Kill Your Darlings to Write Killer Copy

“In writing, you must kill your darlings.”

– William Faulkner

If you’ve ever taken a collegiate-level creative writing class, you’ve probably heard the adage to “kill your darlings.” No, this doesn’t mean going out and murdering your loved ones. It means to rid your writing of unnecessary storylines, sentences, details, and repetitive words. In other words, all that “fluff” your editor has been bitching about.

And while you might adore that phrase or paragraph, they can actually get in the way of the reader’s point of view. When writers disregard the reader’s needs for our own sake, it does our audiences a great disservice.

So how can you find your darlings and how does killing them off lead to effective copywriting? We’ve got you covered.

How to Find Your Darlings

Unfortunately, the definition of “darlings” implies that you’re blind to them. The good news is that you don’t have to hunt them down yourself. A trusted friend, editor, or even beta-reader can do the dirty work for you.

A tool that I swear by is Hemingway. Just like the app’s namesake, this program will condense meandering, complex sentences into clear, bold content.

One essential thing to keep in mind is that critique is never personal. It’s meant to be helpful and show you what did and did not work. However, when you’ve written something you absolutely love, hearing that you should cut it is hard to stomach.

It’s tough to handle, I know! When a phrase or sentence makes perfect sense to you but throws the reader off course, they’ve just tripped over one of your darlings. And I’m not just talking about the kind of sentences one reader won’t understand and 10 people do. I’m referring to the one that 10 people don’t understand and only you, the writer, grasp.

That tricky phrase/sentence/paragraph? It’s got to go. Redundancy, fluff, purple prose, and unnecessary information all need to go.

BUT you don’t have to kill your darlings altogether.

Trust Me, It’ll Be Okay

Don’t want to destroy your darlings? Instead of murdering them, you can simply move them.

That’s right! Create a Google Doc that’s reserved for your beloved sentences, phrases, paragraphs, etc.

After some time, revisit your darlings with a fresh pair of eyes. Remove what’s unnecessary, revamp your copy, and ensure it’s crystal clear to the reader. After your hard work, you can find your darling a new home.