Fiction writing is an art and creative writing is a process involving imagination. Creativity depends on originality, so avoiding cliches allows you to produce something more individual to you. When you write fiction you want to express yourself in your own unique way, and to use language appropriate for the genre of fiction in which you write.
When To Use Cliches
A spoken cliche can be used effectively as a neat form of shorthand in conversation. It has a meaning that is immediately understood. Verbal cliches are stock phrases or general expressions used in everyday speech. Characters of low intelligence would normally speak in cliches, and this should be considered when writing realistic dialogue in fiction.
A novel or short story can be written as a narrative by one of the characters, or the story can be told from the point of view of one person. When a fictitious narrator or leading character is not a writer, and is not a particularly well educated person, it would be quite acceptable for that character to think, speak or write in cliches.
When to Avoid Cliches
It is important when writing fiction to avoid familiar types of character. A police detective with a broken marriage, or a private investigator with a drink problem, would be too much of a cliche. A heroine who is pale and fair and a villain with piercing dark eyes are also obvious cliches.
A predictable plot device can become a cliche, such as a scene where one character happens to overhear part of a conversation and misunderstands what is being said about another person.
Use of everyday expressions or colloquial phrases should be avoided in your narrative prose, unless you intend to indicate what a character is thinking, and that person is someone who thinks in cliches. There should be few or no cliches used in describing what highly intelligent characters think or explaining how they feel.
Always avoid using any obvious cliches in descriptive passages, and when writing a straightforward account of action taking place in your story.
How to Avoid Cliches
Avoid use of cliched situations by devising plots that develop in unexpected ways, and by creating true to life original characters. Readers should feel intrigued and be fascinated to know more about what happens. This can be achieved if the story is told effectively, without resorting to cliches.
Whenever your characters are aware of their surroundings, indicate what they notice, and how it makes them feel. A building may have long corridors that appear to be endless, but rather than writing about its "endless corridors" you should describe how confusing and sinister the place appears to someone in that setting.
Portray your characters without use of cliches. Describe physical appearance without writing about "innocent blue eyes", by suggesting what effect the eyes have when a character looks at another person. Rather than stating that a female character has "a perfect figure", write of what her clothes reveal about her size and shape.
Use your imagination and be original in your writing. Make your fictional world seem real. Make vivid impressions, suggest feelings and create atmospheres that stick in the memory. Bring your characters to life through their actions and dialogue. Know when to use cliches, and try to avoid repeating cliches in your fiction writing.