Writing Tip

Tip: Replace “said” with “verbs to suit the precise actions you’re describing” (p. 53, from They Say/ I Say: The Moves that Matter in Persuasive Writing Gerard Graff & Cathy Birkenstein)

Context: The authors are talking about writing summaries.

Tip in Action:

While this tip is not one you haven’t heard before, it is one that’s easy for this novice to forget. So I tried it with an article I am co-authoring.

First, I identified 5 instances where I use “said” in the piece.

Next, I looked for the action in each one.

To protect the innocent, I will not share the sentences here, but when I looked closer, I noticed that I could replace each "said" with words that got closer at what the speaker was really doing.

I settled on asked, believed, observed, explained. I left 1"said" because it was " most appropriate... for the occasion" (p. 53).

 

Note:

The authors give sample verbs (and scenarios) to help you if you get stuck.