kill your darlings
/ˌkɪl jɔːr ˈdɑːrlɪŋz/
be willing to cut even your favorite passages if they don't serve the work
kill your darlings in a sentence
“That beautiful sentence? If it doesn't fit, delete it.”
Origin of kill your darlings
Attributed to Faulkner, Quiller-Couch, and others
Related Words
show, don't tell
convey through concrete detail rather than abstract statement
read aloud
testing prose by speaking it to catch awkward rhythms
tighten
remove unnecessary words while preserving meaning
expand
add detail, examples, or explanation where needed
cut
remove words, sentences, or sections that don't contribute
line edit
editing at the sentence level for clarity and style