[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-141481-en":3,"doc-seo-141481-105":31,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":91},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":21,"is_downloadable":21,"audit_status":21,"page_count":22,"language":23,"language_code":24,"site_id":25,"html_lang":24,"table_of_contents":26,"faqs":27,"seo_title":28,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":29,"read_time":30},141481,4398048949847,"Eliana","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/400002536579ef2da7f?_k=1778318612642679267",2,"Literature","Cliches and How to Avoid Them - How to write better","Guide for writers to recognize and eliminate clichés that have been overused and therefore weaken creativity, dull reader engagement, and make prose feel lazy. Explains what clichés are and contrasts them with tropes, showing why conventions can be valid when executed inventively. Encourages replacing stale phrasing with fresh expression, including caution about using cliché dialogue only when it supports realism, and removing clichés when they appear in drafts.","CLICHESAND HOW TO AVOID THEM  \nJERRY JENKINS  \nCLICHES AND HOWTO AVOID THEM  \nView every cliché you write as a missed opportunity for creativity.  \nClichés should be easy to spot.They're simply expressions and phrases thathave been so overused that they bore readers and make us writers lazy.  \nI've listed 160 of them below,but work at adding your own-because that'swhere they belong:in a list and not in your novel or nonfiction book.Sometimes I wonder if there is no limit to the number of clichés that exist.  \nThe key is to remind ourselves of them so they jump out at us when theycreep into our work.  \nl once worked under a newspaper editor who liked to joke,“Avoid clichéslike the plague.\"And,\"The most well-worn cliché is well-worn cliché.\"  \n什  \n.  \n# 三\n\nTHE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CLICHES AND TROPES  \nBe careful not to mistake a trope for a cliché.A trope is a conventionwriters use to convey certain ideas.These can encompass elementssuch as character archetypes,plot structures,symbols,motifs,andmore.Unlike clichés,tropes are not inherently bad,depending on howthey're executed.  \nExamples of tropes include \"the hero's journey,\"\"love triangle,\"\"thechosen one,\"\"damsel in distress,\"and \"redemption arc\"-commonframeworks in countless stories.Tropes become tiresome whenoverused or poorly executed,leading to predictability or lack oforiginality.  \nClichés on the other hand evidence uncreative writing because theybring nothing new or fresh to the narrative.They can lead topredictability and a lack of engagement for the reader.  \nClichés can also refer to situations or character traits that havebecome so familiar that they no longer provoke genuine emotionalresponses from readers.While tropes can sometimes become clichés ifused too frequently without innovation,not all tropes are inherentlyclichéd.  \nIn summary,tropes can be effective when used creatively,whileclichés should be avoided.  \nNaturally,characters might speak in clichés,and including them indialogue can add realism.But otherwise,when one on this listemerges in your prose,root it out,wax creative,and find a new way toexpress an old truth.  \n3  \n1.At long last  \n2.An uphill battle  \n3.A dark and stormy night  \n4.A pain in the neck (or other pla  \n5.An ace up his sleeve  \n6.Add insult to injury  \n7.A far cry  \n8.All her eggs in one basket  \n9.As old as time  \n10.Avoid like the plague  \n11.As luck would have it  \n12.Back in the saddle  \n13.Back to the drawing board  \n14.His bark is worse than his bite  \n15.Beat around the bush  \n16.Bend over backwards for her  \n17.Better late than never  \n18.Better safe than sorry  \n# LIST OF CLICHES\n\n21.Bite the dust  \n22.Bite the hand that feeds you  \n23.Bitten off more than he can chew  \n24.Black as coal  \n25.Black as pitch  \n26.Blind as a bat  \n27.Blind ambition  \n28.Blind leading the blind  \n29.Blow off steam  \n30.Blood,sweat,and tears  \n31.Boils down to  \n32.Bone to pick  \n33.Bored to tears  \n34.Bored stiff  \n35.Bright and early  \n36.Bull by the horns  \n37.Bull in a china shop  \n38.Burn the midnight oil  \n39.Burning the candle at both ends  \n40.Burning question  \n4  \n42.Bury the hatchet  \n43.Busy as a bee  \n44.Calm before the storm  \n45.Can of worms  \n46.Can't hold a candle to her  \n47.Cat got your tongue  \n48.Caught in the crossfire  \n49.Caught red-handed  \n50.Chip on his shoulder  \n51.Chomping at the bit  \n52.Clear as a bell  \n53.Clear as mud  \n54.Cost an arm and a leg  \n55.Crack of dawn  \n56.Crash course  \n57.Cry her eyes out  \n58.Cry like a baby  \n59.Cut to the chase  \n60.Dark before the dawn  \n62.Drives him up a wall  \n63.Dressed to kill  \n64.Eagle eye  \n65.Easy as pie  \n66.Every fiber of her being  \n67.Fish out of water  \n68.Fly the coop  \n69.Gets his goat  \n70.Go against the grain  \n71.Go with the flow  \n72.Happy as a clam  \n73.Have the last laugh  \n74.Hear a pin drop  \n75.Hear it through the grapevine  \n76.Held her horses  \n77.Hot under the collar  \n78.If the shoe were on the other foot  \n79.In a nutshell  \n80.In hot water  \n5  \n82.In ","cbCaih0WbSpgjqzV","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaih0WbSpgjqzV","pdf",6140501,3,1,9,"English","en",105,"# The Difference Between Cliches and Tropes\n## Why Tropes Work\n## Why Cliches Fail\n# List of Cliches","[{\"question\":\"What is the difference between a cliché and a trope?\",\"answer\":\"A cliché is an overused expression that adds nothing fresh and can lead to predictability. A trope is a story convention (like character archetypes or plot structures) that may be effective depending on execution.\"},{\"question\":\"Why should clichés be avoided in writing?\",\"answer\":\"Clichés can make the narrative feel uncreative and reduce originality, which harms reader engagement. They may also create emotional distance when situations become too familiar.\"},{\"question\":\"How can writers handle clichés when they appear in drafts?\",\"answer\":\"Spot them as missed opportunities and remove them from prose. Replace old phrasing with a new way to express the same truth, and use clichés in dialogue only when they genuinely add realism.\"}]","Cliches and How to Avoid Them - How to write better | PDF",1787657342,14,{"code":4,"msg":32,"data":33},"ok",{"site_id":25,"language":24,"slug":34,"title":13,"keywords":35,"description":14,"schema_data":36,"social_meta":86,"head_meta":88,"extra_data":90,"updated_unix":29},"cliches-and-how-to-avoid-them-how-to-write-better","",{"@graph":37,"@context":85},[38,53,68],{"@type":39,"itemListElement":40},"BreadcrumbList",[41,45,48,50],{"item":42,"name":43,"@type":44,"position":21},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":46,"name":47,"@type":44,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",{"item":49,"name":12,"@type":44,"position":20},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/literature/",{"item":51,"name":13,"@type":44,"position":52},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/cliches-and-how-to-avoid-them-how-to-write-better/141481/",4,{"url":51,"name":13,"@type":54,"author":55,"headline":13,"publisher":57,"fileFormat":60,"inLanguage":24,"description":14,"dateModified":61,"datePublished":62,"encodingFormat":60,"isAccessibleForFree":63,"interactionStatistic":64},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":56},"Person",{"url":42,"name":58,"@type":59},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-09-07","2026-08-25",true,{"@type":65,"interactionType":66,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":67},"ViewAction",{"@type":69,"mainEntity":70},"FAQPage",[71,77,81],{"name":72,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":74},"What is the difference between a cliché and a trope?","Question",{"text":75,"@type":76},"A cliché is an overused expression that adds nothing fresh and can lead to predictability. A trope is a story convention (like character archetypes or plot structures) that may be effective depending on execution.","Answer",{"name":78,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":79},"Why should clichés be avoided in writing?",{"text":80,"@type":76},"Clichés can make the narrative feel uncreative and reduce originality, which harms reader engagement. They may also create emotional distance when situations become too familiar.",{"name":82,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":83},"How can writers handle clichés when they appear in drafts?",{"text":84,"@type":76},"Spot them as missed opportunities and remove them from prose. Replace old phrasing with a new way to express the same truth, and use clichés in dialogue only when they genuinely add realism.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":51,"og:type":87,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":58,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":89,"canonical":51},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":25},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":92},[93,97,100,104,109,114,119,124,128,131,135],{"id":21,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":94,"show_sort_weight":95,"slug":96},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":98,"slug":99},80,"literature",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":101,"show_sort_weight":102,"slug":103},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":105,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":106,"show_sort_weight":107,"slug":108},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":110,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":111,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":115,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":120,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":121,"show_sort_weight":122,"slug":123},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":127},"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":126,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":129,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":130},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":132,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":133,"show_sort_weight":132,"slug":134},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":136,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":137,"show_sort_weight":105,"slug":138},19,"General","general"]