Before cherubs, I was the writer whose articles were always at least 1,000 words over the word count. Every. Single. Time.
What I thought was good writing, flooded with adjectives, qualifiers and “therefores,” was far from it in the journalism world.
Cherubs taught me that brevity could be even more powerful.
A lead, or lede, should get straight to the point. As the program taught me, it’s better to KISS (keep it short and simple) than to KILL (keep it long and laborious). I looked back at the 17 articles I had written for my high school publication, The New Trier News. Shoot.
After running back to Jones Hall after the Fourth of July parade, I stared at my keyboard for a half hour before I started writing.
I had too many ideas. How could I put the spectators’ reactions, the tumblers’ flips and the unpredictable weather into one 500-word article? After a few hours of writing, and even more of editing, I finished. I had 527 words. Not 1,000 words over the count, but 27.
The 30 minutes I spent frozen at my laptop was progress.
Full confession: The first draft of this piece was over double the word count. But believe me, you’re not missing anything. All the most important ideas are still here.
Cherubs taught me how to edit, how much to cut, and when to stop.
