Editing Tips

I've been doing a lot of editing over the last week or so, and have found some common mistakes in not just my writing, but that of others. I thought I'd share a few simple rules that I've repeatedly seen broken.

• Keep it simple. Don't use four words, or even three, when two will do. And don't use 12 letters when 5 will do. Big words don't impress anyone, except perhaps the people who publish dictionaries and the judges of grade three spelling bees. 
• Get rid of qualifiers. Actually, really, sort of, very, just (that's my big one) do nothing to improve your writing. 
• Get rid of all--or at least most--of your adverbs. You know, those pesky "-ly" words. Use a stronger verb instead. Not "she said haltingly," but "she stammered."
• Get rid of most of the adjectives. Used sparingly, adjectives can add rich details to your prose, but piling them on will lessen the impact of your description.
  

And a few bonus proofreading tips:

• PITQ: Punctuation inside the quotation marks. Always.
• You're all right, not alright. Always.
• It's till, not 'til. Till is a perfectly good word (as is until), but 'til is just plain old-fashioned.