Look up into the sky and find the fluffiest cloud you can see. It's probably large and "poofy." But if you condensed it down, there wouldn't be much substance there. Well, fluffy writing is the same way! It's large (fills up a lot space on paper), but doesn't have much substance to it. Since your goal is to be an effective writer, you want to avoid the "fluff" as much as you can!
You're probably asking yourself, "What exactly is fluffy writing?" and that question is important. If you know what it is, you know what to avoid. Below are a few examples of "fluff."
The following phrases/sentences are things to stay away from in your writing.
1.) "Let me tell you..." (You're doing the writing, so it's understood that you'll tell it.)
2.) "Let me explain this." (It's expected in your writing that you'll explain your topic.)
3.) "As I will show..." (You're the author, so you're in charge! There's no need to state this.)
4.) "I believe that..." (Since this writing is coming from you, it's implied that this is what you believe.)
5.) "As I've shown..." or "As I've explained..." (There's no need to state this, unless someone else did the "showing" or "explaining," the reader knows that you showed/explained these things.)
Sometimes it may be hard to not use these phrases. But you're all good writers, so you can always find a different way to state what you're trying to say in a strong, effective, compelling way!
Now, look back at something you have recently wrote (email, homework, letter) and share where you may have found some "fluff" or share your thoughts on this topic.
8 comments:
Looking back at the assignment I recently did on proofreading. Exercise 15-1 was to re-write the sentences using fewer words. This was a good example of fluffy writing.
Fluffed: A bag of peanuts cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.
Un-Fluffed: A bag of peanuts cost about $1.
Lia Muth
Let me tell you something; this is my favorite vacation island.
This is my favorite vacation island.
Deidra W.
1. Let me explain that 2 + 2 = 4.
2. 2 + 2 = 4
Maria C. Torres
Some people write "fluffy" to get up to the amount of words an assignment might require. Because they can't come up with more information to write they fill up the page with "fluff" words.
Melissa Lobsinger
This topic is interesting. However, I don't actually right fluff, I speak it. I'm always saying let me tell you, when you already know I'm going to tell you.
CWillis
When I looked back at pretty much all of my assignments I have noticed a lot of fluffy writing.
Looking back in my assignment I saw lot's of fluffy writing.
SHENEA WALKER
I have to admit I use a lot of "fluff" in my writing, I didn’t know until now that I wasn’t allow to reinforce my state with this phrases or sentences such us “ let me tell you,” “I believe that,” or “as I’ve shown you”. But It is good to learn new things every day, and begin to applied this rules in my writing.
Roxana Alvarez
March 10, 2010
I haven’t written anything lately that’s fluffy, however I have written something that I didn’t explain my thought properly.
KByfield
Post a Comment