5 Line Editing Techniques To Tighten Your Writing

Gary Smailes | 5 November 2025

What “Tight” Writing Means in Line Editing

Tight writing feels clean in the mouth. You read it aloud and nothing snags. Meaning lands on the first pass. Voice shines without bloat.

Two quick lines to show the point:

• Before: She was starting to feel a little bit unsure about whether the plan was going to work.
• After: Doubt crept in. The plan looked shaky.

That is the target. Clear. Concise. Rhythmic. Every word earns a paycheck.

Line editing sits between two bookends. First you fix structure. Then you polish grammar and consistency. Line work belongs after scenes and arguments stop moving, and before copyediting and proofreading. If you change scenes later, you pay twice.

What you tune at the line level:

• Concision. Fewer words, same meaning. “Due to the fact that” becomes “because.”
• Diction. The right word in the right spot. Short, specific, concrete.
• Cadence. Sentence length and stress. Long lines build. Short lines punch.
• POV intimacy. Less distance. Fewer filters. More sensory detail on the page.
• Sentence to paragraph flow. Each sentence hands the baton to the next. Paragraphs start strong and exit clean.

A quick test for each:

• Concision. Cut ten words from a paragraph without losing meaning. If nothing breaks, keep the cut.
• Diction. Swap one vague verb for a precise one. “Went” becomes “drove” or “limped” or “strode.”
• Cadence. Read a page aloud. Mark each place you run out of air. Break at least one long line. Join two choppy ones.
• POV intimacy. Change “She felt the room grow cold” to “Cold air needled her arms.”
• Flow. Check the last three words of one sentence against the first three of the next. If they collide, revise the bridge.

Tight does not mean flat. It means no extra packaging around the thought. Keep the joke. Keep the attitude. Lose the padding that blurs both.

A small style sheet helps you stay decisive while you trim. Keep it simple:

• Spelling choices: toward or towards, judgment or judgement.
• Hyphenation: high-stakes or high stakes, email or e-mail.
• Capitalisation: Black or black, Internet or internet.
• Numbers: words up to nine, numerals from 10, or your chosen rule.
• Dialogue and thought: italics for interior voice, or not.
• Names: exact forms, accents, honorifics.

Why bother? Because second-guessing kills momentum. If you picked toward on page 3, you will not switch to towards on page 90. The sheet remembers for you.

One page exercise, ten minutes:

• Highlight every to be verb. Rewrite three lines to remove one in each.
• Cut one filter word: saw, felt, noticed, heard, thought.
• Trim one expletive opening: there is, there are, it was.
• Smooth one clunky join between sentences.

Set a concrete aim for this pass and protect it. Examples:

• Reduce word count by 15 percent in Chapters 1 to 3.
• Replace fifty weak verbs with stronger choices.
• Smooth choppy cadence in the opening scene.
• Remove filters from first person sections.

Put that goal at the top of your document. Then stick to it. When you find a subplot problem, make a note for later. Do not wander. Focused passes finish faster and land cleaner.

Technique 1: Cut Fillers, Hedges, and Intensifiers

Your draft speaks. Then a flock of small words fusses around it. They add fog, not meaning. Tight prose clears the fog.

Three common offenders:

• Fillers: that, actually, basically, in order to, the fact that.
• Hedges: kind of, sort of, perhaps, somewhat, almost, maybe.
• Intensifiers: really, very, quite, so, pretty.

Why they creep in:

• Habit. We write the way we talk.
• Politeness. We soften claims to sound reasonable.
• Nerves. We pad when we fear the sentence will snap.

Start with a ruthless question. If I delete this word, does the sentence still mean the same thing? If yes, out it goes.

Roundabout phrases to swap:

• in order to becomes to
• due to the fact that becomes because
• for the purpose of becomes to
• at this point in time becomes now
• there is a need to becomes we need to

Before and after, quick hits:

• Before: She was just really starting to feel kind of afraid. After: Fear prickled.
• Before: In order to make a decision, he needed time. After: He needed time to decide.
• Before: I was very, very tired. After: I was exhausted.
• Before: He sort of raised his hand. After: He raised his hand.
• Before: There is the fact that we might lose. After: We might lose.

About that pesky that. Delete when it does nothing.

• Fine to cut: I think that you are right. Better: I think you are right.
• Keep for clarity: The rule that bans laptops stays. Remove that here and the sentence bends.
• Keep inside stacked clauses if rhythm falls apart without it. Read aloud. If you stumble, restore the word.

Hedges have a job in voice. A cautious narrator uses perhaps to show doubt. A teen in dialogue says kind of because that is how they speak. Keep those. Trim hedges that sneak into exposition or into plain statements of fact.

Intensifiers signal a weak noun or verb. Upgrade the word instead of pumping air into it.

• very cold becomes frigid or icy
• really liked becomes loved or preferred
• quite small becomes tiny or narrow
• very loud becomes deafening or loud works fine if tone wants restraint

A fast test for intensifiers:

• Remove the booster. If meaning holds, leave it out. If the line sagged, pick a stronger word, not a stronger booster.

Nonfiction tweak. Hedges sometimes protect accuracy. Words like likely, roughly, up to, often, show honest limits. Keep those when they serve truth. Lose them when they serve fear.

Fiction tweak. Dialogue earns more slack. People hedge. People repeat. People stall. Use that effect on purpose, not by default.

Mini exercise, five minutes:

1. Take one page. Highlight every instance of that, really, very, quite, actually, basically, kind of, sort of, perhaps, somewhat, in order to.
2. Delete them one by one. Read the sentence aloud after each cut.
3. Restore any word that carries tone or clarity.
4. Replace three intensifiers with stronger nouns or verbs.

More before and after, with reasons:

• Before: She was kind of upset about the delay. After: She fumed about the delay. Reason: kind of weakens the emotion. Fumed carries it.
• Before: He actually did finish the report. After: He finished the report. Reason: actually adds nothing unless someone doubted him.
• Before: They were very close to the stage. After: They stood near the stage. Reason: very props up close. Near is enough.
• I’m somewhat concerned. After: I’m concerned. Reason: hedge removed unless the speaker avoids commitment.
• Before: In order to understand, you need context. After: To understand, you need context. Reason: shorter, same meaning.

When to keep a hedge or filler:

• To mark uncertainty. Perhaps the nurse saw us. This signals doubt, not weakness.
• To time a beat. She was about to speak. He almost smiled. Those shape action.
• To reveal character. Sort of in a teenager’s thought is texture, not clutter.

When to cut without mercy:

• In topic sentences. Lead strong. Save nuance for later lines.
• In narration that explains obvious links. Readers connect dots fast.
• In action lines, where speed matters.

Build your search list and run a focused pass. Examples to include:

• that
• really
• very
• quite
• actually
• basically
• kind of
• sort of
• perhaps
• somewhat
• in order to
• the fact that
• there is, there are, it was at the start of a sentence
• almost
• still

How to run the pass:

• Search one term at a time. Each hit gets a decision. Delete, replace, or keep with intent.
• Batch your work by chapter. Momentum helps your ear stay sharp.
• Note any word you keep for voice, so you do not second guess it later.

Two quick tools:

• The delete test. Remove the word. If nothing breaks, leave it out.
• The swap test. Replace the booster plus weak word with one strong word. very hungry becomes ravenous. really needed becomes required or needed is fine.

Watch for the rebound effect. Strip every hedge and your narrator might turn into a bully. Strip every intensifier and your dialogue might lose texture. Trim hard, then put back two or three for seasoning.

Last step, a timed drill:

• Set a ten minute timer.
• Pick one scene or section.
• Target twenty cuts from fillers and intensifiers.
• Read the before and after aloud. Feel the difference in pace and force.

Do this once and you will hear clutter sooner. Do this across a book and your lines will tighten on their own. The words that stay will carry weight. The words that leave will not be missed.

Technique 2: Use Strong Verbs and Kill Nominalisations

Verbs move the line. Weak ones drag. Strong ones carry meaning without help.

Start with the easy fix. Swap be-verb plus adverb clusters for a precise verb.

• walked quickly becomes hurried
• looked carefully becomes examined
• spoke loudly becomes shouted
• moved slowly becomes crept or inched or drifted, depending on mood
• was running around becomes scrambled

Before and after:

• Before: She made a decision to immediately start the project. After: She decided to start the project.
• Before: The storm had a negative effect on travel. After: The storm snarled travel.
• Before: He was quickly moving through the file. After: He skimmed the file.
• Before: She was slowly walking home. After: She trudged home.
• Before: They were carefully looking for the flaw. After: They searched for the flaw.

Notice how the adverb falls away once the verb carries the weight. Adverbs still have a place. Use one when it adds information the verb cannot hold alone. Rare, scarcely, privately. Those earn rent. The rest often signal a weak choice.

Now to nominalisations. Long word, simple fix. A nominalisation turns a clean action into a noun, then props it up with a vague verb.

• make a decision becomes decide
• give an explanation becomes explain
• conduct an investigation becomes investigate
• perform an assessment becomes assess
• provide assistance becomes help
• reach a conclusion becomes conclude
• have a discussion becomes discuss
• give consideration becomes consider
• make an improvement becomes improve
• take a look becomes look

These phrases eat space and hide the subject. Trim them and watch the sentence sit up.

More examples:

• Before: She made an announcement about the policy. After: She announced the policy.
• Before: The team performed an analysis of the data. After: The team analyzed the data.
• Before: We had a conversation about next steps. After: We discussed next steps.
• Before: He gave a demonstration of the software. After: He demonstrated the software.
• Before: Their review had an impact on funding. After: Their review shaped funding.

A quick spotter’s guide:

• Look for do, make, give, have, perform, conduct, undertake plus a noun.
• Scan for -tion, -sion, -ment, -ance, -ence endings. Not every one needs a fix, but many hide a buried verb.
• Check for of after an abstract noun. effect of, reason for, need for. Often a sign the sentence wants a verb.

Prefer concrete, image-bearing verbs. They place a picture in the reader’s head.

• held tightly becomes gripped
• let go becomes released
• made progress becomes advanced
• ran away becomes fled
• looked again becomes checked or glanced

Concrete does not mean flashy. The right plain verb disappears in a good way and leaves meaning in front. Said works. Went works. Asked works. If a vivid verb draws attention to itself or feels off-tone, go back to simple.

A few genre notes:

• Nonfiction needs precision. Strong verbs reduce puff and help truth land. claimed and found and reported beat made the claim or did the research.
• Technical prose values clarity. assess beats perform an assessment. When a term of art lives as a noun, such as deployment or compliance, keep it. Switch only when the verbal form reads shorter and keeps the term intact.

Mini exercise, ten minutes:

1. Open one page. Highlight every be-verb plus adverb, and every -tion, -sion, -ment, -ance, -ence word.
2. For each highlight, try the leaner verb. If the line shortens and sharpens, keep the change.
3. Read aloud. If the rhythm turns stiff, restore one plain verb.
4. Repeat on one more page.

Before and after, with reasons:

• Before: She did a quick check of the locks. After: She checked the locks. Reason: quick adds little. The verb covers it.
• Before: He made an attempt to apologize. After: He tried to apologize. Reason: attempt as a noun wastes space. Tried is cleaner.
• Before: There was an increase in complaints. After: Complaints increased. Reason: the subject and action step forward.
• Before: We conducted a review of the plan. After: We reviewed the plan. Reason: conduct a review hides the action behind fluff.
• Before: She gave a shrug. After: She shrugged. Reason: the verb is sitting right there.

What about tone and nuance? Strong verbs help, but they do not solve everything. Sometimes you need an adverb to set a boundary. She spoke quietly does not equal whispered. And sometimes the noun stays for good reason. A decision is a thing with weight in legal, medical, or policy writing. Use decide near it, but do not erase the noun where the thing itself matters.

Two tests to keep you honest:

• The swap test. Replace a be-verb plus adverb with one verb. If the sentence reads shorter and keeps meaning, approve the change.
• The spotlight test. If the new verb steals attention or sounds theatrical, back off. The point is clarity, not fireworks.

Dialogue and voice:

• In dialogue, people say did a check and had a look. Keep a few for texture. Aim to keep spoken lines clean, not polished to glass.
• In narrative, let verbs carry the camera. The stronger the verb, the fewer words you need to steer the reader’s eye.

A short checklist for your pass:

• Search for was, were, is, are followed by an adverb or an -ing verb. See if a tighter verb replaces the phrase.
• Search for make, give, do, have, perform, conduct. Convert the noun to a verb when sense allows.
• Search for -tion and -ment endings. Flip where the verbal form shortens and sharpens.

One last set, tuned to rhythm:

• Before: She was slowly starting to smile. After: Her smile grew.
• Before: He did a scan of the horizon. After: He scanned the horizon.
• Before: The update was a requirement for compliance. After: The update was required for compliance. Or, Compliance required the update.
• Before: We made progress on the draft. After: We advanced the draft. Or, The draft advanced works in some styles.

Strong verbs make lines tight, not stiff. Use them to pull fat from the sentence and to focus attention on action. When a plain verb serves best, let it serve. Your reader cares about the meaning. Your verbs help that meaning move.

Technique 3: Reduce Filters and Unnecessary Distance

Filters sit between reader and experience. Lose the screen, gain immediacy.

What are filters? Verbs that report perception instead of presenting sensation. Common culprits:

• saw
• noticed
• felt
• thought
• realised
• heard
• seemed
• could see
• began to
• started to

Read these pairs aloud and feel the difference:

• Before: I could hear footsteps behind me. After: Footsteps tapped behind me.
• Before: She felt that the room was cold. After: Cold air needled her arms.
• Before: He noticed the window was open. After: The window stood open.
• Before: I realised I was late. After: The clock glared 9:10.
• Before: They heard tires hiss on wet pavement. After: Tires hissed on wet pavement.
• Before: She began to cry. After: Tears rose.
• Before: He started to laugh. After: He laughed.

Why filters weaken a line:

• They state awareness instead of showing stimulus.
• They slow the beat before the image lands.
• They add words without adding meaning.
• They pull attention back to the observer, away from the scene.

Close POV thrives on sensory detail. Present the stimulus where it belongs, in the line. Anchor the reader in body and world.

Two quick rewrites:

• Before: I felt a headache coming on. After: Pressure tightened behind my eyes.
• Before: She thought the door looked heavy. After: The door loomed, iron scarred and dark.

When to keep a filter:

• Doubt or inference. Seemed, appeared, likely, those signal uncertainty on purpose.
• Time beats. Began to or started to can mark a shift or interruption. Use for rhythm, not habit.
• Distance by design. Memoir, reportage, clinical tone, sometimes needs a measured stance. Choose the distance, do not drift into it.

Mini exercise, seven minutes:

1. Pick one scene. Highlight every saw, felt, heard, noticed, thought, realised, seemed, began, started.
2. For each highlight, ask one question. What did the character experience? Replace the report with the image or sensation.
3. Read aloud. If a line turns murky, restore a single filter where doubt or timing matters.
4. Do one more page.

A few patterns and fixes:

Reporting thoughts

• Before: She thought the meeting was a trap. After: The meeting smelled like a trap.
• Before: I thought he looked tired. After: Purple half moons shaded his eyes.

Reporting sight

• Before: He saw a figure in the doorway. After: A figure blocked the doorway.
• Before: I could see smoke above the trees. After: Smoke lifted above the trees.

Reporting sound

• Before: She heard glass break in the kitchen. After: Glass shattered in the kitchen.
• Before: He heard a low hum. After: A low hum threaded the room.

Reporting touch

• Before: She felt the mug warm her palms. After: Heat soaked her palms.
• Before: He felt his heart racing. After: His heart raced.

Reporting smell or taste

• Before: I smelled gas. After: Gas burned my nose.
• Before: She tasted metal. After: Metal flooded her tongue.

Sometimes a filter protects clarity. Choose where perception matters more than stimulus:

• Legal or academic prose may need markers of stance. We believe suggests an argument, not a fact.
• Horror or mystery often plays with uncertainty. It seemed safe keeps danger in the wings. Use sparingly.

A quick method for live pages:

• Step 1, circle the subject in each sentence.
• Step 2, draw a line from subject to the strongest concrete noun nearby.
• Step 3, rewrite the line so subject meets noun without a chaperone verb like saw or felt.

Sample tune-ups with notes:

• Before: I noticed her ring had gone missing. After: Her ring had gone missing. Note, the moment stands without a reporter.
• Before: He realised the taxi had passed their street. After: The taxi sailed past their street. Note, action carries the beat.
• Before: She began to run as the siren rose. After: She ran as the siren rose. Or, She started to run, then froze, if interruption matters.

Dialogue deserves a quick aside. People speak in filters. Keep a few for naturalism.

• “I think we’re lost.” keeps voice and tone.
• “I feel weird about this.” signals emotional truth. Trim in narration, not every spoken line.

Genre tweaks:

• Thriller. Short, direct stimuli sharpen pace. One filter in a paragraph can pace a reveal, more will gum the line.
• Romance. Sensation drives intimacy. Replace felt with body detail. Skin pebbled. Breath caught.
• Nonfiction. Evidence over perception. Replace we noticed with data or observation, unless the observing body is the point.

Final checklist for this pass:

• Search for saw, felt, heard, noticed, thought, realised, seemed, began, started.
• Keep three per chapter for doubt, timing, or voice.
• Convert the rest to the stimulus or body cue.
• Read the scene end to end. Watch for a smoother camera and quicker beats.

Trim the reporter. Put the world on the page. The closer the line sits to sensation, the closer the reader stands to your character.

Technique 4: Streamline Sentence Structure and Cadence

Clarity rides on structure. Rhythm keeps readers turning pages. Tighten both.

Start with the spine of any sentence. Subject, verb, object. When those three stand close together, the line breathes. When they drift apart, readers work harder than they should.

Cut expletive openings

There is, there are, it was. These push the subject offstage. Bring the real subject to the front.

• Before: There were three kids who were waiting outside the store. After: Three kids waited outside the store.
• Before: It was the smell of bleach that filled the hall. After: Bleach filled the hall.
• Before: There is a chance we miss the train. After: We risk missing the train.
• Before: It was the teacher who called my name. After: The teacher called my name.

Keep an expletive only when suspense or emphasis depends on delay. One per page, not five.

Collapse prepositional pile-ups

Chains of of, in, on, by, with, to, for weigh a line down. Trim, convert, or move pieces into the verb.

• Before: The report on the effects of the policy on families in the city. After: The report covers the policy’s effects on city families.
• Before: The keys to the door of the car in the garage. After: The car keys were in the garage.
• Before: The decision of the board of directors about the plan. After: The board decided on the plan.
• Before: He looked at the photo on the wall of the house by the river. After: He studied the photo on the house wall by the river.

A good rule. Two prepositional phrases are fine. Three invites drag. Aim for nouns that carry weight and verbs that move.

Trim redundant qualifiers

Stacked qualifiers bloat the line. If the base word holds the meaning, let it work.

• Before: Completely finished. After: Finished.
• Before: Absolutely essential. After: Essential.
• Before: End result. After: Result.
• Before: Final outcome. After: Outcome.

Strength comes from precision, not from extra modifiers.

Vary sentence length

Same length, same beat, same lull. Mix it.

Flat:

He walks into the lobby. He looks around for the clerk. He taps the bell on the counter. He waits for help. He checks the clock.

Tightened and varied:

He steps into the lobby. Empty. He taps the bell on the counter, then scans the hallway for movement. No clerk. The clock over the door ticks loud enough to feel in his teeth.

Use short for impact. Use longer for setup or contrast. Cluster two or three short lines when you want a jolt. Follow with a longer one to breathe.

Untangle danglers and knots

A dangling modifier attaches to the wrong subject. Fix by giving the action to the right actor.

• Before: Walking down the street, the cat tripped me. After: Walking down the street, I tripped over the cat.
• Before: After reading the book, the movie felt dull. After: After I read the book, the movie felt dull.
• Before: While driving to work, a deer hit the car. After: While I drove to work, a deer hit the car.

Knotty sentences hide the core clause under layers of extras. Pull the core to the front.

• Before: The reason for the failure of the device during the test was due to improper wiring that the intern installed. After: The device failed during the test because the intern wired it wrong.
• Before: The fact that the team did not meet the deadline is an issue that needs discussion. After: The team missed the deadline. We need to discuss it.

Repair subject–verb distance

When too many words sit between subject and verb, the line sags. Bring them closer.

• Before: The committee, after three long meetings and an exchange of emails, approved the budget. After: After three meetings and an email chain, the committee approved the budget.
• Before: The dog, despite the noise from the storm and the chatter from the TV, slept. After: Despite storm noise and TV chatter, the dog slept.

Combine or split with intent

Choppy lines tire the ear. Run-ons blur meaning. Adjust the joinery.

Choppy:

He opened the fridge. He stood there. Cold air hit his face. He checked the label.

Smoother:

He opened the fridge and checked the label as cold air hit his face.

Sprawl:

She packed the suitcase while answering texts and thinking about the meeting that morning and trying to find her passport and planning what shoes to bring.

After: She packed the suitcase, answered texts, and hunted for her passport. The morning meeting kept nagging her. So did shoes.

Quick fixes you can apply today

• Find every there is, there are, it was at the start of a sentence. Rewrite half of them on the first pass. All of them on the second.
• Limit a sentence to two prepositional phrases. If you spot three or more, swap one into a possessive, or move detail to the verb.
• Draw a line from the subject to the verb. If more than five words sit between, test a tighter version.
• Read aloud or use text-to-speech. Mark every stumble. Stumbles point to structure or cadence problems.
• Color-code sentence lengths in a sample page. Short, medium, long. Adjust the pattern until your ear likes the mix.

More before and afters

• Before: There are several issues that we need to address in the report. After: We need to address several issues in the report.
• Before: The book on the shelf by the window of the room caught his eye. After: The book on the shelf by the window caught his eye.
• Before: With regard to the question of funding for the project, the committee reached a decision. After: The committee decided on project funding.
• Before: Hidden behind a cloud, the sun made the afternoon dark. After: A cloud hid the sun, and the afternoon darkened.

Tight structure frees rhythm. Rhythm guides attention. When you lead with a strong subject and a precise verb, then choose the right length for the moment, readers feel the line do its job without noticing the work.

Technique 5: Eliminate Redundancy and Clichés; Choose Specifics

Your readers deserve fresh language. Give it to them.

Redundancy wastes words. Clichés waste attention. Both signal lazy writing, even when you're anything but lazy. The fix requires two moves: cut what's already said, then replace worn-out phrases with details that show your world.

Kill tautologies and doubled meanings

Some phrases say the same thing twice. Past history. Advance warning. Close proximity. Future plans. Final outcome. Each example. Nodded his head.

Your head nods. Your past is history. Plans point to the future. Cut the redundant half.

• Before: She whispered quietly. After: She whispered.
• Before: He returned back to his office. After: He returned to his office.
• Before: The twins were both identical. After: The twins were identical.
• Before: She gave a small smile. After: She smiled.
• Before: He shrugged his shoulders. After: He shrugged.

Watch for hidden doubles within longer phrases too.

• Before: The reason why he left was because of the noise. After: He left because of the noise.
• Before: At this point in time. After: Now.
• Before: In spite of the fact that. After: Although.
• Before: Due to the fact that. After: Because.

Replace clichés with specifics

Clichés were fresh once. Then a million writers used them. Now they're furniture. Readers' eyes skip over them.

The fix isn't finding a different cliché. The fix is showing what you mean through concrete detail anchored to character and scene.

• Before: She was busy as a bee. After: She folded three loads of laundry while dinner simmered and homework waited.
• Before: The silence was deafening. After: Not even the refrigerator hummed.
• Before: He was mad as a hornet. After: His jaw clenched so tight his molars ached.
• Before: Time flew by. After: The clock jumped from nine to midnight without her noticing.
• Before: She was scared to death. After: Her pulse hammered in her throat.

Genre matters here. Literary fiction wants subtle, observed detail. Thrillers want visceral, immediate sensation. Romance wants emotional texture. Match your specifics to reader expectations.

Spot and merge duplicate beats

Paragraphs echo themselves. Characters perform the same gesture three times. Emotional beats repeat within a scene. All drain impact.

Before (repetitive):

Sarah checked her phone again. The screen showed no messages. She set it down and picked up her coffee. A minute later, she grabbed the phone and checked for texts. Still nothing. She drummed her fingers on the table and looked at the phone screen one more time.

After (consolidated):

Sarah's phone stayed silent. She checked it, set it down, picked it up. No messages. Her fingers drummed the table as she stared at the blank screen.

Watch for emotion echoes too. If your character feels angry in sentence one, don't tell us again in sentence four unless something changes the anger.

Choose concrete over abstract

Abstract nouns float. Concrete nouns land. Readers see concrete. They guess at abstract.

• Before: The building had beauty. After: Ivy curved around the stone archway.
• Before: He showed courage. After: He stepped between the dog and the child.
• Before: She felt happiness. After: She hummed while washing dishes.
• Before: There was chaos in the room. After: Papers scattered across the floor, a lamp lay sideways, and someone's shoe sat on the bookshelf.

Good concrete details do double work. They show the scene and reveal character perspective. A neat freak notices different chaos than a teenager does.

Build your personal banned list

Every writer leans on certain phrases. Build a list of yours and hunt them down.

Common offenders:

• Suddenly
• All of a sudden
• Without warning
• Little did she know
• Unbeknownst to him
• Needless to say
• It goes without saying
• At the end of the day
• When all is said and done
• Time will tell
• Only time will tell

Add your personal favorites. The phrase that shows up in every chapter. The description you use for every angry character. The transition you reach for when scenes shift.

Fix echo problems within paragraphs

Read your paragraphs aloud. Listen for repeated words, sounds, or structures that weren't meant as repetition.

Before (unintentional echo):

The storm hit the house hard. Wind howled through the trees, and rain hammered the roof. Water started seeping under the door. The power went out, and the house grew quiet except for the rain.

After (echo removed):

The storm slammed the house. Wind howled through the trees, and rain hammered the roof. Water seeped under the door. When the power died, only the drumming above broke the silence.

More before and afters for practice

• Before: She was happy as a clam. After: She grinned while folding his shirts.
• Before: The room was pitch black. After: She couldn't see her hand in front of her face.
• Before: He was strong as an ox. After: He carried both suitcases up three flights without breathing hard.
• Before: She slept like a baby. After: She slept through the neighbor's TV and the dog's barking.
• Before: It was raining cats and dogs. After: Rain drummed the car roof so loud they had to shout.

When to keep the familiar phrase

Not every common expression needs surgery. Keep phrases that:

• Match your character's voice and background
• Fit dialogue naturally
• Work as intentional callbacks or bookends
• Serve genre expectations readers enjoy

A farm character might think in agricultural terms. A teenager talks differently than a professor. Trust your ear for what feels right versus what feels recycled.

Your action plan

Create a document called "Words I Overuse." Add to it as you edit. Include:

• Your top 5 cliches
• Phrases you use in every book
• Abstract words you lean on
• Redundant pairs you write automatically

Run searches for these terms. Fix the worst offenders first. Replace abstracts with concrete details that fit character and scene.

Remember this: readers want to see your story world, not everyone else's. Fresh language makes that happen. One specific detail beats three cliches every time.

Your prose will thank you. So will your readers.

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