Saving Your Darlings

Writers talk a lot about how important it is to be willing to "kill your darlings," but we don't always talk about HOW to do that. I can't tell you how many times I've critiqued work by someone who seems theoretically willing to kill darlings, but doesn't know how to do the emotional work of letting go of those sentences that they spent so many hours crafting into perfection. Here are some ideas:

1. Make a separate file for all your darlings to be saved in. This way, you can give yourself permission to still be emotionally attached to them without cluttering up your new draft with old stuff that doesn't fit anymore.

2. Remind yourself that writing is about storytelling. If your story is different now, that sentence may no longer fit. A friend once told me I had written "the perfect sentence." I was sad when I told her I had to cut it out in revision because it didn't fit anymore. She laughed and said that of course that happens, because a perfect sentence doesn't exist in isolation. it's only perfect because it fit with what the story was doing when it was doing the old thing. She was sure I could write another perfect sentence in the new draft.

3. Think about your favorite darlings in the work of other writers. Then try to rewrite those darlings into your own book. Are they any good there? No, probably not. Because any writer's darling is what expresses them perfectly, not you. You may actually be completely unaware of the sentences that are really your best because they are so clear and obvious to you. And this is as it should be.

4. Write a new book. I know I say this a lot, but I'm pretty sure there are people who still need to hear it, so I'm going to say it again. DON'T try to put your old darlings in the new book. Just write the story that needs to be told as clearly as possible, without consciously trying to craft beautiful phrases or sentences in it. It will be a better book based on what you have learned from all your revision before. I promise.

5. Imagine your darlings are old friends you loved when you were in high school. Then actually spend some time talking to your old friends. Are they the same as they were in high school? I hope not. They wouldn't be very interesting people if they were. Your darlings need a chance to grow and change, too. They may be completely unrecognizable in their new state, and that's a good thing.

6. Open a new document on your computer and refuse to let yourself look back at the words in the old document. Tell your story completely new, with all words that come from you now, as you understand the story now. (This may not work if you've memorized parts of your story, but it might help you see how the story needs to change--and the words are the first part in the new book). I know this can be painful and scary to do. Try it just with the first chapter to begin with and see what you think. I know several writers who swear by this method as a revision technique.