Many writers have heard the advice to “kill your darlings” to become a better writer. It’s vague and can easily be misunderstood.

In today’s episode, Rekka and Brian break it down to dispel the confusion.

* It doesn’t mean kill off your protagonists;

* It doesn’t mean rewrite a sentence you love until you hate it;

* It means be willing to do what’s necessary to improve your story, and put aside your ego to hear the advice for what it is;

* That can be removing a scene or rewriting a section, or even starting over;

* Not mentioned in the episode, it can also mean losing a character who isn’t serving the story (by combining two similar or redundant characters, for example)

* Yet don’t be intimidated into killing your darlings if it’s not appropriate advice;

* If you feel strongly, ask yourself why, maybe get a second opinion, and be ready to kill that darling anyway.

You can now support Brian and Rekka’s podcast on Patreon!

Patron rewards include a monthly “ramble cast” in which Brian and Rekka sit down to discuss a movie (and then very probably veer directly off-course). Trimmed from today’s episode were 15 minutes of bonus audio (mostly griping about Batman Ninja) that only patrons will hear!