Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Deleted line(s) 3,87 (click to see context) :
[[ShowDontTell To demonstrate, rather than elaborate]], some examples:
[[folder:Catalogue of Tom Swifties]]
# "I might as well be dead," Tom croaked.
# "Who discovered radium?" asked Marie, curiously.
# "I've lost the rights to that gold mine," Tom exclaimed.
# "I unclogged the drain with a vacuum cleaner," Tom said succinctly.
# "They had to amputate them both at the ankles," Tom said defeatedly.
# Or similarly: "We have to amputate," Tom said disarmingly.
# "Word to the wise: don't pet the lions," Tom said offhandedly.
# "Why is it so dark in here?" Tom said delightedly.
# "Mush!" Tom said huskily.
# "I'm coming!" Tom ejaculated.
# "Me, drown in Egypt? It'll never happen!" exclaimed Tom, deep in denial.
# "I owe you £20," said Tom, with a score to settle.
# "I have to alert the town!" Tom cried.
# "I've dropped my toothpaste," said Tom, Crest-fallen.
# "We're out of toothpaste," said Tom, Aim-lessly.
# "I never sharpen pencils," Tom said pointlessly.
# "There's no air in your tires," Tom said flatly.
# "I tore up all my Valentines", said Tom halfheartedly.
# "Now where did I leave the deed to that land?" Tom muttered distractedly.
# "That river is full of nuclear waste!" Tom said glowingly.
# "Did anyone see where I left my pants?" Tom asked embarrassedly.
# "Did you walk right up to the victim and shoot him?" Tom asked, point-blank.
# "I sure did!" the suspect shot back.
# "I'm trapped in a penny!" Tom said, incensed.
# "Oh no, I've become an undead monster!" said Tom, aghast.
# "I'm trying to read Darwin's ''Voyage of the Beagle''", Tom said doggedly.
# "Okay, okay; just one more autograph," Tom said resignedly.
# "Take the prisoner downstairs with you," Tom said condescendingly.
# "I manufacture table tops," said Tom counterproductively.
# "My knee keeps twitching," Tom said reflexively.
# "It's the outside of a tree!" Tom barked.
# "That looks like it came from the chemistry lab," Tom retorted.
# "Terpsichore, Erato, Calliope..." Tom mused.
# "Get into the back of the boat," Tom said sternly.
# "A triangle has three, a square has four, a pentagon has five," Tom sighed.
# "You could plant box, or cypress, or maybe holly," Tom hedged.
# "Nnnn," Tom said forensically.[[note]]Four-"n"s-ically. Geddit?[[/note]]
# "I make sure to have a diet rich in iron," Tom said ferociously.
# "I just ate a bunch of lions," said Tom, full of pride.
# "The Red Sox didn't need the Babe", said Tom, ruthlessly.
# "This wine's far too dry", Tom said bitterly.
# "Stop playing with that FreezeRay", Tom said frostily.
# "Do I look like a mouse to you?", Tom squeaked.
# "We've taken over the government!", Tom cooed.
# "I just inhaled my fishing lure!", said Tom with bated breath.
# "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn," said Tom rhetorically [[note]]''Film/GoneWithTheWind''[[/note]].
# "No, I won't play TabletopGame/TicTacToe with you," said Tom crossly.
# "Stop needling me," said Tom pointedly.
# "Fearless and Red are among my favorite albums," said Tom [[Music/TaylorSwift Swiftly]].
# "That's the dog star," said Tom seriously.
# "[[TheStoner Pass me a joint]]," said Tom bluntly.
# "I can't find the French legation," Tom said disconsolately.
# "The harbor markers are burning!" Tom yelled flamboyantly.
# "You got a nice butt, lady," Tom said cheekily.
# "The mosquitos won't get us in here," Tom said intently.
# "That martial artist looks a bit glum," Tom said [[Creator/BruceLee sadly]].
# "What a wonderful side street!", Tom said finally.
# "I think we should give the robot a masculine or feminine personality.", Tom engendered.
# "My lamp just went out!" Tom glowered.
# "Maybe we could try playing dice" Tom hazarded.
# "Get into this sack of potatoes, Richard", Tom dictated.
# "Keep the furnace going!", Tom bellowed.
# "Time to get moving!", Tom said ecstatically.
# "I'm feeling a bit devilish." Tom said impishly.
# "I'm going to go play the organ," Tom piped up.
# "Let's go explore tombs!" Tom said cryptically.
# "I need to replace my mower", said Tom forlornly.
# "My favourite music show's on!" cried Tom with abandon.
# "I'm the plumber," he said with a flush.
# "I can't believe I tore another pillow!", Tom said, feeling down.
# "I didn't do my math homework," said Tom, nonplussed.
# "Talking through this sieve makes me sound weird," Tom strained to say.
# "I need to revive the cookware", Tom said, deadpan.
# "I got the bomb to countdown again", Tom refused to say.
# "Glad I didn't get another text message requesting my credit card info today", Tom said, without context.
# "I don't know where I put my list of arguments against", Tom said, missing context.
# "I think Lee acted alone", Tom said, feeling justly attacked.
# "Leave them to germinate", Tom proceeded.
# "Well, I thought it was kind of nice being a girl for a while", Tom said dismissively.
# "The cooking implements were haunted," Tom wrote in cursive.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Catalogue of Tom Swifties]]
# "I might as well be dead," Tom croaked.
# "Who discovered radium?" asked Marie, curiously.
# "I've lost the rights to that gold mine," Tom exclaimed.
# "I unclogged the drain with a vacuum cleaner," Tom said succinctly.
# "They had to amputate them both at the ankles," Tom said defeatedly.
# Or similarly: "We have to amputate," Tom said disarmingly.
# "Word to the wise: don't pet the lions," Tom said offhandedly.
# "Why is it so dark in here?" Tom said delightedly.
# "Mush!" Tom said huskily.
# "I'm coming!" Tom ejaculated.
# "Me, drown in Egypt? It'll never happen!" exclaimed Tom, deep in denial.
# "I owe you £20," said Tom, with a score to settle.
# "I have to alert the town!" Tom cried.
# "I've dropped my toothpaste," said Tom, Crest-fallen.
# "We're out of toothpaste," said Tom, Aim-lessly.
# "I never sharpen pencils," Tom said pointlessly.
# "There's no air in your tires," Tom said flatly.
# "I tore up all my Valentines", said Tom halfheartedly.
# "Now where did I leave the deed to that land?" Tom muttered distractedly.
# "That river is full of nuclear waste!" Tom said glowingly.
# "Did anyone see where I left my pants?" Tom asked embarrassedly.
# "Did you walk right up to the victim and shoot him?" Tom asked, point-blank.
# "I sure did!" the suspect shot back.
# "I'm trapped in a penny!" Tom said, incensed.
# "Oh no, I've become an undead monster!" said Tom, aghast.
# "I'm trying to read Darwin's ''Voyage of the Beagle''", Tom said doggedly.
# "Okay, okay; just one more autograph," Tom said resignedly.
# "Take the prisoner downstairs with you," Tom said condescendingly.
# "I manufacture table tops," said Tom counterproductively.
# "My knee keeps twitching," Tom said reflexively.
# "It's the outside of a tree!" Tom barked.
# "That looks like it came from the chemistry lab," Tom retorted.
# "Terpsichore, Erato, Calliope..." Tom mused.
# "Get into the back of the boat," Tom said sternly.
# "A triangle has three, a square has four, a pentagon has five," Tom sighed.
# "You could plant box, or cypress, or maybe holly," Tom hedged.
# "Nnnn," Tom said forensically.[[note]]Four-"n"s-ically. Geddit?[[/note]]
# "I make sure to have a diet rich in iron," Tom said ferociously.
# "I just ate a bunch of lions," said Tom, full of pride.
# "The Red Sox didn't need the Babe", said Tom, ruthlessly.
# "This wine's far too dry", Tom said bitterly.
# "Stop playing with that FreezeRay", Tom said frostily.
# "Do I look like a mouse to you?", Tom squeaked.
# "We've taken over the government!", Tom cooed.
# "I just inhaled my fishing lure!", said Tom with bated breath.
# "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn," said Tom rhetorically [[note]]''Film/GoneWithTheWind''[[/note]].
# "No, I won't play TabletopGame/TicTacToe with you," said Tom crossly.
# "Stop needling me," said Tom pointedly.
# "Fearless and Red are among my favorite albums," said Tom [[Music/TaylorSwift Swiftly]].
# "That's the dog star," said Tom seriously.
# "[[TheStoner Pass me a joint]]," said Tom bluntly.
# "I can't find the French legation," Tom said disconsolately.
# "The harbor markers are burning!" Tom yelled flamboyantly.
# "You got a nice butt, lady," Tom said cheekily.
# "The mosquitos won't get us in here," Tom said intently.
# "That martial artist looks a bit glum," Tom said [[Creator/BruceLee sadly]].
# "What a wonderful side street!", Tom said finally.
# "I think we should give the robot a masculine or feminine personality.", Tom engendered.
# "My lamp just went out!" Tom glowered.
# "Maybe we could try playing dice" Tom hazarded.
# "Get into this sack of potatoes, Richard", Tom dictated.
# "Keep the furnace going!", Tom bellowed.
# "Time to get moving!", Tom said ecstatically.
# "I'm feeling a bit devilish." Tom said impishly.
# "I'm going to go play the organ," Tom piped up.
# "Let's go explore tombs!" Tom said cryptically.
# "I need to replace my mower", said Tom forlornly.
# "My favourite music show's on!" cried Tom with abandon.
# "I'm the plumber," he said with a flush.
# "I can't believe I tore another pillow!", Tom said, feeling down.
# "I didn't do my math homework," said Tom, nonplussed.
# "Talking through this sieve makes me sound weird," Tom strained to say.
# "I need to revive the cookware", Tom said, deadpan.
# "I got the bomb to countdown again", Tom refused to say.
# "Glad I didn't get another text message requesting my credit card info today", Tom said, without context.
# "I don't know where I put my list of arguments against", Tom said, missing context.
# "I think Lee acted alone", Tom said, feeling justly attacked.
# "Leave them to germinate", Tom proceeded.
# "Well, I thought it was kind of nice being a girl for a while", Tom said dismissively.
# "The cooking implements were haunted," Tom wrote in cursive.
[[/folder]]
If you want some examples, visit JustForFun.TomSwifty.
Deleted line(s) 96,101 (click to see context) :
[[AC:Contests]]
* ''Literature/BulwerLyttonFictionContest'': It's a competition for bad prose, so this trope is kinda {{enforced}}. From Kimberly Baer, Woodbridge, VA in 2016, we have these.
-->"Nurse, I need more blankets, and my water pitcher is empty, and also my bedside lamp isn't working," Tom said coldly, dryly, and darkly, yet at the same time patiently.
* [[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times]] newspaper held a [[http://schott.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/weekend-competition-tom-swifties/#comment-13201 contest]] for the top Tom Swifties.
* Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast: Mark Rosewater once held a ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering''-related Tom Swifty contest. The results can be seen [[http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr115 here]]. They will only make sense if you know the cards they're referencing, though.
* ''Literature/BulwerLyttonFictionContest'': It's a competition for bad prose, so this trope is kinda {{enforced}}. From Kimberly Baer, Woodbridge, VA in 2016, we have these.
-->"Nurse, I need more blankets, and my water pitcher is empty, and also my bedside lamp isn't working," Tom said coldly, dryly, and darkly, yet at the same time patiently.
* [[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times]] newspaper held a [[http://schott.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/weekend-competition-tom-swifties/#comment-13201 contest]] for the top Tom Swifties.
* Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast: Mark Rosewater once held a ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering''-related Tom Swifty contest. The results can be seen [[http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr115 here]]. They will only make sense if you know the cards they're referencing, though.
Deleted line(s) 135,137 (click to see context) :
%%[[AC:Magazines]]
%%* The Boy Scouts of America {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
%%* The Boy Scouts of America {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
%%* The Boy Scouts of America {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
* ''Literature/BulwerLyttonFictionContest'': It's a competition for bad prose, so this trope is kinda {{enforced}}. From Kimberly Baer, Woodbridge, VA in 2016, we have these.
-->"Nurse, I need more blankets, and my water pitcher is empty, and also my bedside lamp isn't working," Tom said coldly, dryly, and darkly, yet at the same time patiently.
* ''Literature/BulwerLyttonFictionContest'': It's a competition for bad prose, so this trope is kinda {{enforced}}. From Kimberly Baer, Woodbridge, VA in 2016, we have these.
-->"Nurse, I need more blankets, and my water pitcher is empty, and also my bedside lamp isn't working," Tom said coldly, dryly, and darkly, yet at the same time patiently.
Changed line(s) 152 (click to see context) from:
to:
* [[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times]] newspaper held a [[http://schott.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/weekend-competition-tom-swifties/#comment-13201 contest]] for the top Tom Swifties.
* Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast: Mark Rosewater once held a ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering''-related Tom Swifty contest. The results can be seen [[http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr115 here]]. They will only make sense if you know the cards they're referencing, though.
* Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast: Mark Rosewater once held a ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering''-related Tom Swifty contest. The results can be seen [[http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr115 here]]. They will only make sense if you know the cards they're referencing, though.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Changed line(s) 135,137 (click to see context) from:
[[AC:Magazines]]
* The Boy Scouts of America {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
* The Boy Scouts of America {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
to:
*
%%* The Boy Scouts of America {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Remember not to trope your own writing
Changed line(s) 42 (click to see context) from:
# "Nnnn," Tom said forensically.[[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Four-"n"s-ically.]] Geddit?[[/note]]
to:
# "Nnnn," Tom said forensically.[[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Four-"n"s-ically.]] [[note]]Four-"n"s-ically. Geddit?[[/note]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Not an example of the trope
Deleted line(s) 150,152 (click to see context) :
[[AC:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E13FallWeatherFriends "Fall Weather Friends"]], Pinkie Pie says she is "your official p-ie in the sky announcer" for the Running of the Leaves.
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E13FallWeatherFriends "Fall Weather Friends"]], Pinkie Pie says she is "your official p-ie in the sky announcer" for the Running of the Leaves.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 153 (click to see context) from:
[[AC:Real Life]]
to:
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 146 (click to see context) from:
* ''Website/TurkeyCityLexicon'': An unseemly compulsion to follow the word "said" with a colorful or [[IncrediblyLamePun punny]] adverb, as in "'We'd better hurry,' Tom said swiftly." An example from Creator/StephenKing: "'I'm the plumber,' he said, with a flush." This was [[TropeNamer a standard mannerism]] of the old ''Literature/TomSwift'' adventure dime-novels. [[ShowDontTell Good dialogue can stand on its own without a clutter of adverbial props.]] (Not to mention that these little winks are only funny to the pre-pubescent 11-year-olds who comprised most of Tom Swift's core demographic. Anyone more mature--such as a 12-year-old--will give them the groans they deserve.)
to:
* ''Website/TurkeyCityLexicon'': An unseemly compulsion to follow the word "said" with a colorful or [[IncrediblyLamePun [[{{Pun}} punny]] adverb, as in "'We'd better hurry,' Tom said swiftly." An example from Creator/StephenKing: "'I'm the plumber,' he said, with a flush." This was [[TropeNamer a standard mannerism]] of the old ''Literature/TomSwift'' adventure dime-novels. [[ShowDontTell Good dialogue can stand on its own without a clutter of adverbial props.]] (Not to mention that these little winks are only funny to the pre-pubescent 11-year-olds who comprised most of Tom Swift's core demographic. Anyone more mature--such as a 12-year-old--will give them the groans they deserve.)
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 99 (click to see context) from:
* The New York Times [[http://schott.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/weekend-competition-tom-swifties/#comment-13201 held a contest]] for the top Tom Swifties.
to:
* [[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times Times]] newspaper held a [[http://schott.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/weekend-competition-tom-swifties/#comment-13201 held a contest]] for the top Tom Swifties.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
"There was a repeated entry," Tom said redundantly.
Deleted line(s) 10 (click to see context) :
# "I might as well be dead," Tom croaked.
Deleted line(s) 14 (click to see context) :
# "Who discovered radium?" asked Marie, curiously.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
# "The cooking implements were haunted," Tom wrote in cursive.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 137,138 (click to see context) from:
* The Boy Scouts of America magazine ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
to:
* The Boy Scouts of America magazine {{magazine|s}} ''Boy's Life'' has these in its jokes section.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Redundancy
Changed line(s) 89,90 (click to see context) from:
The name is a reference to the ''Literature/TomSwift'' series of books. They did not use the trope much themselves, rather the books and similar children's books of the time (''Literature/NancyDrew'', ''Literature/TheHardyBoys'' and other dialogue-heavy pint-sized detective novels) went to great lengths to avoid just repeating plain words like "said" and "tell" over and over again. So they employed many adverbs and alternatives: the Said-Bookism is deservedly [[SaidBookism its own trope.]] The Tom Swifty then arose later as an effective way of parodying this style [[BeamMeUpScotty until it became associated strongly with the original series itself.]]
to:
The name is a reference to the ''Literature/TomSwift'' series of books. They did not use the trope much themselves, rather the books and similar children's books of the time (''Literature/NancyDrew'', ''Literature/TheHardyBoys'' and other dialogue-heavy pint-sized detective novels) went to great lengths to avoid just repeating plain words like "said" and "tell" over and over again. So they employed many adverbs and alternatives: the Said-Bookism is deservedly [[SaidBookism its own trope.]] trope. The Tom Swifty then arose later as an effective way of parodying this style [[BeamMeUpScotty until it became associated strongly with the original series itself.]]