The following is a list of words I don't want to see in your writing, at least not very often. Kelly Gallagher, an English teacher and author, calls these 'dead words'.

-

- good

- very

- etc.

- gonna

-thing(s)

- got

- really

- kind of

- totally

- in conclusion

- a lot

- like

- I think

- so

- well (at the beginning of a sentence)

- I feel

- I believe

- in my opinion

- personally

-these/that/these/those (when used colloquially)

-

Only once you have proven that you can write without these words, will you be permitted to resurrect them occasionally if the context warrants.