Keep Your Story Cliché Free!
By Sharzi Avins (c) 2001
Clichés -- we've all used them! Unless used in dialogue to show the reader a particular quirk of a character, clichés tend to make our story less than unique, and lead to rejections.
Below you will find a checklist of clichés. Rid your story of these all too common phrases! Try to rewrite them using your own thoughts and words. As an example, let's take the cliché, "they stood nose to nose." How about rewriting that to read, "they stood just a breath away from one another."
If you have any of the following in your story, banish them now, before a publisher does the same with your submission...
Needle in a haystack
Time is of the essence
Don't count your chickens before they hatch
Cute as a button
Bring home the bacon
High as a kite
Hard as a rock
Selling like hotcakes
Thin as a rail
Heaven help us
Food for thought
Talk is cheap
Dark as night
Open like a book
Soft as a feather
Sour grapes
White as snow
Wedded bliss
Pretty as a picture
If the shoe fits, wear it
Not what it's cracked up to be
Run its course
As plain as the nose on your face
Wolf in sheep's clothing
All bark and no bite
Pain in the neck
It takes guts
He said a mouthful
All that glitters is not gold
All the tea in China
Let sleeping dogs lay
Stubborn as a mule
Blood on your hands
Hit the ground running
Rake him over the coals
What's new under the sun
He's got cold feet
Bring home the bacon
I haven't a clue
Get a handle on it
Lend me an ear
What goes around, comes around
A stitch in time saves nine
Pure as the driven snow
Wise as an owl
Makes my blood boil
Necessity is the mother of invention
He has the Midas touch
Scratch the surface
Ring around the collar
Still waters run deep
In a rut
Fallen on hard times
An accident waiting to happen
Damned if you do, damned if you don't
Kill two birds with one stone
Eyes that pierce right through me
Have your back to the wall
Out of the frying pan, into the fire
A chink in the armor
Got his second wind
Soft as silk
Back to square one
Put a bug in her ear
By the book
Out of the mouths of babes
That's the way the cookie crumbles
It'll put hair on your chest
Sticks to the ribs
Steal his thunder
Bury the hatchet
Put your money where your mouth is
Money doesn't grow on trees
Where there's a will, there's a way
Where there's smoke there's fire
Get your foot in the door
Throwing his hat in the ring
Nose to the grindstone
Put your best foot forward
A square peg in a round hole
Can't fool mother nature
Bald as an eagle
In the prime of her life
I'm at loose ends
Like walking on eggshells
Fine kettle of fish
Penny pincher
Hear a needle drop
Sly as a fox
Big as a house
Fast as lightening
Curiosity killed the cat
Blind as a bat
Bad to the bone
Soft as a baby's bottom
Time stood still
The love of my life
Beached whale
Sharp as a tack
Clear as glass
Quiet as a mouse
Pretty as a peach
Happy as a clam
A step in the right direction
Quick as a wink
Been there, done that
Avoid it like the plague
A walk on the wild side
Back to the drawing board
Like a three-ring circus
Sweep it under the carpet
Lie like a rug
When hell freezes over
No guts no glory
I feel it in my bones
That's beside the point
With bated breath
Bored to tears
Share and share alike
A gut feeling
Hold your horses
Off his rocker
Older than dirt
If you play your cards right
Walk on air
Be that as it may
Love it or leave it
Stand on your own two feet
Tongue-in-cheek
Bust him in the chops
Ill -gotten gains
Take a hike (go away)
A tough nut to crack
You can hear a pin drop
I hope to hell
A square peg in a round hole
Raise the roof
Keep up with the Joneses
A day late and a dollar short
Fast and furious
Time has passed him by
At his fingertips
Feast or famine
Make no bones about it
The time of his life
Green with envy
Fools rush in
Bought it for a song
Pillar of the community
Keep your eyes glued to the TV
Don't judge a book by its cover
Little pictures have big ears
Proud as a peacock
Love triangle
Time will tell
Play it by ear
Silly as a goose
He hit bottom
Go that route
Cool your jets
Too close for comfort
Break the news
Go whole hog
Fall on deaf ears
Up the river
He's not up to par
Lost your marbles
It's the last straw
Spit and polish
This neck of the woods
Puppy love
Down on his luck
Money to burn
Put your best foot forward
Practice makes perfect
On the ball
Fine as frog hair
He's just small potatoes
All fun and games
Cried all the way to the bank
Sleep on it
Fast and furious
Opened a can of worms
Run of the mill
Year in and year out
Butter fingers
Cream of the crop
Short and sweet
All Rights Reserved
Copyright 2001
The contents of this article may not be reproduced in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, or with intent to republish, without written permission from the author,
Sharzi Avins.
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