Any tips on avoiding or editing out filter words/phrases? It annoys the hell out of me every time I type “She watched” “She heard” “She saw” but I don’t know how else to say some things without using them so I leave them in to come back and fix later. Also, is there a way to use “she thought” that doesn’t get repetitive? I often dip into my characters personal thoughts or understanding of situations and I don’t know how else to express it without using “thought” but I’m worried it gets repetitive and redundant like other filter words
Guide: Understanding Filter Words
Filter words are words that add unnecessary explanation to an action or thought. Because the explanation is redundant, the filter word puts distance between the reader and the action being performed. This is a particular problem for first-person and third-person limited/close, because the last thing you want is distance between the reader and anything the character is doing.
Common filter words are: felt, watch, saw, knew, heard, thought, touched, wondered, noticed, realized, believed.
HOWEVER, these words are not filter words by default. These words only become filter words when they “filter” an action or thought through unnecessary explanation.
The best way to tell if a word is filtering an action or thought is to see if you can do the following:
1) Remove the filter word and any pronouns or conjunctions that go with it.
2) Reword the sentence without adding a synonym or other replacement.
3) Does it still make sense?
Example #1 - “She knew the way to Ted’s house by heart.”
1) She knew the way to Ted’s house by heart.
2) The way to Ted’s house by heart.
3) No, this does not make sense and rewording doesn’t help.
In Example #1, “knew” is not a filter word.
Example #2 - “As she drove down the road, the sky was full of angry gray clouds and she knew it was going to rain.”
1) As she drove down the road, the sky was full of angry gray clouds and she knew it was going to rain.
2) As she drove down the road, the sky was full of angry gray clouds. It was going to rain.
3) Yes, this makes sense.
In Example #2, “knew” is a filter word.
Example #3 - “She relaxed on the park bench and watched the people walk by.”
1) She relaxed on the park bench and watched the people walk by.
2) She relaxed on the park bench and the people walk by.
3) No, this doesn’t make sense. Here, “watched” is the action being performed by the subject, so removing it removes meaning from the sentence.
In Example #3, “watched” is not a filter word.
Example #4 - “There were robins hopping around in the leaves, and he watched as one of them ate a worm and flew away.”
1) “There were robins hopping around in the leaves, and he watched as one of them ate a worm and flew away.”
2) “There were robins hopping around in the leaves. One of them ate a worm and flew away.”
3) Yes, this makes sense.
In Example #4, “watched” is a filter word.”
A Word About “She Thought”
When you’re describing your character’s thoughts, think of “she thought” the same way you’d think of “she said,” because it’s performing the same function. Much as we can eliminate overuse of “said” by varying tag placement, using action tags, or eliminating the tag entirely, we can do the same with “thought.” When you’re inside the character’s head, your reader understands that these are thoughts. You don’t need to tell the reader that.
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