8 Words to Avoid Overusing in Writing

As I edit my own book, I have come across quite a few words that I tend to overuse. I want to share them with you, so you can be sure to avoid overusing them in your own writing. There are so many different ways to fix the problem of over usage. I will give you some ideas on how to take out the overused word, and add something more beneficial to your book! Here are the words to avoid overusing in writing.

Felt/Feel

This is a big one for me. While I wrote, I knew I overused it. But, I used it as a place holder with the intention of going back in later to fix change it. Every time “felt” is used, or “feel” there is a good chance you can replace it with a description of the feeling. Here is an example:

Before: Even though she was annoyed with him, she felt happier than she had in a long time.

After: Even though she was annoyed with him, happiness flowed through her, washing away every other care as she walked along beside him

Also, a lot of times when the word “felt” is used, you can just take it out and add an “-ed” onto the specific feeling in the sentence. Here is an example:

Before: Bo gasped and she felt him stiffen beside her.

After: Bo gasped and he stiffened beside her.