Mar 04 2009
Writing Tips: There Is Always a Better Verb
Nearly always, anyway. Look at this sentence:
There was a man standing on the corner, fidgeting.
This sentence makes use of the wordy and nondescript (but very, very popular) “there is” construction. It comes in several forms, including there is, there was, there were, and there are. Most of the time, it can be replaced with a verb that is less wordy and more descriptive:
A man fidgeted on the corner.
An extreme example will show what a difference this can make:
I stood in the crowd where there were rumours of unrest increasing, while on the corner there was a girl who shouted up at the building were there were closed doors and belligerent guards.
With some slight tweaking, this becomes:
In the crowd, rumours of unrest increased. A girl stood on the corner, shouting up at the closed doors and belligerent guards around the building.
When my students pick “there is” constructions out of their work and use stronger verbs instead, their writing gains instant immediacy, action, tension. Try it in some of your own work. For starters, tackle the list below.
1. There were birds singing and frogs jumping in the pond.
2. There is a song that I’ll always remember that plays on the radio.
3. Over the hill, there are trees waving in the wind, and in the sky there is a bird darting through the clouds.
[...] Inklings shares a simple tip to impact your children’s writing in There Is Always a Better Verb. [...]
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