Apparently, I like the word As.
It’s a little word. So small, so subtle, BUT SO TROUBLESOME.
Yeah, I admit it, I’m an “as” junkie. I love combining sentences. I like the way “as” makes sentences flow together in such a beautiful flowery way. But, unfortunately, too much of a good thing stands out.
The lovely Miss Ravena went through my manuscript and started highlighting my “as” addiction. Oh, what a colorful page I received back!
Did I get rid of every one of them? Of course not. I just reworded sentences where they were not absolutely necessary. I tried to make sure there wasn’t more than one “As” in a single paragraph. In one instance there were three in a paragraph, but I could only drop to two. Anything else and the pacing would have suffered (in my opinion).
So, yes, I still have the dreaded “as” used as a conjunction in my manuscript. Tabu? Maybe a little. I’ll watch for it, but I’m sure I’ll do it again, and again.
It is, after all, an addiction.
You won’t catch me giving up chocolate too soon, either.
Jennifer M Eaton 
I’m a total ‘as’ junkie, too. I don’t know what I’d do if every as was highlighted! Probably faint from all the colorful spots on the page. I think I’ve got them under control, but like you, I need to leave some in for flow. Just a few, mind you. I can handle that man, right? 😉
I love ’em… but when they were highlighted I realized I could lose a few too. 🙂
As is one of my big ones. I use the highlight feature on MS Word, a bit like your beta reader did, and the sudden flowering of colour always makes me want to scream. I don’t even realise I’m doing it until I go back and look over my words. Oopsie.
Yeah. I think the problem is that “as” just reads so well. I love long sentances, mixed with sort ones.
I hear you. I love as, since, and gerund phrases. They just flow so nicely, don’t they? Like you, I’m aware of the issue and limit them, as difficult as that can be. LOL
Sometimes, you gotta just give in to “as”
I use that a lot as well…never 3 times in the same paragraph, but often. 😛
I got it down to two. The scene just warrented it.
I know…like I said, I use it a lot too. It’s a great word combo! 🙂
Ha! I do this too. I think it is fairly common. But, that’s what editing is for. 🙂
I can relate to this completely, I usually put a lot of “then” and “and” in my writings even though I shouldn’t. I do tend to notice them and sometimes I cross them out even if it feels weird to me. I really like your posts they are very insightful when it comes to the things you notice about languages.
Actually, when she highlighted all of them, I was surprised. Going over and cutting it to no more than two (once three) times a page did vary my sentance structure, and made it sound better.
I just had to think about it a little more.
Hehee, I like “as” too. Don’t give up on it! Just cut it back to a few times a page. Kind of like chocolate. 😉
Come on. Shake it up a bit, use ‘like’ or ‘when’ once in a while. 🙂
Uh oh, this is not something I’ve looked for in my own work. Better start tallying…
Oh, AS IF you’ll ever totally give it up! It is a great word/connector. Just as chocolate is the great … uh, everything! This is why it’s always good to have someone else read for you, and maybe unwrap some chocolate while they’re at it!
I think variety is the key. Too much of any writing habit will probably stand out. This is a good reminded to check for styles that are repeated. Now, back to have a look at my manuscript!