#Amwriting – On Adverbs and Carbs

I’m Not Giving Either Up

One of the great debates in writing forums today concerns the gentle adverb. For those uncertain of the topic, an adverb is a word that modifies a verb (it can also modify an adjective, or even another adverb! Tricksy little devils). So it changes the reader’s understanding of the word. For example, rather than writing “He slammed the door” the adverb says “He slammed the door loudly”. You can identify an adverb (sometimes) by that -ly ending. It is kin to the adjective which modifies a noun.
So what’s the problem with adverbs? The most common weapon to attack on this subject comes from Stephen King’s book on writing titled, cleverly enough, “On Writing”. In it comes the now legendary words:

I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs, and I will shout it from the rooftops. To put it another way, they’re like dandelions. If you have one on your lawn, it looks pretty and unique. If you fail to root it out, however, you find five the next day . . . fifty the day after that . . . and then, my brothers and sisters, your lawn is totally, completely, and profligately covered with dandelions. By then you see them for the weeds they really are, but by then it’s — GASP!! — too late.

Stephen King “On Writing”

Written with Mr. King’s usual flair, he takes a mighty swing and with it has blown an entire generation of writers into the land of “The Evil Adverb”. They will go to any lengths it seems to scour any remnant of those vile literary dandelions from their work. (Every time I read this passage, I wonder what Berkeley Breathed thinks about this dandelion disdain). It has become a fetish with some writers.

And I think it’s nonsense.

As a man of late middle age, I have been told that I need to watch weight and what I eat. Type 2 Diabetes parked itself in my driveway a few years ago. In diet circles you often see the same absolutist kill-them-kill-them-all fetishism when it comes to carbohydrates (and a range of other foods). About ten years ago, I was in the best shape of my life. Lost weight, blood chemistry was great, training to run a 5k (my first). And do you know what I had to give up eating? Here’s the list of everything I gave up:

Nothing.

Not one thing. I ate what was good for me and controlled the stuff that wasn’t. Everything in its appropriate place and level.

And that’s my response here as well Adverbs, like carbohydrates should be handled with care and used with intention. I don’t believe in eliminating any category of food or language <em>in toto</em>. When consumed with deliberation they can add a little enjoyment to the work. Beyond that, many times the “write-arounds” created to avoid using an adverb are long-winded and tiresome.

Besides, I don’t read the King piece as absolutist on the subject. The larger context is one of bad writing. Laying on the adverbs with a heavy hand is the same as going face first into the bread basket. Poor form and bad for your diet. I am in complete agreement with him on adverbs and dialogue attribution. King wants good writing, writing that has been crafted with care, makes elegant use of language, and tells the story.

 Once you arrive at the editing portion of your writing, you spend a lot of time removing unneeded words. Adverbs are prominent on that list. Using my example back at the beginning, why is the word “loudly” needed? Show me how you slam a door any other way, and we’ll discuss a pardon for the word. If you want to reinforce the volume of the event, how about “The bang of the door rang through the house as he slammed it”. I’m not claiming that’s a great sentence, but it avoids the adverb and is more evocative. Heck, you could drop “…as he slammed it” altogether. The structure of the first sentence is redundant and carries an unneeded word that doesn’t help tell the story.

King says that fear is at the root of bad writing. It plays a part without a doubt. But adverb abuse seems less a question of timid writing than lazy. Slopping adverbs all over your writing allows you to slide by, exerting as little effort as you can. Either way, the resulting meal is heavy and unsatisfying.

So push yourself away from temptation. Your health and your writing will thank you.
Peace.