A favorite mantra in the writing world is that you have to ‘kill your darlings.’  The thought process goes something like this:  Whatever it is that you’re most attached to in your book or writing probably represents a phrase or scene in which the author took center stage, instead of the story.  This ‘darling’ represents a blind spot for the writer, and a departure from the tale being told.  Therefore, it must be chopped.

I’ve always considered myself fairly ruthless when it came to darling cutting, because I see myself as a medium by which the story is told.  In the past, when a phrase or expression drew too much praise from my readers, I considered it carefully and chopped it out if necessary.

But no one ever told me that killing my darlings could extend to chopping away at entire scenes and characters.

Imagine for a moment, a computer screen filled with images of adorable kittens, bouncy puppies, teeny tiny baby bunnies, and a infant octopus or two.  Hey, I like baby octopi!

Now imagine that all these creatures have been lovingly cared for by you, and nurtured to their present state of health and happiness.  You’ve even given them names.

Now look each one in the eyes, and make up your mind that it’s got to die.

You see what I mean?  It’s one thing to cut out a phrase here or there.  It’s something else entirely to whop off whole sections of the book, scenes that had a life of their own.

Well, I haven’t got the guts.  True, they must get out of this novel, must go find their home somewhere else.  To that end, I’m offering up my darlings for adoption.  Free to a good home, no adoption fee required!  Watch for spotlights here on each individual darling cut from Popcorn, and leave an application in the comments if you’re interested.  The darlings thank you for your interest!