Writing Question - What's the difference?

[rayrichardsauthor]

I need help figuring out the difference between "she let out a soft groan" and "she groaned softly". My editor wants me to use "she groaned softly" but it doesn't feel right. Feels like the difference between "she said softly" and "she whispered". Is there a difference? Thoughts?

[AmysGames]

I'd say it depends on the context. For example, if it's a dialogue tag:

"This is awful," she groaned softly.

...Then I would agree with your editor, as "groaned" becomes the replacement for "said" in this context. If you want to use the other one, then it should be separated from the dialogue with a period:

She let out a soft groan. "This is awful."

(I also swapped the order because it feels more natural to me)

For the most part, though, I'd say it's just a stylistic difference. "A soft groan" feels a little more literary to me.

[rayrichardsauthor]

So the context, my FMC is getting out of bed in the middle of the night. It's cold and she doesn't feel good. She makes a noise of discomfort before getting out of bed.

[justincarbunkle]

“She groaned softly” is slightly clearer/shorter to read than “she let out a soft groan”. It’s a very minute difference, both could work better depending on your writing style/its place in the paragraph. I would probably go with “she groaned softly.”

[Vassia]

It's a style difference but I'd go with your original because people tend to over use adverbs anyway so cut them when can.

[JEON]

It’s likely because "she groaned softly" feels more concise and natural in modern writing, especially for conveying reactions in real time.
"She let out a soft groan" can feel more formal or drawn out, depending on the surrounding tone of the text.

[Ordinaryaverageguy]

I would prefer "she let out a soft groan" if it was made clear that she was trying to hold back any sounds. Otherwise, your editor's suggestion is about the same.

[rayrichardsauthor]

Right? Adverbs have there place imo but there are other ways to describe stuff.

[rayrichardsauthor]

The idea of the scene is that she pulls herself outta bed, makes the noise, and then goes on with her action. "She groaned" always comes across to me as a reaction to something, like nonverbal communication