Writing Tics

You gotta do a “flamethrower” round of edits before your novel is ready for someone else to see, and it can be a surprising one! How many times do you use “that” unnecessarily? What about actually, really, finally, or suddenly? Here’s a whole list of ways to make your writing stronger, more effective, and more tasty. Write ‘em down—keep a list!

Pru and Merry agree that the following phrases must be exterminated with prejudice where possible:

That
Just
Very
A little
A bit
A lot
Actually
Really
Finally
Suddenly