How to Make Your Writing Less Wordy (6 Easy Tips)

Cut down wordy sentences and phrases with these easy tips.
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0:00 Intro
0:35 Tip #1 Make Large-Scale Cuts First
1:27 Tip #2 Cut Unneeded Words From Dialogue
2:16 Tip #3 Avoid Adverbs & Use Stronger Verbs/Adjs
3:36 Tip #4 Cut Prepositional Phrases
4:56 Tip #5 Active Voice vs. Passive Voice
6:07 Tip #6 Trim Down BLOATED Phrases
DISCLAIMER: Some of my videos and/or descriptions contain affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. This helps support the channel and allows me to continue to make videos like this. This does not affect my review of products. All opinions are my own. Thank you for the support!
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Credit to SkyDilen for my video intro.
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[@barbaravenkataraman5017]

As a writing exercise, I like to write flash fiction: tell a story in 200 words. Then cut it down to 100. Then cut it down to 50. It's hard but it's really helpful.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

That sounds like a fun challenge. And since it's flash, you're not heavily attached to the story. Have any of those flash pieces gotten published?

[@barbaravenkataraman5017]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty I don't see my reply to this question, weird. The answer is yes, I collaborated with other authors to write a book of 100-word stories called: A Year of Shorts: Flash Fiction. It was a fun project. :-D

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

@@barbaravenkataraman5017 Nice... And for some reason KZbin inexplicably deletes my subscribers' comments from time to time

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

@@barbaravenkataraman5017 Here's what you posted that got deleted: That's my favorite takeaway as well. I like this book: Writing Tools: 55 Essential Strategies for Every Writer, by Roy Peter Clark"

[@TheThinkersBible]

Wonderful idea, thank you!

[@TheThinkersBible]

Your first tip -- cut large portions first -- is the most helpful for me. I did that last night editing my next video but didn't think of it as a specific part of the process -- now I'll do it intentionally, thanks! Next is "instead of using adverbs, use a stronger verb." Great approach!

[@romacordon9942]

Thank you, Brandon, for posting these 6 tips. I really needed it! Editing a manuscript now, and I've made peace with large scale cuts of unnecessary scenes. But the finer points of making sentences stronger and leaner is driving me crazy. This video is a tremendous help! It gives me something to work towards. Your suggestion on dialogue trimming is brilliant! Prepositional and bloated phrases - is one of my downfalls, so I appreciate you including these. I had an issue with passive sentences and weakening adverbs - but have been fixing these. Your examples on prepositional and bloated phrases are an eye opener for me and will prove supremely useful in the future. Thanks again! ~ Roma C.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for the kind words! Best of luck with your editing

[@eriktucsok4184]

Have to say, I'm very happy that Brandon actually gives examples. Had to subscribe!

[@davidaleshire4292]

Tips 5 and 6 are definitely going to come in handy in cleaning up my current project. Thank you. I’d be interested in learning about some of your favorite, and least favorite fiction novels, of different genres. Horror, fantasy, rom-com, etc. A good or bad book can be a good learning tool.

[@peanut3438]

Wowwie I needed this so bad,, thanks for the advice!

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Glad it helped! Let me know if there are any other topics you'd like me to cover

[@ryanfinnerty6239]

Your channel ❤Thank you so much for doing the work and helping us writers like no other authors do. Less gatekeeping more love.

[@chaz9808]

The adverb vs verb really helped me thanks man. Also are there any circumstances where it’s ok to use passive over active voice?

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Yep, check out my video on Passive Voice. I explain it with examples: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rWjHgopraLGan9U

[@liviemillie6455]

I love to write flowery, and naturally do, because I pretty much just read Victorian novels and my writing is influenced ... but I do NOT want wordiness and purple prose, so I appreciate this.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Which of these tips did you need to hear the most? Let us know!

[@quantumhelix8668]

Bloated phrases is my main weakness. One thing that also causes wordiness is what I like to term "explaining the joke". A writer will write a sentence or two and then "tell" or explain what the preceding sentence(s) conveyed or meant to convey. It's repetitive, condescending, and flags that the original sentences are weak if the writer of it thinks they need to explain further.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

@@quantumhelix8668 "Explaining the joke." That's brilliant. I'm listening to an audiobook that "explains the joke" often, and it's condescending like you said. The author refuses to let the reader draw their own conclusions.

[@TwiztedHumor]

I love this man.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

I love these comments

[@yolandadorta8064]

Thanks for this information.

[@corkandi]

Great advice - thanks, man. Tips 3 & 4!

[@jdbowman02]

Great channel! Very helpful!

[@ThatsJustMyBabyDaddy]

Excellent commentary, as always.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks!

[@warmflash]

Love the new look and sound of your channel. ❤❤ ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks!

[@castelodeossos3947]

'“Read over your compositions, and wherever you meet with a passage which you think is particularly fine, strike it out.” ― Samuel Johnson

[@didutasev4427]

Great! Thank you.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for watching!

[@emmanuelmakoba6085]

This was educational, thank you

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Glad it helped!

[@sammott8557]

I'm a bloater. The last tip helps me the most. Thanks!

[@TheBluenyt09]

Thanks for the tips 😎🤘

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for watching!

[@allycat2836]

I love the Seinfeld reference 👍

[@barbaravenkataraman5017]

Great video! In his book, "On Writing", Stephen King said the best advice he got when starting out was: Second draft=first draft minus 10%

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

I'm not a big fan of On Writing (some of King's advice sent me in the wrong direction for years), but "Second draft=first draft minus 10%" is one of my favorite takeaways from that book.

[@barbaravenkataraman5017]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty That's my favorite takeaway as well. I like this book: Writing Tools: 55 Essential Strategies for Every Writer, by Roy Peter Clark

[@piecrumbs9951]

Do you have a video on exposition and how to relay it realistically? I'm not a huge fan of exposition dumps, even though some of my favorite stories employ them. I like stories that give little bits of exposition here and there and make you piece the story together yourself, and I'm currently trying to employ this in my story. I would love a video on it.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

I did a video on Info Dumps last year. Let me know if this is what you're looking for: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qJWrg6trna-bnpo

[@sdavis2488]

Thanks man. 220k seems bloated. Still proud of it.

[@avivastudios2311]

Hi there. I'm here cause you replied to me. Thank u. I hope I can be just as good a writer as you.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks! And try to write every single day. Good things happen over time

[@barbd00]

Best way to determine passive voice - can you put "by zombies" at the end and it still makes sense.

[@stevecarter8810]

... and then you get Susanna Clarke taking all these tips then doing a 180 and running in the opposite direction to great effect! What a wonderful art

[@SoldatDuChristChannel]

Im confused, some of the longer sentences just sounded better? Whats the point of obsessively shortening every sentance as much as possible? Wordyness is not arbitrary if it sounds nice and flows well, its stylized

[@jojogodtier]

Wordy sentences depending on the context can add character and tension. . For example : "look,its a very very very gigantic man." It may sound wordy and can be easily simplifyed but it is very realistic for a 6 year old little girl to say that to her mother in a store. Sometimes wordy can be better. your advice is good but there is exceptions to the rule.

[@quantumhelix8668]

Brevity is the soul of wit.

[@Ayyavazi13]

Spoken by an extremely verbose character. 😀

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Amen.

[@mattygunn3852]

Rewrite: “Brevity is wit’s soul.”

[@RitaSaghen]

Share this video with a friend you know ;)

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks!

[@alekvillarreal3470]

I’ve got like 1,000 words it’s too early for this video 😂

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha it's never to early!

[@stoatystoat174]

Cheers, good fun to pause your video and try and work out the better sentence before you show it

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Oh, nice! Cool to see you're taking a more hands-on approach

[@KeysofIDproductions]

Which one? Honestly, all of them.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha glad the video helped!

[@seanwelch71]

What about writing strong long sentences? I find terse writing boring.

[@Azathoth43]

I take no issue with any of these tips but it saddens me that stories like The Lord of the Rings would never be published today.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for watching!

[@sarahlamoureux1454]

Taking the opposite advice, this is a video about helping me reach 50,000 words in my next NaNoWriMo novel.

[@jimbrentar]

I have a disagreement. Dialogue. It should sound natural. As a reader, I hate it when every character talks like an English major who knows and uses every piece of writing advice ever. It sounds phony. You need at least one character who says things like, "Um, you know, I did knock on his door. And like, nobody answered. I mean, what was I supposed to do?"