I ran into this question while doing some research this past week, and it made me stop and think. Is my prose to beautiful? In my case, I would say no. I never grasped that concept. I have to admit I’ve tried.
The most famous rule in the bible of writing hints, The Elements of Style, is “Omit Needless Words.” This should be the hallmark of every writer.
Some authors believe good language should be showy. However, using unnecessary words in an effort to be literary or write more beautifully, is a common error first-time authors make.
George Simenon, a Belgian author, once pointed to a sentence and said: “That’s a beautiful sentence, cut it.”
He explained: “When you come across such a gorgeous sentence in a paragraph, it stands out and disrupts the even tone of your narrative. It’s as if you’ve paved a road and had a rose bush spurt up in the center. It’s beautiful, but it doesn’t belong there and it impedes the flow of the narrative.”
This overuse of description can also bog down a narrative and make it more difficult for a reader to quickly grasp the meaning.
Jerry Jenkins calls it written-ese. It’s a special language we use when we forget to Just Say It.
He provided the following example from a beginners work he was editing.
“The firedrop from the pommel of Tambre’s sword shot past the shimmering silver mist of her involuntary dispersal.”
Now that was a pretty sentence, but you can’t tell me it didn’t slow you down and make you think about what the author was actually trying to say. If you are like me, you had to read it several times. That’s written-ese.
I’m not saying you can’t use description. Description is good and helps your reader visualize characters, settings and much more. But it should be used sparingly. It should add to and enhance your sentence, not distract and overtake it.
Trying to impress others with your words is not the way to go. Be natural, be yourself, and it would probably help if you closed the thesaurus as well 🙂
-Jan R
I’m a little over half way through the revision process of the book I’m working on and dreading the next few weeks.
Who wouldn’t want more hours in the day? I’ve said on numerous occasions, “If I only had more time.” Well we all have the same 24 hours, but we don’t all have the same energy level or focus. Some days I surpass my expectations, and some days I find myself struggling. I can’t concentrate on what my husband is saying, much less writing or editing my work.
About six months ago, I wrote this blog as a thank you for all the hard work you do as a writer. I wanted to make sure that you understood just how important your job is. You may be locked away in a room by yourself, but your work touches a multitude of people from all walks of life.
When I was growing up we were very poor. My father was killed in an accident when I was 12, leaving my mom with 6 children to raise on her own. Needless to say, we were not going to Disney World any time soon. As a matter of fact, my world would have been pretty bleak, if it hadn’t been for my love of reading and the numerous novels that took me on adventures far and beyond anything I could have ever imagined. I remember my first novel was ‘King Arthur’, pretty heavy for a kid, but I loved it.
As a writer, you know one of the cardinal rules is to avoid clichés like the plague. Yes, I just used a cliché 🙂 See how easy it is. So what exactly is a cliché. It is a phrase or idea that is overused and portrays no original thought; a stereotype. There is nothing worse than being accused of lack of originality.
Common phrases that you may not have realized were clichés are as follows:
Have you noticed some of the books you pick up, you can’t put down. I have stayed up until 3:00-4:00 in the morning finishing a book, because I had to know how it ended. I’ve changed my plans for the day, because I couldn’t stop reading. That’s the kind of book I want to write.
Today as I revised my novel, I noticed something that should have leaped off the page during past reviews, but didn’t. I am having a love affair with ‘ing’. These ‘ing’ words are all over the place.
When you are ready to submit your work, who are you going to send it to? Have you done your research? Do you know which literary agents are accepting manuscripts? Do you know which agents work within your genre? How long have they been agents? Who are their clients? Are there any outstanding complaints about them? Are they legitimate, or are they scammers that reel you in and try to take your money?
What’s the deal with direct quotes? Why can’t I get the punctuation right? You would think after five years, I would know what I was doing.
I’m almost finished with revising my manuscript and plan to get a few well qualified friends to give it a final read through. Their job will be to make sure it is believable, there are no plot holes, and of course, it’s an interesting-grab you by the seat of your pants-type of book.
Writing your first novel-Things you should know 