My gud writing just about ruined this piece.\u00a0 Thank goodness I was forced to cut 300 words.<\/p>\n
Just to make sure I wouldn\u2019t lose even one gem…not one polished phrase…I copied the total story into a new file.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll keep it forever,\u201d I promised myself.<\/p>\n
Then I settled down to hard, painful work.\u00a0 One after another, I sliced and hacked away clever phrases and perfect adjectives. \u00a0To speed up the process, I lopped off complete paragraphs.<\/p>\n
And much to my surprise, as clever and well-written as they were, I\u2019m glad they\u2019re gone.\u00a0 Not only will the piece be short enough to please the editor, but it has punch.\u00a0 Vitality. \u00a0It\u2019s not bogged down with extra weight.\u00a0 Like the day I realized my clothes were hanging better, and I knew without stepping on the scales that I had lost five pounds.\u00a0 I hate to admit it, I\u2019m a better writer without all those words.<\/p>\n
Now, can I carry this new conviction with courage and delete my sacred \u201cback-up file?”<\/p>\n
Maybe…tomorrow.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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