Out, damn'd cliché
November 20th 2008 00:08
Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
Orwell's edict, a fundamental rule of good writing, is about clichés. The word is taken from the French word for stereotype. In English, we use it to denote words, phrases or ideas which have been overused to the point where they lose their force.
To say something should be avoided like the plague would have been clever, amusing and memorable back whenever that expression was fresh. With overuse, it has become dull.
Use of clichés is lazy communication. In text, they denote an impoverished writer. They are a sin, and every time you use one the ghost of George Orwell writes your name in a large black book.
What follows is a writing exercise. The five sentences below contain clichés. Identify the infected area, spray with a mixture of one part red ink and three parts editorial zeal, and rewrite with words kissed by freshness.
Post your efforts as a comment so we can all see how you did. For each good effort, George's ghost will remove one mention of your name in that black book.
My darling, you look pretty as a picture.
I'm warning you, don't tempt fate.
It looks impossible, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.
She's not the sort to judge a book by its cover.
Do that and you open a can of worms.
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