Avoid "Started" and "Began"

This is not something I come across in a lot of writing. In fact, this is more so a personal issue that I struggle with. Still, it is worthwhile to learn from anybody's mistake if it applies to you.

When I write actions in my stories, I use the same phrases over and over again. It's always "He began to walk away" and "She started to explain herself" and "I began to think about". There are a number of problems with this. First of all, it's repetitive, which is boring. Second, they're largely meaningless words. Third, they weaken the power of the verb they modify.

"Started" and "began" are not technically weasel words, but they are poisonous. They take away a lot of potential power and have no benefit. And the worst part of it all is that using them always feels like the right thing to do at the time.

I write actions as I see them happening in my head. If a person is standing, then walks away, the most natural thing to say is that "he started walking away." And, in reality, this is not always a bad thing. The main problem is that starting implies an ending. If "he started walking away", then I expect the sentence to continue with something like, "but he was stopped before he reached the door." Again, though, this is a natural and acceptable thing, but only in small doses.

Starting and beginning is akin to the laughing and smiling problem characters in bad writing seem to have. Characters can always do little things and then stop doing them. Every action has a beginning and an ending. It doesn't need to be announced or specified that they have started an action. Just say that they did it; it will be understood. It will also be more powerful.