You got it wrong. You don't tell people the word count of your published product. No. If you really want to be boring, you tell them the word count of the day - before you rewrite and throw out more than half of the words that were written.
If writers want to be more interesting they would say "Today I scrapped 1,000 words that I deemed wrong, superfluous, or just plain silly."
But then I'd have to count all the words I rejected. I don't want to look at them again. My way I just read the little number at the bottom of the document. Am I too lazy to be boring?
You don't want to tsll people the word count of your finished work because anything over three hundred words scares readers off. Or maybe that's 300 pages.
I don't think you understand the word count game. You do the crappy first draft and immediately look at the number of words. You proudly tell everyone you wrote that many words. Who cares if you edit them all out on rewrite? He who has rhe most words on the crappy first draft wins.
I don't want to know that they got rid of words; I want to know why those 1000 words weren't any good -- what makes a writer look at what they've written and recognize that it's not right. I think the rewriting process is more interesting than the writing process.
Speaking solely for myself, there are many reasons why I remove or rewrite words. In no particular order: -- Move plot in unsatisfying direction. -- Actions don't fit character or conflict with earlier actions. (Dead men can't cook dinner, etc.) -- When re-read. the passage, how do I say this?, sucks. -- I realize I have written something I read. -- Grammatical problems. Unclear or vague language. -- Forced Art -- Just not good enough, but difficult to say why.
You got it wrong. You don't tell people the word count of your published product. No. If you really want to be boring, you tell them the word count of the day - before you rewrite and throw out more than half of the words that were written.
ReplyDeleteIf writers want to be more interesting they would say "Today I scrapped 1,000 words that I deemed wrong, superfluous, or just plain silly."
But then I'd have to count all the words I rejected. I don't want to look at them again. My way I just read the little number at the bottom of the document. Am I too lazy to be boring?
ReplyDeleteYou don't want to tsll people the word count of your finished work because anything over three hundred words scares readers off. Or maybe that's 300 pages.
ReplyDeleteI don't think you understand the word count game. You do the crappy first draft and immediately look at the number of words. You proudly tell everyone you wrote that many words. Who cares if you edit them all out on rewrite? He who has rhe most words on the crappy first draft wins.
I don't want to know that they got rid of words; I want to know why those 1000 words weren't any good -- what makes a writer look at what they've written and recognize that it's not right. I think the rewriting process is more interesting than the writing process.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking solely for myself, there are many reasons why I remove or rewrite words.
ReplyDeleteIn no particular order:
-- Move plot in unsatisfying direction.
-- Actions don't fit character or conflict with earlier actions. (Dead men can't cook dinner, etc.)
-- When re-read. the passage, how do I say this?, sucks.
-- I realize I have written something I read.
-- Grammatical problems. Unclear or vague language.
-- Forced Art
-- Just not good enough, but difficult to say why.