I write long. Too long. My word counts tend to end up on the high end, or overshoot, the genre I’m writing for. Then I struggle to cut scenes and kill my darlings. Ugh.
I’m all for economy and for avoiding repetition, believe it or not. I love a tightly written short story or book. But not too spare. I like an occasional deviation or aside. After all – some of literature’s greatest insights come from these.
After walking away for a short bit, I’m able to return and see more clearly what could be cut, or scenes that could be combined and shortened. It’s a weight off my shoulders to see the path towards tightening my story, and inevitably it makes my book better. But it’s not without pain that it must be done!
And now, before I blather more words on this topic, back to my book!
Carol Callicotte 