The Editor’s Guide to Tightening Up Wordy Writing
What’s the main difference between writing and editing?
Writers are paid by the word.
Editors are paid to cut words.
If you’re self-editing, congratulations: You're doing the job of both. But the problem many newpub authors face—especially early on—is letting their prose get wordy.
You can call it “lyrical” or “descriptive,” but let’s be honest. You're using ten words when five will do.
And you’re not fooling readers. Nor are you helping your story.
Below, you’ll find my Editor’s Guide to Tightening Up Wordy Writing: a practical, step-by-step field manual that will show you how to cut the fat, sharpen your prose, and keep your readers turning pages.
Let’s dive in.
1. Axe the Redundant Phrases
Every editor's primary target: those bloated phrases that say the same thing twice.
Examples:
“Each and every …” Just use “each” or “every.”
“In order to” should just be “to.”
“At this point in time” can be replaced with “now.”
Pro tip: Look at every prepositional phrase and ask, “Do I need all of these words?” Spoiler alert: You usually don’t.
2. Kill Weak Verbs.
As mentioned before, weak verbs make your prose limp.
Example:
“He made an announcement.”
The fix:
“He announced.”
Or worse:
“He got a big win.”
Fix:
“He triumphed.”
Related: The Biggest Self-Editing Mistakes Most Authors Miss (and How to Fix Them)
Tl; dr: Swap weak verbs like is, was, has, had, made, etc. for stronger, active verbs. You can almost always replace forms of be.
3. Cure the “There is / There are” Plague
If your sentence starts with “there is” or “there are,” it’s already sagging under dead weight.
Example:
“There are many people who believe…”
Fix:
“Many people believe…”
Remember, start with the subject; bring the action forward. Every time.
4. Slash Unnecessary Qualifiers
Writers love to hedge their bets. Readers, on the other hand, hate it. These words and phrases are the cotton candy of prose: empty fluff.
very
somewhat
kind of
a bit
quite
a little
Example:
“He was a bit tired and kind of hungry.”
Fix:
“Weariness and hunger gnawed him.”
Be clear and decisive, not safe. Cut the weasel words, and say what you mean.
5. Trim Adverbs; Especially the Obvious Ones
No, you don’t need to delete every -ly adverb (3 per page is an acceptable number). But if the verb already says it all, the adverb isn’t helping.
Example:
“She whispered quietly.”
Fix:
“She whispered.”
If the verb + adverb combination is redundant, lose the adverb. Let strong verbs do the heavy lifting.
Hemingway wasn’t always right, but he nailed this point: “The first draft of anything is shit.”
So how do you get a better second draft?
You cut.
Use this rule of thumb: Your second draft should be 10–20 percent shorter than your first.
If it’s not, you haven’t edited; you’ve just moved words around.
Final Word: Writing Tight Is Your Competitive Advantage
Tight writing sounds better and sells better.
Readers today have more distractions than ever. If your prose makes them work, they’ll drop your book and scroll TikTok instead.
Tightening your writing is one of the highest-ROI editing skills you can learn, and it’s free. All it takes is discipline and a blue pen.
Or a delete key.
Use it or lose it.
If you need professional eyes on your manuscript, I edit books. Drop me a line. Let’s make your story sharper, tighter, and worth your readers’ time.
Brian Niemeier is a best-selling novelist, editor, and Dragon Award winner with over a decade in newpub. For direct, in-person writing and editing insights, join his Patreon.