CLICHES I HAVE KNOWN AND LOVED
I love a good cliché. As soon as you hear one you know exactly what the writer or person is saying. So easy. Such an economy of words. But lazy. As a writer it’s verboten to use clichés. Like anyone trying to write a good story, I must leave my precious cliché babies behind.
As an ode to that which I must not use, I decided to write this to once and forever fulfill my need for clichés.
Here are a few of my favorites and some new ones I thought were cool:
Every cloud has a silver lining.
Life’s not so bad, when you consider the alternative.
All’s fair in love and war.
There are plenty more fish in the sea.
It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. (Really? Does anyone believe this?)
Beauty is only skin deep. (Tell that to the guys lusting after supermodels)
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. (Ditto above note)
You can’t tell a book by its cover.
I’m not ugly; I’m visually challenging. (Okay. I never heard this one but I like it)
It’s what’s on the inside that really matters. (See above re supermodels and lust)
If you can’t beat them, join them.
Nobody is perfect.
I’m only human.
The devil made me do it.
It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Tomorrow, no one will remember (Ya think?)
Avoid clichés (or anything else)like the plague.
There is truth in every cliché. (This is why I love them)
Clichés sound better in a foreign language. (Ah, that’s how I can get away with using clichés in my writing)
There is nothing to fear but fear itself. (Good one, but overused. Wait! That’s what a cliché is)
Life sucks and then you die.
When God gives you lemons, make lemonade (I prefer to wallow in self-pity)
Life is a bitch. (Ain’t that the truth)
When it rains, it pours.
No pain, no gain.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
I did it my way. (Frank Sinatra, anyone?)
Parting is such sweet sorrow.
Have a nice life.
Live and learn.
To be or not to be.
Live and let live.
Shit happens.
Laughter is the best medicine.
Same shit, different day.
Carpe diem. (See clichés, foreign language above)
What goes around comes around.
Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.
Life is messy.
Que sera, sera. (Ditto clichés and foreign languages)
Time will tell.
No news is good news.
There is no such thing as a free lunch.
Haste makes waste.
Cleanliness is next to godliness.
Do it right the first time. (Easy to say, hard to do)
There, I’ve done it. I’ve gotten my need for clichés out of my system. I will never again write a cliché in a book. I promise (fingers crossed).
Feel free to add your favorites.
