From the course: Writing with Impact
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Exploiting the power of verbs
- English lacks some features that are found in other languages, but it is ridiculously rich in verb forms. That gives us some wonderfully poetic options for describing action. There aren't languages where you can say something like, He would have been leaving, but he had been interrupted. This richness has its downside for writers, though, as it's not always clear which form is the most effective. Now this isn't a grammar course. We have lots of those, including Grammar Foundations and Advanced Grammar, but here are a few tidbits chosen to add power to your words. Action verbs, not stative verbs. An action verb shows that something is happening. Give, run, and do are all action verbs. Stative verbs show a state like be or seem. So let's take the sentence, Arthur Landon was an English businessman who founded the Landon Hotel. We can bring an action verb up front by changing it to English businessman, Arthur Landon, founded the Landon Hotel. Active forms, not passive forms. Passive…
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