Adverbs get a lot of well-deserved bad press with regard to writing. More often than not they’re a symptom of lazy writing. These verb modifiers can more often than not be eliminated by using a verb that incorporates the feeling or action you want to express. This is where having a good Thesaurus is essential. Every author should have one within arm’s reach of where they do most their writing.

Whenever you start to use a word ending in “ly” challenge yourself to replace it with a better verb. This is something you should pay close attention to while editing your first draft.