Some clichés really take the cake ;-)

Today I'm over at the Wow! Women On Writing blog, talking about how to subvert clichés. Hope to see you there!

Literary Journal Submission Tip: Avoid Clichés, or Twist them into Treasure

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As a literary journal editor, I have read my fair share clichéd submissions. And I'm afraid to say, that most of the time, they make me wince.

As a writer, it is probably hard to comprehend how overwhelming these clichéd  submissions actually are. You are one person, and you think, "oh, it'll be alright, surely there won't be any other subs like this." You would be surprised. You need to think, are you really going to be noticed writing about the sea breeze among an inbox full of 300-400 other subs?

Vine Leaves Literary Journal has been around for a year now. And the clichés (especially in poetry) that most frequently overwhelm us are:

• gardens/plants (pretty red poppies and bees and roses)
• sun/moon (shining on sand or water)
• beating hearts (oh boy how much I love you)
• quiet nights (as I caress your cheek as soft as a baby's bottom)
• gentle breezes (I close my eyes and feel your presence)
• oceans/beaches (my toes dig into the warm sand)
• weather/seasons (birds chirping in spring, heat waves rising off the road)

However, if you are sure that you have written about these things in a unique way, we're totally open to reading about them. But trust me, we will be extra critical.

For an example of one unique way to write about gardens, take a look at The History of Dirt, by Allie Marini Batts, from Issue #03. This WOWED us.

So next time, before you submit, think twice. Are you writing about a clichéd  topic? If so, did you twist it into treasure?

What other clichés can you think of that you persistently see in writing? Or better still, what have you read that deals with a cliché in a unique way?

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PS: Sadly, FABRIC didn't make it into the Goodreads Choice Awards ten finalists. But thank you to all of you who tried to help me get there with your votes! Your support is amazing. And I am still pleased that it was a semi-finalist. I guess that's no easy achievement in itself.

So, um, I've got a lot of clichés in my second novel. On purpose.

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There's one thing I despise in writing fiction: RULES. Yes, I know that if certain rules are followed, you're more likely to get an agent or publisher to sign you on, especially this business of creating a good 'hook' in your first chapter. I guess that is one rule I try to follow the best I can. BUT. Who's to say that a good book can't be written with a few of these rules broken?

See, I'm experimenting with a little rule-breaking in my second novel. Well, it's not REALLY rule-breaking, but I guess I'm poking fun at a rule. But let's just say I'm breaking a rule and humor me a bit, huh? ;o)

So what rule am I breaking?

clichés

I have a character in my new book, Ailish, who likes to speak in quotes and clichés. In fact, she even quotes about clichés at one point. She says:

Well, sweetheart, like the talented Evelyn Waugh said, ‘to be oversensitive about clichés is like being oversensitive about table manners.'

(Context: her daughter is complaining about her constantly using clichés because she's a literature professor. But the thing I'm most proud of here is the fact that they're sitting down to eat dinner, and Ailish has just groaned about her daughter ripping a piece of bread off with her hands instead of using a knife.)

See, this is me sticking my proverbial middle finger up at the cliché rule without really breaking the cliché rule, despite there being quite a few in my ms. I've made it a character trait. Smart, huh? (tell me I'm smart pretty please with a cherry on top *fluttering eyelids until you say I'm smart* ;o)


How about you? Have you ever got fed up with the rules and tried to find a way to poke fun at them in your writing?


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