We talk the controversial topic among writers. Are adverbs in writing a good or a bad thing?
When Dorian and I worked as part of a narrative team for an online game, something one of the other writers said always stood out to me.
“Adverbs should never be used,” he would say. “I listen to Stephen King. He says no adverbs in writing.”
And yet, this writer’s favorite author was Patrick Rothfuss, who uses adverbs liberally in his books. Irony abounds.
It doesn’t take long on the internet to find varying and strong opinions on the use of adverbs. So here are our thoughts.
We use adverbs for two reasons.
- No other single word will do.
- We are avoiding a repetitive verb or phrase.
You often here that if you are using an adverb, then you’ve used the wrong verb. That’s not always true. “Whispered” or “muttered” will never mean the same thing as “said softly”. Sometimes, adverbs are necessary for clear storytelling.
However, if you find yourself writing things like “said loudly”, “said urgently”, and “said angrily”, then you should look for some alternative verbs. Good replacements are “yelled”, “urged”, and “growled”.
There also may come a time when you are trying to avoid adverbs so much that your verb usage and phrasing become repetitive. In that case, adverbs are a great way to keep your writing feeling fresh.
Overall, there is a place for everything in the world of creative writing, including adverbs. Telling the story in the way you think is best is the most important part of being a writer.
