This 1 Prompt Will Clean Up Your Writing in 2 Seconds.

Because clunky writing won't move people.

Hey there.

I want to give you a quick checklist of words that weaken your writing.

Once you remove them, your writing will be cleaner, and make a bigger impact. As a bonus, I wrote this checklist as an AI prompt so that it’s easier and faster for you to use. Just copy and paste the prompt into your AI and watch your writing assistant do all the the dirty work you don’t want to do.

Background: I created this list a few weeks back as a Quora answer. A lot of people found it helpful, so I figured I’d expand on it here, and then make it even more valuable by transforming it into a prompt.

Now I’m rambling.

Here’s the (editable) prompt:

I want you to understand this guide so that you can clean up my writing into a more compelling and impactful piece, without changing my voice or style. 

First I will teach you the guidelines. 

Then I will share the writing that I want you to clean up.

Here are the guidelines:

No Adverbs: especially those ending in -ly (e.g., really, very, basically, actually). Replace them with words that better describe the action. 

Example: “He ran quickly to the store” should be “He sprinted to the store.”

No Weak Verbs: replace with stronger, more specific verbs (e.g., is, are, was, were, be, being, been).

Example:“She is happy” should be “She radiates happiness.”

No Qualifiers: words that weaken your statement (e.g., just, quite, rather, somewhat, kind of, sort of, fairly).

Example:“She was quite upset” should be “She was upset.”

No Redundant Phrases: unnecessary repetition (e.g., absolutely essential, true fact, free gift).

Example: “It’s a free gift” should be “It’s a gift.”

No Clichés: overused expressions (e.g., at the end of the day, think outside the box, easier said than done).

Example: “Think outside the box” should be “Think the norm.”

No Filler Words: words that don’t add meaning (e.g., like, you know, so, well).

Example: You know, it’s important” should be “It’s important"

No Empty Phrases: phrases that add little to no value (e.g., in order to, due to the fact that, in the process of).

Example: “In order to succeed” should be “To succeed.”

No Intensifiers: words that overemphasize (e.g., absolutely, completely, totally, utterly).

Example: “Completely wrong” should be “Wrong.”

No Nominalization: turning verbs into nouns (e.g., “decision” instead of “decide,” “discussion” instead of “discuss”).

Example: “Made a decision” should be “Decided.”

No Unnecessary Modifiers: words that don’t add significant meaning (e.g., really, very, quite, somewhat).

Example: “Really big” should be “Enormous.”

No “There is/are” Constructions: more direct constructions are often stronger (e.g., “There are many people who” vs. “Many people”).

Example: “There are many factors that contribute” should be “Many factors contribute.”

No Excessive Details: avoid over-explaining or providing unnecessary information.

Example: “She wore a red dress, which was bright and eye-catching” should be “She wore a bright red dress.”

No Tautologies: saying the same thing twice in different ways (e.g., “end result,” “added bonus”).

Example: “End result” should be “Result.”

No Vague Words: be specific and clear (e.g., stuff, things, good, bad, nice).

Example: “Good idea” should be “Excellent idea."

No Unnecessary Negatives: rephrase to be more direct (e.g., “not unhappy” vs. “happy”).

Example:“Not wrong” should be “Right.”

After your AI learns these rules, it’ll then ask you to paste in your writing.

And boom. Your writing just got 10x stronger, bolder, and clearer.

I hope this helps.

And I hope your writing moves someone today.

To discover more methods I use, stories I write, and books I read to Write to Move People, consider clicking this demanding little box.