How Freelance Writers Can Avoid Fluff and Filler in Their Work

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It's something that freelance writers can all relate to at some point in their careers: sitting in front of a laptop or PC screen, a project partially finished. Reaching the required word count seems an almost impossible feat - no matter the amount of research. When the project does get finished, it might meet the required word count, but just barely, with some filler and fluff included, despite the writer's best intentions. If you find yourself facing the prospect of fluff and filler more than you would like to in your freelance writing, there are some tactics to consider.

Write what you know.

In a world fraught with troubled economies, it only makes sense that you'd want to secure as much freelance writing work as possible - especially if it's your primary source of income. This, then, might mean that you take on project topics that you're not necessarily familiar with. From a positive view, it's a way for your to learn new things.

However, a good rule to follow is to never take projects that you can't reasonably complete with a high degree of "already-there" knowledge. For example, your primary niche is lifestyle articles, and you accept a project where you have to write automotive articles that are at least 500 words apiece. Chances are that fluff and filler are going to sneak their way in while you attempt to weave in whatever you've gleaned from research.

Before you write, create an outline.

Even if you're only writing within whatever niche/s you specialize in, it can be all too easy to just jump in without a set plan in place. That can lead to a more conversational tone, which, just as in verbal conversations, inevitably leads to repetition and generalities. An outline will not only help you set your focus, point by point, it'll help you line up an approach to any research you need to do, speaking of which...

Don't overdo it.

Fluff and filler isn't just straying into repetition - it can also mean adding so much content that the work becomes overly saturated, with readers finding it all so cumbersome that they lose interest in getting beyond the first couple of paragraphs. Avoid that disheartening prospect by striving to keep things in what can be thought of as a "commuter zone" perspective. Assume your readership is commuting on public transit and only has just so much time to read/absorb your work.

Edit with confidence.

It's when you think you've finished a freelance writing project that the fluff and filler elimination really begins. Sure, you'd like to just be done with the whole thing and submit it (after all, the spell checker says you're good to go!) but that's just not good practice. Maybe you used a phrase pretty much the same way across several paragraphs. Or, you might notice that you've used too many instances of "however." Windows users, save yourself some time by finding discrepancies via Ctrl F.

Go back once, twice, even three times, and comb through your work with an editor's eagle-eyed approach. It takes discipline, but as you get used to that, and the art of writing succinctly, you can look forward to a fluff and filler-free future.

Content source: my own blog - please click the image below for the link!