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39
Remember that love
means never having to say,
“I love you.”
Don’t let your characters say “I love you” to anyone, es-
pecially those they love.
Saying “I love you” is manipulative and a cliché.
It’s a plea for sympathy.
It’s fl at.
Instead, show your characters loving. Adding the
words (or relying on them) actually dilutes the emotional
content you’re going for.
An exception may be made if your character is plead-
ing, arguing, wondering, or otherwise has some point to
make other than the plain, one-to-one sentiment of I +
love + you.
But still see if you can do it any other way.
If you can’t, fi ne. Put it in. But make it a fi ght before
you do.
And if it’s going to be in there, freshen it up, as in this
beat from Woody Allen’s Annie Hall:
ANNIE: Do you love me?
ALVY: I-uh, love is, uh, is too weak a word for
what …
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130
ANNIE: Yeah.
ALVY: —I … I lerve you. You know, I loove you, I
loff you. There are two f ’s. I have to invent a
word, … Of course I love you.
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