Writers, do you kill your darlings?

The way "darlings" was defined for me was...
Imagine yourself editing your manuscript, your gaze is sweeping across the page from phrase to phrase. But then ... But then you find a phrase so brilliant that is shines so brightly that it overwhelms the page. That's a 'darling'.

Do you need to kill it?

Sometimes darlings can be mistaken for a clever turn of phrase. It takes skill to properly distinguish between them. What helps me is asking myself, does this piece of writing add a key ingredient to my manuscript? If the answer is yes then it is a clever turn of phrase. If no, then it is a darling. Rather than killing it, you can simply remove it from the manuscript and store it in a file folder or computer document. Who knows, one day it may fit nicely -- as a clever turn of phrase -- in a future manuscript.

More ...

Sometimes "darlings" can be longer than a phrase. Erin Bowman has written an article about characters and entire "darling" scenes and her difficulties with killing them.

"Kill your darlings" is popular advice in writing circles. But which author was the first to offer this advice? Some say William Faulkner. Others say Stephen King. Still others say (fill in the blank with the name of your favourite gifted author). Forrest Wickman penned a clever article on the origins of the phrase.

Marcie Colleen wrote a helpful article on how-to kill your darlings.

R J Blain cautions writers to think carefully before the kill. A helpful checklist is included in this article. In conclusion, R J writes:  'But I do not believe that cutting for the sake of cutting, or because some internet quote told you to, is really an answer.'

I usually find my darlings at the beginning of my manuscript, when I'm attempting to get a feel for what I'm trying to write --
when I'm trying to find a way in. And it's interesting to note, that a darling doesn't always have to sparkle like diamonds -- sometimes they are dull like cheap rhinestones. But they never serve the story.

Gabriela Pereira concludes her article on this subject with:  'We must believe that the best is still in us, that if we sacrifice those darlings, it opens up room on the page for something better. Killing our darlings is an act of faith.'

Sharing my author journey...
Some of the best support (in terms of growing my author career) has come from other authors. One of the first authors to help me was Celia Leaman. Sunday, July 19th is a special day for Celia. She will be launching...

Book Review Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

A friend says, “I just finished reading Gone Girl. Have you read it? You have to read it. I know you'll like it.”

I've known this friend for many years and she knows me well. And so I buy a copy.

I don't read the back cover blurb. I just flip the book open and begin to read and immediately I'm thrown into a mystery. The narrator has little rhyme to his life? He usually wakes on a whim. Yet, today he has woken precisely at 6 AM.

Why? What kind of a career can afford him that type of leeway?

Then I read page 5: 'I used to be a writer.'

The narrator is a once-upon-writer, his wife (Amy) is a writer and so are is in-laws. In fact, Amy's parents have created a children's series inspired by their daughter. No, more then inspired by. The fictional Amy seems to be a new and improved version of the real Amy.

As Amy writes: 'I can't fail to notice that whenever I screw something up, Amy does it right.' (P. 36)

My friend knows of my passion to become a writer. I pause to wonder if this overabundance of writers is the reason my friend thought I would enjoy this book.

But it's more then that...

Gone Girl is about a relationship. The couple is young and attractive. The ingredients for a romance and yet it is a thriller.

'Isn't that what every marriage is, anyway? Just a lengthy game of he-said, she-said?' (p. 544)

I love stories that throw you for a loop like that. You wiggle your way into the comfortable pages. Everything is so familiar. You feel so at home. And then wham bam you're sent reeling. Stephen King writes this type of story very well and so does Gillian Flynn.

I admire other aspect of Ms. Flynn's writing as well...

In chapter one the narrator wishes that he could be in his wife's head. Then in chapter two he is. He's reading her diary, in fact. How much more in her head can he get?

Ms. Flynn continues to play with her main characters in this manner. For example, Amy disappears in one chapter and Nick reappears in the next.

What is the overriding theme...?

A promising happy-ever-after marriage breaks down set against the US economy. An economy that was so promising but that is slowly sliding into bankruptcy—people are losing their jobs, grandiose malls echo from abandonment.

Everything is disappearing in this book: Amy, Nick's future, Nick's dad, Amy's parents' money...

Favourite quote...

'She chirps the last bit as if that were all to say about a book: It's good or it's bad. I like it or I didn't. No discussion of the writing, the themes, the nuances, the structure, Just good or bad. Like a hot dog.' (p. 377)

Back cover blurb:  On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and plans are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears. As the police begin to investigate, the town golden boy parades a series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter--but is he really a killer?

More...

YouTube interview with author, Gillian Flynn 

Next Monday...

Writers, do you kill your darlings?

Author journey...

I cared for children in a Day Care setting for approximately fourteen years...