Eight phrases Stephen King thinks writers should never use

Stephen King signs autographs last year at Books-A-Million in South Portland. (BDN photo by Troy R. Bennett)

Stephen King signs autographs last year at Books-A-Million in South Portland. (BDN photo by Troy R. Bennett)

Aspiring writers, take note. Stephen King, one of the bestselling authors of all time and perhaps Maine’s best-known resident, believes there are certain phrases that should be stricken from your notebooks and computer screens.

In an interview with Jessica Lahey of The Atlantic published earlier this month, Lahey asked King to expound upon the few blacklisted phrases King mentioned in his acclaimed 2000 book “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft.”

Stephen King speaks at the University of Maine at Orono in 2008. (BDN file photo)

Stephen King speaks at the University of Maine at Orono in 2008. (BDN file photo)

Combining what he wrote in “On Writing” and what he told The Atlantic, King’s list of phrases — so to speak — that all writers should steer clear consists of the following:

  • “At this point in time…”
  • “At the end of the day…”
  • “Some people say…”
  • “Many believe…”
  • “The consensus is…”
  • IMHO
  • YOLO
  • LOL

King tells The Atlantic that phrases like “Some people say…” represent “the kind of lazy attribution that makes me want to kick something.”

He doesn’t, in that interview anyway, explain why he dislikes acronyms made ubiquitous by the explosion of text messaging and Twitter — such as “In My Humble Opinion,” “You Only Live Once” and “Laugh Out Loud,” as listed above. But suffice it to say if “LOL” appeared in a literary work — or anywhere other than a text message, Tweet or other platform for electronic shorthand — it would look ditzy and out-of-place.

Some other writing hints from Uncle Stevie? Here’s another excerpt from “On Writing” on the topic of adverbs:

“I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs, and I will shout it from the rooftops. To put it another way, they’re like dandelions. If you have one on your lawn, it looks pretty and unique. If you fail to root it out, however, you find five the next day… fifty the day after that… and then, my brothers and sisters, your lawn is totally, completely, and profligately covered with dandelions. By then you see them for the weeds they really are, but by then it’s — GASP!! — too late.”

And, from The Atlantic, on the widely debate Oxford comma:

“It can go either way. For instance, I like ‘Jane bought eggs, milk, bread, and a candy bar for her brother.’ But I also like ‘Jane raced home and slammed the door,’ because I want to feel that whole thing as a single breath.”

Stephen King, author and owner of Zone Radio in Bangor, answers questions during a news conference regarding programming on WZON 103.1FM and 620AM at the radio station's headquarters in Bangor in 2011. (BDN file photo)

Stephen King, author and owner of Zone Radio in Bangor, answers questions during a news conference regarding programming on WZON 103.1FM and 620AM at the radio station’s headquarters in Bangor in 2011. (BDN file photo)