Before television and radio, we treasured words. The more the merrier. Now, we want to cut to the chase, sit on pins and needles, and enjoy a white-knuckle ride. God forbid that we should begin our story with landscape and weather. We want action, and we want it now, in as few words as possible.
Writers have been known to ruthlessly cut every sixth word, just as a practice to force recognition that readers don’t require the stating of every detail to create a vivid picture.
Watch for the qualifiers like very, little, and numerous. Such words fail to create for readers the pictures we have in our minds. For example: Jake grabbed a very long, thick, sturdy rope from his saddlebag. Readers can’t distinguish a difference between Jake grabbing a short, medium, or very long rope. Just let Jake grab a rope from his saddlebag and leave the length and thickness to the reader’s imagination.
Kill the words that don’t mean as much, and you’ll add life to the words that remain.
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