Note by Henrik Karlsson on Substack: "Early on I work on the macro structure of the essay and then I drop ideas as I try to make it come together. Toward the end, I try to drop things that make it more complex without adding much value. Also, I have a tendency to add too many metaphors so I need to cut a lot of thos…"

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I’m glad it lives, I can never tell when I’m up close. This one woke me in the middle of the night last night and screamed to me that I had to write it all through once more and kill like ten darlings, a midnight massacre. (Don’t you love how the midnight massacre is what brings it all to life?) I’m currently writing about the symbiotic relationship between monogamy and autonomy — a similar context to “coevolutionary loops.” Your essay has sparked many ideas - I’d love to tag you when I’m done and see if it resonates. :) Yes! Please do that. And yes, everything you cut makes what remains more potent. I often tell myself to cut at least 10 percent when I think it is done. Of that 10%, how do you decide what to cut? You write with such richness — do you cut language or ideas first? Early on I work on the macro structure of the essay and then I drop ideas as I try to make it come together. Toward the end, I try to drop things that make it more complex without adding much value. Also, I ha

Early on I work on the macro structure of the essay and then I drop ideas as I try to make it come together. Toward the end, I try to drop things that make it more complex without adding much value. Also, I have a tendency to add too many metaphors so I need to cut a lot of those to make the ones I keep more resonant. How do I decide? I guess I try to feel what the piece wants to be, and then cut things that aren’t that (while often adding small things that support the thing that strikes me as most core). I often cut A LOT of material. This one wasn’t so bad, but sometimes I cut 90 percent…

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