Avoiding Redundancy in Writing

This is part of my series “9 Ways to Lessen Your Word Count.” Check out the rest here!

1) Avoid Redundancy / Repetition

This was my original inspiration for making this writing advice series. XD Many writers struggle with this at some point in their career. Being redundant means saying the same thing twice, like ATM machine (Automated Teller Machine Machine). What does it look like in novels?

1. Telling AND showing the same thing. Examples!
   • “I’m exhausted.” She told him how tired she was.
     • The dialogue actually already does the work of telling us this! We don’t need to be told what is obvious. Trust your readers and yourself! 😉
   • “I thought Esu already found it,” Selenia pointed out.
     • Same as above; watch those dialogue tags! Often, “said” is really the best option! 😀
   • Aro laughed. “Hehehe,” he giggled.
     • (Don’t come at me, Twilight fans)
   • “Please be careful!” she warned. He didn’t acknowledge her word of caution. He turned around and raced onward.
     • Here, “He didn’t acknowledge her word of caution” is repeating both the previous and following sentence. The reader already knows what he is reacting to (Word of caution = “please be careful”) and clarifying what it is only takes up time and space! Then, “He turned around and raced onward” is just showing what we told, “he didn’t acknowledge her.”
       • If I were editing, I’d either just cut the whole sentence or suggest: “Please be careful!” she warned. [new paragraph] His expression didn’t change. He turned and raced onward.
   • Always make sure you are saying something new with every sentence/phrase!
2. Dialogue Tags
   • Make sure you have dialogue tags where you need them, and take them out where you don’t need them! Maybe I will make a different post dedicated to these. Here, cutting word count can mean replacing redundant dialogue tags with “said” or potentially cutting the tag altogether! Just make sure it’s not confusing who is talking, and beware of “talking heads” syndrome!
3. Redundant Prepositional Phrases
   • Look at each of these examples. See how the highlighted word can be deleted and the sentence still says the same thing (and may even be stronger!)
     • She stood up.
     • He descended down the stairs.
     • He raised his hand over his head.
     • He got off of the couch.
     • They drew a picture with the pen in their hand.
   • Exception: If there were multiple options or it is unclear, you may actually need to say some of these. For instance, there may have been markers and pencils available and it was important to the story or character that they chose the pen; then you might need to say “with the pen.”
   • If it is not essential (to voice, character, plot) and the sentence’s meaning is unchanged by deleting it, delete it!

Redundancy and Repetition are common hazards in the writing world. See if you can find these moments in your own writing or elsewhere! Like grammar, nothing is a hard and fast rule in creative writing. Play around with these things to see what you like best or—if you’re trying to cut your word count—what you need to delete.

That’s it for this one! Let me know if I missed anything about how redundancy can inflate word count~ Keep an eye out for my next post in this series!

I wish you the best! Keep working on your dream and your life.
Little steps are still brave, dear warrior. ❤