What Is Fluff in Writing? (And How to Avoid It)

There are several potential drawbacks to including fluff in writing. Eliminating fluff can elevate the quality of your content and make it much more enjoyable to read.

This blog post will provide an in-depth description of what fluff is, explain why it is wise to avoid it, and show you how you can remove it from your writing.

What Is Fluff in Writing?

In the context of content writing, the word fluff basically means filler, or unnecessary text that doesn’t add any value to the content. “Fluffy” writing is often characterized by:

• Sentences and paragraphs that go off-topic 
• Long, unnecessary descriptions
• Irrelevant information, facts, or statistics
• Meaningless generalities
• Superficial details

Some people believe that using fluff in their writing will make it seem more creative, profound, or interesting. Others might include fluff because they are getting paid per word, so longer writing equals more money. There are also some who believe that longer articles will rank higher on search engines and be shared more.

But the truth is, most people do not like to read content that is full of fluff. If you want to be a respected writer, you should try and make sure everything you write adds value to your content.

Why Should You Avoid Fluff?

Content writers should always strive to make readers feel like their time is valued. Most readers are looking for a particular piece of information and want clear, concise, and to-the-point content that answers their questions. If you prioritize fluff over readability, you run the risk of boring the reader – or worse, making them feel disrespected. They may move on to something else before they have gotten to the main point of the content.

Search engines also don’t like fluff. If you want to write for search engine optimization (SEO), more is not always better. Bounce rate is important for online content, so if a lot of people navigate away from your page without taking any action, SEO will be adversely affected. Fluff-filled content is also less likely to follow Google’s E-E-A-T framework, which is used to judge the quality of content. The lower the E-E-A-T score, the lower the content will rank on search engine results pages. This could mean less traffic, fewer clicks, and fewer conversions.

How to Avoid Fluff in Writing

Before you even get started, it is best to consider what you want to write. Make a plan or outline before you get started, then do the writing, and finally check over it again after you are finished. Remember to consider who your target audience is and make sure you are writing for them.

Here are some of the best ways to avoid fluff in your writing.

1. Write Concisely

Make sure your introduction gets right to the point. Avoid unnecessary modifiers, introductory phrases, and irrelevant details.

Once you have decided what you will be writing about, stick to your subject. While different styles of writing have different goals, every piece of content writing should stay on topic. For instance:

Many years ago, when I decided I wanted to make the best marinara sauce, I thought back to all the TV shows I watched about farmers who grew high-quality tomatoes in Italy. ✘

To make the best marinara sauce, start with high-quality tomatoes. ✔

2. Be Precise

Avoid wordy expressions or descriptions and try to be precise by providing only meaningful details, statistics, or arguments. For example:

A lot of younger people who are still in school like to read stories about wizards, dragons, and other magical things. ✘

Approximately 65% of people aged 10–16 enjoy reading fantasy. ✔

3. Use the Active Voice

The active and passive voice both have their place in writing, but it is often better to use the active voice. With the passive voice, the subject receives the action. By contrast, with the active voice, the subject carries out the action. Sentences that use the active voice tend to contain fewer words and are generally easier to read. For example:

The lady was stung by a bee. ✘

The bee stung the lady. ✔

4. Avoid Redundancies

Redundant phrases are made up of two or more words that essentially mean the same thing. There are numerous redundant phrases that you may use all the time, but they should be avoided in quality writing. You don’t need to repeat yourself! For instance:

Each and every time you use this new innovative technique, the fear and foreboding you feel about writing fiction novels will be completely annihilated. ✘

Every time you use this innovative technique, the foreboding you feel about writing novels will be annihilated. ✔

5. Edit Your Work

As you begin writing, don’t worry too much about the issues mentioned above – just get everything you want to write down. Once you have finished, take a break. Then, read over everything again. This is when you can begin the editing process; pay attention to potential fluff, and cut any of it out.

Becoming A Freelance Writer

If you’d like to better understand how to write without fluff, we have a course that can show you all of that and more. Becoming A Freelance Writer will teach you how to be an expert content writer and you can even gain experience with our publishing guarantee.

Alternatively, if you are more interested in becoming a proofreader or editor, we have courses that can help build those skills as well.

If you’re not sure if any of these careers are for you, you can try any of them for free.