Watching for Your Word Hiccups

When I was 15, I went through a "like" stage. You know, like when you use the word like after every word. Like I went to a party and there was, like, this guy there, and you know, like, he was really, like, nice.

My mother effectively broke me of the habit after a few days. Because every time I said the word "like," she interrupted me and pointed it out--every, you know, like, time--which was annoying, so . . . it retrained my brain. Bad habit solved.

But it doesn't mean I no longer have word hiccups. They just appear in my writing now. Take the word "seemed." I do a search for it in every book. Because any time--ANY time--it appears, you can eliminate it.

"It seemed like he was the only one in the school building."

Now, I know why I might put the word "seemed" there. Because it only SEEMED that way, when, in fact, the crazed serial killer was having a tuna sandwich in an upstairs classroom. However, from the character's POV, he IS the only one, and so it's perfectly acceptable to say it without the seemed. Better yet, because I know my sloppy writing is behind the use of the word, why not reexamine the sentence and re-do it altogether? The building echoes. His footsteps reverberate . . . the building is dark, the lockers menacing. THEN the serial killer can pop out later, tuna fish breath and all.

My other word hiccup is "just." "It was just that he didn't know how he felt about the sandwich." What the HELL is that word doing in there? Not necessary.

Another one--that other word in there: "felt." Felt means I TOLD the reader how my character felt. Can't I show it? She didn't "feel" sad. Instead, she didn't get out of bed, tissues strewn all over the floor.

What word hiccups do you, like, struggle with?