How do I make my writing tighter?

25 Ways to Tighten Your Writing

1. Cut long sentences in two.
2. Ax the adverbs (a.k.a. -ly words)
3. Stick to one voice.
4. Remove extra punctuation.
5. Replace negative with positive.
6. Replace stuffy words with simple ones.
7. Remove redundancies.
8. Reduce prepositions.

How do you write a tight sentence?

Tight sentence example

1. Her throat was too tight to say more.
2. Money would be tight , but they could manage.
3. His chest felt tight , but he refused to admit his pain.
4. She squeezed her eyes closed, heart slamming in her tight chest.
5. The general became silent, angrily pulling down his tight scarf.

How do you write tightly?

15 Ways to Write Tight

1. Start with a clear idea of what you want to write about.
2. Build trimming and polishing into your writing time.
3. Copy your first draft.
4. Delete individual words that are redundant.
5. Zap words, especially the big ones, that have snuck in from your professional or technical jargon.

What does it mean when writing is tight?

Tight writing is writing that says what it means in as few words as possible. That’s 16 words instead of 27 — enough for a whole new sentence. In contrast, the sentence that follows — The authorities, they say, can do that by simply keeping firearms from the wrong people.

How do you fix loose writing?

Loose writing contains: Extra and unnecessary articles (a, the, and an) Repeated words….Four Simple steps to tight writing

1. Eliminate Extra Words. Tight writing aims for brevity, so combine sentences to remove repetition and to make your writing dense and compact.
2. Choose Active Verbs.
3. Resist Adverbs.
4. Be Specific.

How do you write tight dialogue?

How To Write Dialogue:

1. Keep it tight and avoid any unnecessary words.
2. Move the action of the scene forward.
3. Keep it oblique, where characters never quite answer each other directly.
4. Reveal character dynamics and emotions.
5. Keep speeches short.
6. Ensure characters use their own voice.
7. Add intrigue.
8. No small talk.

What is an example of something that is tight?

The definition of tight is firmly in place, fitting closely or concise and strong. An example of tight used as an adjective is the phrase “a tight lightbulb” which means a lightbulb that is screwed in all the way.

Can you say more tight?

For example, people would say “more tight” than “tighter”.

What is cluttered writing?

In terms of writing, clutter refers to words and phrases that don’t serve any function. They are the “weeds”2 that get in the way of readers understanding your message. (Some people say that clutter is used on purpose by government and corporations to hide information and evade responsibility.)

How can I write more loosely?

Why do authors use loose sentences?

A loose sentence is a sentence structure in which the main clause is followed by one or more coordinate or subordinate phrases and clauses. As Felicity Nussbaum points out, a writer may use loose sentences to give “the impression of spontaneity and vernacular immediacy” (The Autobiographical Subject, 1995).

How to write a tight sentence?

Writing tight sentences also means that you are being specific. In doing so, you need to avoid vague words such as “things”, “stuff”, and “whatever”. Remove sentences that don’t add meaning to the main idea. Some sentences are far off the topic. This is just “clutter”.

Should you “tighten your writing”?

“Tighten your writing” is one of my favorite starting points. Pretty much every manuscript or writing sample I edited this week needed some form of tightening. So many words. So little time to read them. Such is the lament of the modern reader. We want to be sensitive to our readers’ needs and time.

How to avoid loose sentences in your writing?

Readers are yawning, stretching, and daydreaming before they get to the main idea. Here are a few tips on what you should be doing to avoid “loose sentences” and make your sentences look as fit and “tight” as they can be. Articles such as “an” “a” or “the” are excessively used in loose sentences. Here is an example:

Who is the tight writer?

Blessed is the tight writer. First drafts often prove messy, full of extraneous words and convoluted ways of saying things. And that’s as it should be.