Do these boots really need the laces and all those buckles?

Wouldn't one or the other suffice? In fact, neither are necessary. I'm pretty sure the boots would stay on your feet without them. It kind of reminds me of adverbs, exclamation points, and non-said dialogue tags. Take this sentence, for example: "I hate you!" he shouted loudly. I mean, really, come on. Are the exclamation point, shouted, and loudly all needed to get the point across? Furthermore, are any of them necessary? I think not. "I hate you," he said through gritted teeth and stormed away. Not great examples, but I think you get the point. Which sentence conveys a more powerful sense of anger? I go with the second. I've heard so many writers complain about the rules of not using adverbs, exclamation points, and non-said dialogue tags. And, not to put anyone down, because I find it as frustrating as the next guy, but there is a reason these things are frowned upon. They are TELLING. It's lazy writing. Don't get me wrong--there are times when these things may be necessary, but in my opinion, they are few and far between. Use them sparingly. I can't tell you how many times I had to restructure sentences during my rewrites to avoid these things. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it. For every adverb, exclamation point, or non-said dialogue tag in your writing, I challenge you to rewrite them without it. I think you'll find that you've created much stronger sentences. So, what do you say? Are you up for the challenge. I know I am.

Too Many Shoes, Part 1

Some of you out there may argue that one can never have too many shoes, but I beg to differ. When your closet becomes so cluttered that you can't find what you're looking for, perhaps you have too many shoes. Most of us know that the use of adverbs in our writing is frowned upon. Yet we read many books (some of which have made their way to the NYT's Bestsellers list) that use adverbs in abundance. So why can't we use them? Well, it's just another one of those contradictions. In case you want to know, here's my opinion: Adverbs in and of themselves aren't bad. What makes them bad is when they are used to tell rather than show. In other words, if a sentence can be rewritten without using an adverb and still get across the same meaning, by all means, get rid of the adverb. For example, you could say this: I stepped lightly across the living room carpet. Or, you could say this: I tip-toed across the living room carpet. (Okay, I know not great examples, but I'm not quite awake yet.) Anyway, my point is that you can have too many adverbs. One way to avoid that is to try to rewrite sentences without using the adverb. I think you will find that your writing is stronger and is more likely to show and not tell. I'm not saying that every adverb needs to go, but I do think their use should be limited. What do you think of adverbs? Do you have a love/hate relationship with them like I do?