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Q&A How do I improve "beige" text?

Try going over your work paragraph by paragraph. It is you who sensed that it is "beige," indicating that you see a flaw there. Try some tricks: changing word order, finding more exciting verbs to ...

posted 7y ago by S Karami‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T06:04:57Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/29142
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by user avatar S Karami‭ · 2019-12-08T06:04:57Z (almost 5 years ago)
Try going over your work paragraph by paragraph. It is you who sensed that it is "beige," indicating that you see a flaw there. Try some tricks: changing word order, finding more exciting verbs to replace dull familiar ones, and here's one to pay particular attention to: verbs!

Eliminate passive verbs (is, are, have been etc) and replace them with active ones (clamber, limp, saunter, strangle, etc). Use more verbs and fewer adjectives. Look at your subject in an analytical way and think about the most fascinating aspects of it. What interests you about it? Focus first on that. Also place prominent and fascinating things before dull details. If the details are fascinating then promote those over the fuller main point.

Also use suspense, even in everyday dull activity. Don't put all your cards on the table. Describe everything but one thing and then pop it on the reader later. I could make erasing chalk on a blackboard keep you on edge. (But that would be fiction. I don't know what type of writing you do.)

Not least, work harder. Rewrite until the thing makes you feel some electric charge from having written it. Try different ways. Even expository text can keep the reader engaged. Use more practical examples than mere telling of what to do. Stories and narratives however short always trump straight "go here and do this and you're done."

Hope this helps!

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2017-07-10T06:02:02Z (over 7 years ago)
Original score: 2