Stephen King, you are a real bastard. And thank you for that!

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Liberty Kifer

New Member
Sep 16, 2016
1
12
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I am doing a lot of reading as I am working on my first novel, and just finished reading On Writing (I loved it.)

I picked up an old (1957) book of Philip K Dick's last week and decided to dive into it tonight. I adored Ubik, and A Scanner Darkly, so I wasn't sure why I was finding this one so hard to read. Then all at once it dawned on me that this early Dick book was RIDDLED with adverbs, including a staggering number of them in dialog attribution. I'm not sure if I ever would have figured it out if not for the advice in On Writing, but there it was, glaring off the page at me.

I got out a pen and underlined all of them for a while, I counted 58 in 9 pages.

I can't read any more of this book. It's ruined for me. Which is why you're a bastard, Mr. King. But I'm also really thankful that you made me aware of how insidious this habit is, and how irritating.

Anyone else seeing this everywhere now??
 

DiO'Bolic

Not completely obtuse
Nov 14, 2013
22,864
129,998
Poconos, PA
Welcome.

Alas, why do adverbs get such a copious bad rap, DiO said, dolefully?
images
 

GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
87,651
358,754
62
Cambridge, Ohio
I am doing a lot of reading as I am working on my first novel, and just finished reading On Writing (I loved it.)

I picked up an old (1957) book of Philip K Dick's last week and decided to dive into it tonight. I adored Ubik, and A Scanner Darkly, so I wasn't sure why I was finding this one so hard to read. Then all at once it dawned on me that this early Dick book was RIDDLED with adverbs, including a staggering number of them in dialog attribution. I'm not sure if I ever would have figured it out if not for the advice in On Writing, but there it was, glaring off the page at me.

I got out a pen and underlined all of them for a while, I counted 58 in 9 pages.

I can't read any more of this book. It's ruined for me. Which is why you're a bastard, Mr. King. But I'm also really thankful that you made me aware of how insidious this habit is, and how irritating.

Anyone else seeing this everywhere now??
658957029a9a308b4abb75e282539581.jpg
....he posted gleefully.....
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
I am doing a lot of reading as I am working on my first novel, and just finished reading On Writing (I loved it.)

I picked up an old (1957) book of Philip K Dick's last week and decided to dive into it tonight. I adored Ubik, and A Scanner Darkly, so I wasn't sure why I was finding this one so hard to read. Then all at once it dawned on me that this early Dick book was RIDDLED with adverbs, including a staggering number of them in dialog attribution. I'm not sure if I ever would have figured it out if not for the advice in On Writing, but there it was, glaring off the page at me.

I got out a pen and underlined all of them for a while, I counted 58 in 9 pages.

I can't read any more of this book. It's ruined for me. Which is why you're a bastard, Mr. King. But I'm also really thankful that you made me aware of how insidious this habit is, and how irritating.

Anyone else seeing this everywhere now??

11-22-63 Welcome.JPG