your life.  Life is too short to spend our valuable time doing something that we hate, no matter what anyone says.  Also, if you love your work, it will show.  Writers who love to write, are better than those who hate it.  Love shines through everything, from ditch digging to brain surgery.  Love it or leave it is my motto on work.

    I hope someone got something out of this.  I do love to write, so I write on Sunday mornings to no one.  lol  As always, I hope you're having a great day and Happy Writing!

    

Chapter Eight

 I got a late start this morning, so I couldn't complete chapter 8.  I had to fix the lights on my trailer, and clean the leaves off of the roof of the house.  I plan on finishing the chapter before the end of the day.  My wife gave me some valuable input for chapter seven, so I went back and added some pertinent information.  She reads each chapter as I write it, and helps me when I need it.  She is literally my inspiration for this series.  Last year I was telling her about my idea for a story and she convinced me to start writing it.  In a way, I am lucky, because I have one fan to write for.  Even if I don't sell a single book, I still have a reason to write.  

Chapter Six

 I began chapter six today.  We'll see how our Plainsmen stand up to the ferocious kingsmen.  At my wife's request, I have started a new page on this blog to tell some of the backstory.  She wants to know more about Levin's father, so I will start there.  Also, to any writers who read this blog, I would be happy to share any information with you, so feel free to ask.  Writing is so much fun, and I would like to help anyone who needs it.