Kibosh the clichés

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/14/one-mans-war-on-cliches_n_876565.html

I’ve been spending my nights writing these days and during one of my, um…breaks…I came across this article in the Huffington Post Books section. It’s about a man who is set on stopping folks from using clichés. You may think you already have your warrior shields up in that department, but take a look at his list and see if there are any you fall victim to. What a buzzkill! (Yikes, I just used one, but so what!)

Click here to read the article. 

I like that the article lists Orwell’s six rules:

– Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
– Never use a long word where a short one will do.
– If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
– Never use the passive where you can use the active.
– Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
– Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

Good stuff to keep in mind for any kind of writing project!