What is Your Novel Missing? Strong Verbs, Unique Words

For my last several posts, we've been discussing what your novel could be missing based on, well, what I notice my novel is missing. If you didn't catch the previous posts, check out Senses, Deep POV, and Hooks. Today it's all about those strong verbs and unique words - or more simply, getting rid of repetitive words.

I'm learning and growing, which is always going to be happening as a writer and that's a good thing. But I still notice these aspects of my writing need help.

Strong Verbs

He walked into the store, footsteps sounding on the tile as he made his way to the counter.

OR

He ambled into the store, shoes slapping against tile on his way to the counter.

"See if you can do any better," Maggie said with a smile. She gave the pencil to her brother.

OR

"See if you can do any better." Maggie arched a brow and nudged the pencil to her brother.

The second example on both uses stronger verbs that give the reader a better visual and a better idea of the character. It's a good goal to aim for upon edits. Strengthen sentences with strong verbs to give a better or clearer picture, AND use words sparingly to make the sentence more powerful and concise.

Not every single verb has to be one of a kind, but adding them in here and there to capture the reader is good.

Patty threw the ball to James just as he turned, and it hit him on the shoulder.

Patty hurtled the ball at James as he turned, pelting him on the shoulder.

See? Better visual and I took out an unnecessary word.

Again, you don't have to go overboard with synonyms and inundate your novel with as many creative verbs as possible, but find those places where you can give your sentence a punch with a stronger verb.

Some verbs we commonly use that could be made stronger are was, walked, talked, saw, heard. Also, watch for those adverbs - words ending in ly.

Unique Words/Repetitive Words

I am a big offender with repetitive words. My characters smile every few paragraphs and lift their eyebrows nearly as much. The simple fix for this is a search and find. But it's also knowing what to look for. Sometimes I'm not aware how many times I've put a certain word until a critique partner points it out. So I've compiled a list of words that show up a lot or should be used sparingly or not at all.

Use sparingly

Like, was, just, heard, saw, felt

Watch for overuse

Glimpse, gaze, eyes (or rolling eyes), lips, shrug, grin (smile, dimples appeared, lips lifted, lips quirked, curved, or curled), smile, chuckle, tip, tilt, lift, turn, eyebrows or brows, rose/rise, walk, breath, nod, gave, look, see, hear

It's a good idea to find your overused words and compile them in a file so you know what to check for when you do your edits.

Two other common offenders?

That and Then

Shelly saw that Frank had lost most of his hair.

Sometimes using "that" is fine, but most of the time it's unnecessary. Read the sentence aloud to see if it sounds the same without using "that". It can also help keep word count down if you use it a lot.

Shelly stepped over a branch that had fallen from the tree. (in this case, it's okay!)

Here's an example using "then"

Monica brushed her hair and then left the room.

Again, using "then" on occasion is fine, just watch for overuse.

These are the ones I notice the most, especially in my writing. If you can find these and try to use more unique ways of saying what you want to say, there won't be as much repetition.

How about you? Do you have words you overuse and how do you go about getting rid of repetitive words?

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Cindy is a Colorado native, living near the mountains with her husband and three beautiful daughters. She writes contemporary Christian romance, seeking to enrich lives with her stories of faith, love, and a touch of humor.

To learn more about Cindy, visit her at her personal blog, www.cindyrwilson.blogspot.com