Ex-Size ...
The most recent short story I completed is set near Toronto. I had OnSpec in mind for the first submission try since the magazine is published in Canada. Their guidelines are very clear on maximum word count: 6,000.
My story clocked in at 6,371.
A little daunting. I had already pared it down quite a bit. Could I get rid of another page and a half? Looking at it another way, 16 words per page had to be cut. That seemed possible.
Red pen in hand, I went at it. Something strange happened. I enjoyed editing. Usually I can't stand it, not because I think every word is perfect the moment it flows from my fingertips. Just that I want to move on already to the next thing. But I buckle down and do it, again and again and again.
This time, it was like a game. Word search with a scalpel. Tight sentences became snare drums. I looked hard then harder eventually cut two whole sentences. The words helped, but not enough. Like party crashers, they weren't missed after they were gone.
A new strategy for editing? On the next story, I'll pretend I need to cut the text down by a certain percentage and see if it works.
My story clocked in at 6,371.
A little daunting. I had already pared it down quite a bit. Could I get rid of another page and a half? Looking at it another way, 16 words per page had to be cut. That seemed possible.
Red pen in hand, I went at it. Something strange happened. I enjoyed editing. Usually I can't stand it, not because I think every word is perfect the moment it flows from my fingertips. Just that I want to move on already to the next thing. But I buckle down and do it, again and again and again.
This time, it was like a game. Word search with a scalpel. Tight sentences became snare drums. I looked hard then harder eventually cut two whole sentences. The words helped, but not enough. Like party crashers, they weren't missed after they were gone.
A new strategy for editing? On the next story, I'll pretend I need to cut the text down by a certain percentage and see if it works.
posted by Todd Wheeler at 7/17/2007 01:46:00 PM
6 Comments:
It's amazing what we can find to toss when the story HAS to be shortened. I recently trimmed one by 171 words to take it to 500 exactly, and was shocked at how easy it was.
It's always good to have a goal. :)
Let the red ink flow like wine. Dance to the Bacchanalia orgy of editing. Or mix your metaphores in a cuisinart. Your choice.
Good job, Todd.
Cheryl: Yes, indeed. Which makes me wonder how well it will work when I merely want to edit in that way rather than have to do it.
Thanks Steve. Never mix, never worry.
I hear that 10% is a good rule. Although it depends on if you write lean or kitchen-sink the first draft.
I began to get the same way when I started writing micro-fic (particularly the 120-word stories for Black Box). Even my Sporty Spec piece had to be trimmed about 70 words or so to squeak in at about 998.
Sounds like a good rule, Cheryl. I write leaner than I should. But then, I also procrastinate cutting things I know need to go.
Camille: With flash fiction, knowing what the limit to begin with made it easier for me to keep it close to that number or slightly over.
I wonder if that would work for longer stories. More likely, I'd be obsessively checking the word count every three sentences.
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