… and never use the word ‘proverbial’ again.
“She was lit up like the proverbial Christmas tree.”
“He was the proverbial black sheep.”
The second you write ‘the proverbial’ in your copy, what you’re essentially saying to your reader is, “Hear what, the next thing to come out of my mouth (or keyboard) is gonna be a pack of crap. Why don’t you just zone out for a few sentences, or skip ahead?”
Nothing good comes after ‘the proverbial’; only some tired, beat-down old cliché. So why bother? There are only three good reasons for using a cliché:
- Characterisation – If you’re trying to show that your character is a stagnant, boring old fart, have him speak in clichés.
- Irony – Wink, wink, me so funny. I’m so cool, I can talk in clichés and get away with it.
- Deadlines – If you go to print in half an hour, and you have no other way to express what you want to say, go brave, my friend.
Either avoid clichés outright, or, if you’re imaginative enough, embrace it, marry it, and bring forth a bunch of weird and interesting babies. In other words, change up the cliché to make it new again, like a coat of paint on a dingy wall. Why not put your best tentacle forward? Or your best pseudopodia?
Until then, ditch the clichés. Before I put a proverbial bullet in my proverbial head.
What’s your view? Please leave me a comment.
