Why Adverbs Are The Tequila Of Writing Dialogue
In this post, we caution you against using too many adverbs in your dialogue. Adverbs are the tequila of writing dialogue.
Why Adverbs Are The Tequila Of Writing Dialogue
This is the fourth step in my dialogue series, How To Write Fabulous Dialogue In 5 Easy Steps.
- How To Write Fabulous Dialogue In 5 Easy Steps
- All You Need To Know About Punctuating And Formatting Dialogue
- 8 Important Things To Remember When You Rewrite Dialogue
- Why Adverbs Are The Tequila Of Writing Dialogue
- Why Repeating Yourself In Dialogue Can Be A Good Thing
TOP TIP: Learn to write better dialogue with The Dialogue Workbook
Today, I want to talk about adverbs and why you should try to avoid them.
Step 4: Just Add Verbs
Adverbs tell us how something was done. You should rather try to show us how it was done. When I talk about adverbs I want you to be pay close attention to the words that end in –ly, namely adverbs of manner. Instead of using these, I want you to try to use verbs, but not any old verb will do. I want you to use strong verbs, for example, stride instead of walk, sprint or race instead of run.
Knowing which verbs to use will be easier if you know your character well. Think of the difference between a woman who strides and a woman who shuffles. Each verb creates a different person or a different scene.
You don’t have to obliterate adverbs, but often they are redundant or could be replaced by a strong verb. Adverbs are the tequila of writing. There is no such thing as one tequila and there is no such thing as one adverb. Once you have used one, more will sneak in. Be careful.
When all is said
That said I want to talk about the word said. Said is awesome. Use it. Don’t replace it with words like admonished or exclaimed. Stephen King recommends using them only 10% of the time. It’s good advice. Said is invisible to a reader.
[Read: Improve Your Dialogue: Remove Those Adverbial Dialogue Tags]
Below is an example of dialogue with adverbs and verbs other than said. I used the prompt: ‘Keep your morals away from me’.
Now the rewrite:
I have removed adverbs and added action to show, instead of tell.
Why it’s better
Using action makes the story immediate. It also stops you from creating unwieldly words that your reader will have to reread. Look at your last piece of dialogue and try using an action instead of an adverb.
Happy writing.
TOP TIP: Learn to write better dialogue with The Dialogue Workbook
by Mia Botha
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- 8 Important Things To Remember When You Rewrite Dialogue
- How To Write Fabulous Dialogue In 5 Easy Steps
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1 thought on “Why Adverbs Are The Tequila Of Writing Dialogue”
very nice and useful too..benificial to
inhans vocabulary also…i m not much familier with english…learning…bt i like your post..thank u ..
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