Note to self

[truepenny]

Next time you're getting ready to submit a manuscript, will you for the love of platypi do a search and destroy find and replace on "moment"?

Because you practically use that word like a comma. Which it isn't.

::beats head gently against desk::

Comments

[ivyblossom.livejournal.com]

Out of curiosity, what do you replace it with?

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

9 times out of 10, it can simply be deleted.

The 10th time, it can be left alone, because it's doing necessary work and is fine just as it is.

The same goes for "suddenly," another of my bêtes noires.

[papersky.livejournal.com]

I have a batch file called "very.exe" -- well, the name is self-explanatory. It highlights all my bad bad words and shames me into deleting most of them.

Every often I add words to it as I notice more.

Theoretically, I run it when I spellcheck a finished project.

[cathellisen.livejournal.com]

Oh, I need to do something like this so very, very badly.

No, really. If I type the word "nodded" again, I may just self-implode.

This is a good idea, although I will need to add a rather long list of bad words to my own little inventory, I suspect.

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

Really. That's mine--every other sentence has "really," sometimes more than once. I could almost do "delete all."

[jaylake.livejournal.com]

By the moment of inertia!

[ivyblossom.livejournal.com]

I've just started using a new piece of writing software (called avenir) that has a word frequency tool. I can see how that might be useful in light of your post. I have discovered that my current chapter (unfinished) has 9 instances of 'moment'. Oy.

Actually...

[jodi-davis.livejournal.com]

Is mine - I use it ALLLLL the time.