When a nonsense word “really” makes sense.

I talk all the time about how certain words should be cut… words like “really”, “just”, “very”, etc. They don’t tend to add anything to the piece and usually cause the reader to slow and the meaning of the sentence to get muddied.

But, as is the curse with all suggestions/rules/whatever in writing, there are cases where you want to keep them.

I just stumbled across an example, so I figured I’d share.

In the book I’m working on, I have this…

I walked.
Didn’t know how long.
Didn’t know how far.
Didn’t fucking care.
A dim awareness of the repeated passing of a cold light in an uncaring sky.
Everything else, lost in a haze.
The dull thudding of my heel striking pavement was the only indication that some part of me still carried on.

Which is fine, but reading it, there feels like there’s something off in the rhythm  of the thing.  So I add “really” to the fourth line, and it’s like adding a hidden exclamation point to the thing.

I walked.
Didn’t know how long.
Didn’t know how far.
Didn’t really fucking care.
A dim awareness of the repeated passing of a cold light in an uncaring sky.
Everything else, lost in a haze.
The dull thudding of my heel striking pavement was the only indication that some part of me still carried on.

There’s just a wonderful satisfaction to the way that reads now.

So, there you go.