A few days ago I reported that I was editing my novel with the goal of reducing the nearly 109,000 word manuscript down to  less than 100,000.

Today I can report that I succeeded in that goal.

After two passes of edits, the manuscript went from 108,952 words to 98,727 — a reduction of 10,225 words!

I have to say I’m amazed that I could do it. I actually found the process much easier than I expected—even fun. I knew that by cutting out redundancies and extraneous details and dialogue that I was making the manuscript stronger. I was also able to fix various issues I discovered, such an inconsistencies and minor errors. Of course, I also implemented some suggestions from my beta reader to make the main character more likable.

I still have some editorial revisions to make, some suggestions to review, and I’ve decided to restructure the first three chapter to help create a better hook for readers.  But, I have to say, I’m excited about the progress that has been made, and, as corny as this sounds, I’m proud of myself for succeeding cutting as much as I have.