My editor forbids cliches. Why? Because they’re an easy way out of creative writing. The same goes for weasel words. A writer has access to a massive vocabulary, so there’s no reason to say “grass” 400 times in a short story.
I mentioned this topic briefly in my top 10 edits for writers, but the idea came across my mind recently while editing my book. After finishing the novel, I searched for words I knew were problematic or frequent. I have a fairly good self-awareness of which words I overuse, but occasionally they slip through. Got a headache trying to fix my mistakes and it made me realize how weasel words can’t simply be removed; sometimes they need a replacement. So if you’re working on a short story or editing a 100k+ word book, here’s ways to find your weasels and methods for editing them out.
What Exactly is a “Weasel Word”?
Not sure who coined the term, but a weasel word is any word that’s used too frequently. If it appears five or more times in one paragraph, you have a weasel. If it composes 20% or more of your document, there’s an infestation.
But do words like “the” count? Not really.
The reason why cliches should be avoided are because they’re a crutch. They’re vague and have little weight due to being so common. Writing needs to have purpose and intention, so using the same word continuously dimishes its meaning within your story. It becomes a vague placeholder rather than talented work. That’s why it’s important to expand your vocabulary so you can exchange common words for more exciting language.
Common Vocabulary to Watch For
There are a few key places to look when it comes to weasel and weak words. Verbs are perhaps the most dangerous because there’s less overlap in meanings. “Was,” “were,” and other be verbs work well in many scenarios. The best remedy is swapping them for stronger verbs that more clearly describe the action. The more clarity you bring to the sentence, the less weasels will clutter your story.
“Could, would, should” don’t seem threatening, but I’ve recently found them to be very destructive in my writing. The reason? They’re passive words. I “could” go to the bathroom, I “should” do my homework. These are easily removed and create a more active story. “Might, may, maybe” also fall into this category. Every now and then, they can’t be avoided, so just be intentional.
“It” and “as” pollute regular dialogue, and that’s probably why these troublesome words are so easy to miss. They go unnoticed, sneaking into sentences and chipping away at the clarity of a scene. Yet they’re also useful, connecting sentences and allowing you to mention the same object without it becoming a weasel. “As” is easier to remove by splitting sentences or using “when, while, before/after,” and so on. “It” takes more finessing; just make sure what you’re referring to with “it” is clear and then occasionally jump back to the object name.
Writer Specific Weasels
While there are words we all overuse, there are some that are writer specific. I mentioned personal awareness earlier; when you become used to hunting for weasels, you’re better able to see which words you overuse.
For example, the first book I wrote had “back” and “cloak” a lot. Also “return,” “turn,” “gaze,” and “watched.” Some of these you probably recognize in your own writing, but others seem outlandish. By using these words over and over, the impact of a specific “return” or “cloak” was lost in the mass of others.
In Word, you can look up words and see how many times it’s used. Take a guess at some words you think you use too much and see how often it appears in your document with the Find feature. Think your writing is perfect? Print it and read aloud. Whatever words you hear more than three times within a paragraph (or 5+ times on one page), circle. This list of “custom weasels” constantly evolves, so keep an eye out.
Editing: How Spacing Affects the Echo
Avoiding every weasel is simply impossible. That’s why minimizing the amount of times it’s used is the priority. One way to reduce the repetition is by “spacing out” the word’s appearance. Within writing, this is considered reducing or removing echoes.
You shout into a cave, an echo of your shout comes back. Same idea. If I use the word “flower” in three consecutive sentences, it becomes a noticeable echo. Readers wonder if the three sentences should be one and editors shake their heads in shame.
Most echoes are easy to fix thanks to the wide range of words available in English. There’s three different ways to say just about anything. Sometimes the setting dialect or specificity of your subject reduces your options, but that’s why I craft word lists brimming with possibilities.
I like to talk about the different aspects of my subjects in order to build out the setting and gain some length. For example, one sentence could use “flower” while the next says “petals” and finally “stem.” I’m adding to the image readers create in their mind. Reducing echoes allows a lot of opportunity to be creative with your personal voice.
Editing: Small Bites at a Time
You don’t really recognize how long your book is while writing. So you can imagine my shock when I suddenly had 384 pages to edit. That’s not a small task by any means. Even with Word’s find/replace feature, I got irritated sifting through thousands of echoes.
In high school, my mom taught a study skills class and one of the lessons was how to eat an elephant. My main concern was why anyone would want to eat an elephant, but the point behind the lesson was that you can accomplish a big task with small bites. This idea fits any scenario, including editing.
Divide your work into separate documents so you’re only focused on one section. Find and replace your weasels like I’ve been discussing. After this step, I’ve been printing each section so I can read it aloud and find other mishaps. Whether you wish to do this or not, your final step would be recombining your sections into one book.
Final Thoughts
Weird for an article about reducing repetition to sound repetitive, but that’s how it feels. I’ve been living this editing experience for a while, but that doesn’t reduce the importance of editing out echoes and weasels.
More so from my own writing I recognize how these weasel words make a story feel choppy. I’d rather you learn this now and make the change than write a whole book with hundreds of thousands of pointless words. That’s truly the goal; when you know what to look for, you avoid making the mistake. Write with intention, not ease.
One Response
Thank you, Samantha. I use the free part of ProWriting. They, in turn point out what they refer to as weasel words. Even’ could’ used one time on a page.
My word procesor is Open Office. I wondered a dozen or more time why the echo was available. Reading your article has given me a new outlook on my meager writing.
With a little luck, I will finish before my 90th birthday next November 26…..
Thank you again. Woops an echo.