Fluff is Better in a Sandwich

 

As a child, I loved Peanut butter and Fluff sandwiches. That ooy gooy marshmallow paired well with the smooth peanut butter, Heaven!

They tasted best at the beach. So warm and sweet, I could overlook a few grains of sand.

Fluff is great for sandwiches but not in a manuscript, article, or blog.

Fluff is great for sandwiches but not in a manuscript. Share on X

What do I mean by fluff?

Those unnecessary words that slow the reader.  My favorite fluff word, “that.” I used it 313 times in my first manuscript.

For sweeter writing, here are a few words my editor sent me to eliminate from a manuscript. I must share them with you.

That, really, very, just, then

totally, completely, absolutely, literally, every

definitely, certainly, probably, actually, basically, virtually

was, is, are, am, all

start, important

used to, never, often, almost

big, small, large, tiny

begin, began, begun

Rather, quite, somewhat, somehow

Down, up, in, out, under, over

Wonder, ponder, think, thought, seem

feel, felt, understand, realize 

breathe, inhale, exhale

Shrug, nod, reach

Stuff, things, got

This is not an exhaustive list.

Read your piece without these words.  Does it flow better?  If not, leave the word.

If you use one word often, try rewriting the sentence with different words.

Let’s remove fluff from our writing to make it more palatable.

What fluff words do you use? Is there a word I should add to the list?

Join the conversation.