Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Word Tics: Just So Many

Do you remember Marsha Q's post two weeks ago on word tics? Oh, my, did that hit me spot on. During residency, a friend read a draft of my novel. One of her notes pointed out my overuse of the word "just." I am thinking - really? But oh, my. This morning I called in the exterminator as Q suggested and my head is throbbing.It was so intense I had to take a break from my find and replace function. I am appalled at how many times I just threw in the word "just." Tic, tic, tic. In almost every case, I could cut it out and not need to find a replacement. My first editor Virginia Buckley called it the echo effect, explaining that often writers can't even see it in their own work. A bad habit, highly irritating to readers.

This is a revision technique on the micro level. Perhaps better for the afternoon stretch of writing when I don't have the early morning clarity for the macro revision needs. But an important one indeed. What tic/echo words have you had to exterminate lately?

Shout out to all those writers on the East Coast, hoping Irene didn't do too much damage to you and yours.

2 comments:

  1. The tic I’m aware of is my narrator saying “I guess” 50 million times. I think it’s specific to this particular novel. It’s part of the character’s voice, but I still need to weed out about 49 million of its uses.

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  2. "Just" is definitely a tic here. And "real" shows up often. Like, Bigfoot, has discovered, this word is part of the protagonist's voice, his real southern voice, but a tic, no doubt.

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