Have you had trouble writing without using cliches at all? The English language is evolving at an astronomical pace with the internet and all, but what do you write if you want your piece to be timeless, and free of present-day cliches?
Since most of my writings take place in the future, I have had to eliminate standard cliches from my writing, and substitute my own made-up cliches.
Joss
Favorite Answer
I try to leave out the cliches. I probably won't recognize them all or be aware when I'm using them sometimes, but that's where beta readers come in. I dont' mind if my characters use cliches in their dialogue, but I try to leave it out of my narration. It's not always easy, though, because some things just slip by, even after a few rereads. Or, you're simply not aware that it's a cliche.
I don't mind mentioning modern day things, like brand names, names of places, and even names of celebs and artists, but I try to keep it to a minimum. I usually give a vague discription. for instance, instaead of saying a miley cyrus song was playing on the radio, i'll mention something vague like a 16-year old pop artist or singer. I dont' try to eliminate ALL cliche's though.