I’m as guilty as the next writer in that I include redundancies in my draft manuscript. When I’m writing my draft, I focus on getting the story out of my head and into the computer.
I look for redundancies when I revise my story. And I revise it more times than I want to count! Below is a list of the most common offenders I find when editing my work and others’.
- Stood up
- Sat/squatted/knelt down
- Clapped her hands
- Shrugged his shoulders
- Nodded her head
- Blinked her eyes
The first two indicate direction connoted in the verb. The others indicate a part of that body that solely performs that task. Thus the italicized words are redundant.
You might not recognize other redundancies as easily. These include using modifiers to nouns or verbs that are already a part of the definition. A short list is below.
- Large doe eyes. To be doe-eyed is to have large innocent-looking eyes, so large is redundant.
- Brightly glittered. Have you ever seen a dull glitter? The *ly* ending is often indicative of a word you don’t need or that you need a stronger verb.
- Gentle caress. Caress denotes a light touch; gentle is redundant.
- Confused bewilderment. To be bewildered is to be confused.
This type of redundancy takes more work to recognize and also that you have a greater command of vocabulary. If you’re not to sure about a word, stop and look it up.
There is so much more to the self-editing process than just looking for redundancies. But remember, story telling is all about relating a story in a way that the reader experiences what your story characters experience. You want to find the best word to convey your meaning. Every word must earn its place on the page.
Do you have an example of a redundancy? Share it in the comments below.
Thank you for your excellent blog! I’m about to do the 4th edit/proof of my current manuscript before sending it off to Amazing Things Press. I’ll definitely be looking for redundancies this time around.
Thank you, Donna. And how exciting to be sending off another book!
Great post, Debra. I flinch when I hear or read very unique. Unique means one of a kind. Something can’t be somewhat or very unique.
Excellent example, Donna. Thanks for sharing!
I know I’m guilty of some of this, and because so much of it is common in spoken language I just don’t catch it as redundant when writing, or even reading. Very helpful. Thanks!
Vicki, you’re so right. This is common in spoken language and that’s what makes it hard to catch. As an editor I am more conscious of the “cost” of redundancies. Every word takes space on the page, and do those words express the best. She clapped her hands, or she clapped like a walrus. She stood up, or she jumped to her feet. Vibrant language captures readers, who then leave terrific reviews or recommend the book to friends, which can lead to more sales. And every word adds to the final page count, which adds to the actual cost of printing that book, which impacts the publishers (be it traditional or independent) bottom line. It’s a trickle down effect.