Related Articles

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  Let’s Get to the Action: Verbs

  2275 readersThis post is the second in my series on “parts of speech.” Workshop teachers often instruct aspiring fiction writers to begin their stories: “in media reas” (in the middle of the action). Without verbs, a story would have no action. How dull would that be? Verbs – Verbs are action words. Nouns can “do” verbs. Dogs bark. Writers have

• Adverbs Are Really Quite Acceptable

  4097 readersAdverbs are to verbs as adjectives are to nouns: They modify action words. However, they can also support other parts of speech, such as adjectives and other adverbs, as well as clauses and even entire sentences. Original Post: Adverbs Are Really Quite Acceptable Your eBook: Click here to download the Basic English Grammar ebook.

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  All About Adjectives

  1606 readersI recently talked about adverbs as an important part of writing. If verbs are the action – the core of our stories and articles – and nouns are the characters, adjectives are the color and style. An adjective is, quite simply, a descriptive word. In some circles, adjectives are as badly maligned as adverbs. “Flowery” prose

• Put Adverbs in Their Place

  4828 readersWhen, how, or why something is done is expressed by an adverb, whose primary function is signaled by its name: Adverbs modify verbs (and sometimes other parts of speech — more on that later). They appear more or less in proximity to the verb they modify, but their syntactical location can vary for diverse reasons. An

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  What’s wrong with “hopefully”?

  1219 readersThere's no need to fear hopefully. Sentential adverbs are a part of life, and so are words with shifted meanings.

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  Showing and Telling for Article Writers

  1913 readersWarning: I’m getting into realms that can send fiction writers to insane asylums – showing v. telling. Do you need to show rather than tell in non-fiction, as well? The answer, as with so many things in writing, is a definitive, “Sometimes.” (And that’s the case in fiction, as well!) The examples I provide in my

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  Words Our Writing Can Do Without, Part 1

  2295 readersWhen a new writer comes to me for advice, I typically recommend they begin their career by stocking their bookshelf with several must-read titles. Some cover the craft of writing, and others, the business. Of course, I always recommend they visit FWJ, too, including, but not limited to, the job listings and Bob Younce’s business

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  Fiction Technique Tip: Describing Action

  1613 readersFour quick tips for improving descriptions of action in your novel. Use adverbs sparingly. Delete unnecessary ones, and certainly delete strings of them. Often an adverb is trying to strengthen a weak verb: “Allen went quickly down the street.” Instead choose the perfect verb that needs no strengtheners: “Allen hurried down the street.” Mark Twain

• Facts About Phrasal Verbs

  2087 readersA phrasal verb consists of a verb and a preposition, a verb and an adverb, or a verb, an adverb, and a preposition -- the verb’s partners are collectively known as particles -- that combine to produce a figure of speech. Original Post: Facts About Phrasal Verbs Your eBook: Click here to download the Basic English

• Flat Adverbs Are Flat-Out Useful

  4264 readersAn adverb is a word that modifies a verb or another adverb, or perhaps an adjective — or possibly even a clause or an entire sentence. How versatile! But there’s more to this part of speech: It can sometimes shed the nearly ubiquitous -ly ending and, though it subsequently appears to be an adjective, retains