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The ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Guide to Writing

The Verb "to be"

Highlight all uses of the verb "to be" and try to reword as many as you can.  Many times, we simply plug in this poor, overused, boring, BORING, BORING word in place of a more interesting one, just because we're in a hurry to get our thoughts down. Lively prose uses lively verbs; remember that "to be" merely indicates a state of being. Zzzzzzz.

Get rid of

  • it is... that
  • it was
  • there is
  • there are
  • there was
  • there were.

To read more about style and clarity click here.


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