Clichedonism
Using clichés makes writing boring, deadly and creatively dull. And there is a ton of “clichedonism” in our business.
Far be it from me to point out any specific examples, however, because, you know, what goes around comes around. Anyway, if I were to try to point out all the clichés I’ve seen tucked into writing during just the last few days, I’d be busier than a cat on a hot tin roof. I don’t have that kind of time to kill.
I think the problem with clichés stems from the fact that, in our business, we’re generally running around like a chickens with our heads cut off. So people just get lazy and throw any old phrase into a sentence with devil-may-care attitude. They don’t realize that, in the long run, they’re only hurting themselves. Save time, lose creative power – it’six to one, half dozen to the other.
My suggestion for people trying to avoid clichés is to put your best foot forward and try thinking outside of box before putting pen to paper. As they say, failing to prepare is preparing to fail. It may be frustrating at first, but don’t give up, practice makes perfect. Besides, it’s better to have tried and failed than to have never tried at all. Right? Time will tell if it ultimately helps your writing.
Rather than waiting to cross that bridge when you come to it, start now to prevent the continued spread of clichedonism. The handwriting is on the wall. If you don’t do something now it will only get worse. So don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today, start cracking down on those clichés. If you need help, check out:
http://www.westegg.com/cliche/search.cgi?query=love.
You’ll bet your bottom dollar you can teach old dogs new tricks.