Amputation

I've finished the rough draft of my novel. I jokingly titled it The Sergeant and His Submissive, but I can't think of anything else so that's what I'm going with for now. Anyhoo, when I was done I looked at my word count. 141,016. And I still have more to add. Uh-oh, that's no bueno. That's a big book. Readers might have a hard time getting through it and staying interested. Which means I might have to do something I've never done before. Cut out parts of my story. It hurts. It really does. Probably more so in this case because I'm so attached to the original version. I can't lose Clay on his knees, finally understanding his submission. I won't part with any of Logan's jealousy. (Oh yeah, this is a love story about two guys. Don't like it? Imagine me making my I don't care face.) I'll just die if I have to take out any of the dialogue.

But sadly, I will have to make some of those cuts. I'll have to decide which parts aren't necessary. Then I'll have to take the cursor, highlight sections and hit delete. I'm pretty sure I'll hear my computer scream in pain as those words are killed off and sent into the abyss.  Or maybe it'll sound like this poor guy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rfa_6pCJ4c

It's funny how we become so attached to words and scenes that parting with them makes us sad. Oh well. Maybe one day I'll release the extended edition.