We are struck by the use of one word in Hilary Mantel’s Booker-winning Wolf Hall. Wolf Hall is Mantel’s take on Thomas Cromwell, counselor to Henry VIII and one of England’s historical villains. Mantel has said that she was interested in Cromwell because while the public part of his life is well documented, his first […]

Why do writers overwrite? Which is to say, why do they/we use too many words. In our ten years of working with writers, we have made some observations. As follows: 1) Often, it is part of the process. It is necessary for some people to use lots and lots of words to establish what they […]

The sad part is that you can no longer rely on publishers to do this kind of line editing.  Time was when a reputable publisher who bought your book then went through it in exacting detail, suggesting broad changes as well as line edits.  Some writers fought with the editor at the publishing house over […]

I am in full pruning mode, cutting away at extraneous words with scissorhands. It is painstaking work. Some words like very and really – as in very exciting or really, really true – simply beg to be snipped. But others are hidden in the undergrowth and have to be studied from several angles before the cut […]