10 WEAK WORDS You Should CUT from Your Novel

Guess I should omit the following sentence from my novel: “Very suddenly, I started to realize I was then just somewhat alive—somehow, it seemed, I had definitely survived death.”

1. Suddenly 2. Then 3. Very/really 4. Is/Was 5. Started 6. Just 7. Somewhat/slightly 8. Somehow 9. Seem 10. Definitely Thanks so much Abbie! Second draft is gonna have a lot of edits!

"Using the word 'somehow' is a mark of lazy writing" "Somehow, Palpatine returned"

I'm always wary of videos saying "never do this" because realistically you can't apply one rule to everything. But you not only explain how not to use it, but also how we CAN use it effectively. That is so much more useful to make sure we know what we're doing. I'm guilty of a lot of those and I feel like I can actually improve with this.

Can we have a moment of silence to appreciate how much research and time Abbie puts to make these videos for us and help us become the best writers possible 💛? Thank you, Abbie 😊.

I have to say that I like the description "she was small and curvy" way more than "the dress hugged her curvy figure". I'm not sure why, but I'll try to explain. With the first description, an image immediately springs up in my mind. The second one is weirdly focused on her dress for some reason. Maybe if the narrator is super into dresses and clothes, it's good, but I am more interested in the character itself. If that makes sense.

Lots of writers have this hangup about “Passive Voice” and I’m not sure why. I guess it’s when they are overused or misused. I love passive words... when I am describing passive things. Active words pack too much punch. Adverbs can change how the reader perceives your character and/or their actions. At least in how I read and how I write. For instance, this is how I would read her examples: So in her first example “sympathetically” it sounds soft and forgiving and, well, ‘passive’, so the “...we forgive you...” sounds genuine. However, using “sympathetic” sounds, to use her expression, “in your face” so ‘the forgiveness’ comes across, to me at least, as sarcastic or insincere. Same for the mom; “bitterly” is mild, so it sounds the mom is being passive aggressive. As opposed to her snapping, which sounds more like unbridled anger. You get an entirely different mental picture depending on the words used. But maybe that's just me and I am weird. IMO Think about the scene in your head and use what’s best. I write for fun, so take what I say with a grain of salt.

me that has used every single word she said in my stories: they ask you how you are and you just have to say that you're fine when you're not really fine

I'm guilty of EVERY SINGLE one of these Glad I know now :3

I think "very/really" may be my weak word dependency.

"Definitely" has its uses, especially when it is conveying 'voice.' Your character might use 'definitely' to emphasize how committed she is to not crying. The impact later, if she does cry, is quite a bit different than if she merely says, "I don't want to cry." Writing in first person legitimizes pretty much all of the things you discuss because we are basically hearing self-talk, so anything that flies in conversation has a shot at being acceptable.

When Abbie said "make your story matter" I started laughing because it sounded like she said, "make your story madder", which made sense to me because we are cutting words -- precious words from our stories! I love Abbie.

I'm super guilty of writing in passive voice, using adverbs, and was/is. I feel like I need to rewire my brain to get out of passive headspace! Thanks for this great video, Abbie! Definitely going to save it to help me get through my editing.

Suddenly, there was a notification in my inbox. Abbie uploaded a new video and I just had to click right away! She really gives very good advice. Abbie is a genius and that video was so helpful; I started watching it while I drank my morning coffee. I just think the information provided was somewhat helpful, even more than slightly. Somehow, I think I'll replay it again in the future and use it when I edit my manuscript. After all, it seemed really well thought out - the examples were so useful. I definitely love Wednesdays, because that's when Abbie graces us with new videos!

I definitely use definitely way too offen. I definitely have a problem with definitely needing to make it definite that my characters are definitely taking definitive action.

I'm from Spain (so I write in spanish) and I can tell this advice is good for every language. Thanks Abbie!

Just woke up totally not ready for school, first thing I see is Abby’s notification you know what that means... Ima be late for school

The best part of every Wednesday :)

She gives us the tip of deleting weak words, and unlike every other channel she makes a whole other 20 minute video about what those words are. Abbie, you are amazing.

I totally agree that in dialog, weak words are often a fantastic option.... I'm also a fan of realistic dialog.